Nikolaj Schultz - Böcker

Under what conditions could ecology, instead of being one cluster of movements among others, organise politics around an agenda and a set of beliefs? Can ecology aspire to define the political horizon in the way that liberalism, socialism, conservatism and other political ideologies have done at various times and places? What can ecology learn from history about how new political movements emerge, and how they win the struggle for ideas long before they translate their ideas into parties and elections?In this short text, consisting of seventy-six talking points, Bruno Latour and Nikolaj Schultz argue that if the ecological movement is to gain ideological consistency and autonomy it must offer a political narrative that recognises, embraces and effectively represents its project in terms of social conflict. Political ecology must accept that it brings along division. It must provide a convincing cartography of the conflicts it generates and, based on this, it must try to define a common horizon of collective action. In order to represent and describe these conflicts, Latour and Schultz propose to reuse the old notions of ‘class’ and ‘class struggle’, albeit infused with a new meaning in line with the ecological concerns of our New Climate Regime. Advancing the idea of a new ecological class, assembled by its collective interests in fighting the logic of production and safeguarding our planet’s conditions of habitability, they ask: how can a proud and self-aware ecological class emerge and take effective action to shape our collective future?

Under what conditions could ecology, instead of being one cluster of movements among others, organise politics around an agenda and a set of beliefs? Can ecology aspire to define the political horizon in the way that liberalism, socialism, conservatism and other political ideologies have done at various times and places? What can ecology learn from history about how new political movements emerge, and how they win the struggle for ideas long before they translate their ideas into parties and elections?In this short text, consisting of seventy-six talking points, Bruno Latour and Nikolaj Schultz argue that if the ecological movement is to gain ideological consistency and autonomy it must offer a political narrative that recognises, embraces and effectively represents its project in terms of social conflict. Political ecology must accept that it brings along division. It must provide a convincing cartography of the conflicts it generates and, based on this, it must try to define a common horizon of collective action. In order to represent and describe these conflicts, Latour and Schultz propose to reuse the old notions of ‘class’ and ‘class struggle’, albeit infused with a new meaning in line with the ecological concerns of our New Climate Regime. Advancing the idea of a new ecological class, assembled by its collective interests in fighting the logic of production and safeguarding our planet’s conditions of habitability, they ask: how can a proud and self-aware ecological class emerge and take effective action to shape our collective future?

As a heatwave hits Paris, the author's entire existence is disrupted and disoriented by the effects of climate change. All his normal reference points are destroyed. To escape the heat and his growing anxieties, he flees to the small Mediterranean island of Porquerolles. But even in this idyllic setting, can he escape the harsh realities of the Anthropocene?Written as a fictionalized travelogue based on the author's own experiences, this inquiry into the issues raised by the climate crisis will be of interest to everyone concerned about the increasingly dire situation in which we find ourselves on our climate-damaged planet.

As a heatwave hits Paris, the author's entire existence is disrupted and disoriented by the effects of climate change. All his normal reference points are destroyed. To escape the heat and his growing anxieties, he flees to the small Mediterranean island of Porquerolles. But even in this idyllic setting, can he escape the harsh realities of the Anthropocene?Written as a fictionalized travelogue based on the author's own experiences, this inquiry into the issues raised by the climate crisis will be of interest to everyone concerned about the increasingly dire situation in which we find ourselves on our climate-damaged planet.