Green Backlash and Right-Wing Populism

Valentina Bosetti, Italo Colantone, Catherine E. De Vries and Giorgio Musto

No 26, GREEN Working Papers from GREEN, Centre for Research on Geography, Resources, Environment, Energy & Networks, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy

Abstract: This narrative review delves into the politics of climate policy, with specific focus on the so-called "green backlash". That is, rising resistance by voters, parties, and governments to the climate transition. We start by reviewing the literature on the political consequences of climate policies. The evidence points to a green backlash among citizens negatively affected by the decarbonization transition. Populist right forces emerge as main beneficiaries of the backlash. They tend to be more skeptical regarding anthropogenic climate change and less supportive of climate policies. Their electoral success has negative implications for countries' climate policy making and performance. Finally, we draw insights from the literature to reflect on what can be done to improve the political sustainability of climate policies.

Keywords: Climate policies; green backlash; right-wing populism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 27
Date: 2025
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