Genetics and the Future of Nature Politics

Phil Sutton

Sociological Research Online, 1999, vol. 4, issue 3, 154-158

Abstract: This article is concerned with the extent to which recent environmental campaigns against GM food trials are likely to be successful, and whether the symbolic protests that have typically characterised environmental activism will remain effective in the future. Although the recent direct actions have highlighted the continuing salience of ‘nature’ as a major source and symbol of political protest, the paper also considers whether the development of genetic technologies is creating new opportunities for collaborative collective actions across diverse new social movements. Following Beck's theory of the emergence of a ‘risk society’, sociologists have begun to see environmentalism and issues of ‘life’ politics (including genetic research and its commercialisation) as increasingly important in shaping the future direction of modern development, and the paper concludes with some thoughts on the convergence of the new ‘life politics’ with the nature politics of environmentalism.

Keywords: Genetic Engineering; Biotechnology; Environmentalism; Life Politics; Nature Politics; New Social Movements; Risk Society; Symbolic Protest (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1999
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:socres:v:4:y:1999:i:3:p:154-158

DOI: 10.5153/sro.334

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