c onnecting e nvironmentalism to d emocracy through e nvironmental s tewardship dana r. fisher...

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CONNECTING ENVIRONMENTALISM TO DEMOCRACY THROUGH ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor of Sociology, University of Maryland [email protected] www.drfisher.umd.edu @Fisher_DanaR FUNDED BY: USDA FOREST SERVICE NORTHERN RESEARCH STATION AND US NSF ULTRA-EX GRANT DEB-0948451 1

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Page 1: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

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CONNECTING ENVIRONMENTALISM TO DEMOCRACY THROUGH ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP

Dana R. FisherDirector, Program for Society and the EnvironmentProfessor of Sociology, University of [email protected]@Fisher_DanaR

FUNDED BY: USDA FOREST SERVICE NORTHERN RESEARCH STATION AND US NSF ULTRA-EX GRANT DEB-0948451

Page 2: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

2How does participating in environmental stewardship (like helping to plant a million trees) strengthen the roots of democracy?

Who participates in volunteer stewardship in our nation’s cities?  

Are these types of activities related to other kinds of environmental and civic participation?

How does the organizational structure of the activity relate to the nature of civic participation?

Page 3: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

Studying Urban Initiatives Aim to plant trees and

increase the canopy

Involves Public/private partnerships NYC and NY Restoration

Project: Million Trees NYC

DC and Casey Trees

Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Horticulturalist Society: Plant One Million Campaign

Explicit role for citizen volunteers to plant the trees and steward them in different capacities

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Page 4: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

4Varied Organizational Structures Central coordination in New York City

NGO Management through Casey Trees and citizen foresters in DC

Indigenous structure of local groups in Philadelphia

Page 5: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

5Studying Volunteer Stewardship In person survey of volunteers

Random selection from among the eligible adult volunteers in NYC (Philadelphia and Washington DC)

Response rate was very high

92.7% in NYC

98.7% in DC

?? In Philadelphia

Follow-up telephone interview with stratified sample

Page 6: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

6Geography of Survey Respondents(Home Zip Codes)

Page 7: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

Civic Action

Percent of Philly Steward

s

Percent D.C.

Stewards

Percent NYC

Steward

Percent US Pop

Signed a petition 71.1% 64% 54.9% 35.2%

Contacted an elected government representative

44.6% 44% 36.1% 22.3%

Attended a public, town, community board, or school meeting

57.8% 41% 39.5% 24%

Participated in a protest 7.2% 20% 12.8% *

6.1%

Contacted the Media to Express Views 24.1% 25.2% 19.0% 5.1%

Gave a speech 18.1% 26% 21.7% 4.4%

Held or ran for public office 2.4%* 1%* 6.5% .7%

Engaged in political discussion on the Internet 13.3% 28% 13.5% 5.4%

Worked for a political party 13.3% 11% 6.5% 18.7%

Comparison of Civic Engagement for Survey Respondents and National Sample Data

* Indicates NOT statistically significant.

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Page 8: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

8What Comes First??

Excluding voting and religious activities, environmental stewardship precedes the development of democratic citizenship

There is a reciprocal relationship between stewardship and civic engagement

Those who were active stewards for longer have also been more civically engaged for longer

Page 9: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

9Why do they do it?

“It’s always been important to me because I feel better, I feel healthier. I feel like I contribute something….I grew up on the Lower East Side where so many buildings were burned out or abandoned …that’s why I got involved with community gardens. So, that’s where it all started” (Maria, 52 years-old).

Page 10: C ONNECTING E NVIRONMENTALISM TO D EMOCRACY THROUGH E NVIRONMENTAL S TEWARDSHIP Dana R. Fisher Director, Program for Society and the Environment Professor

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Digging in the Dirt Strengthens the Roots of Democracy• In an era of financial strain, these hybrid

arrangements are playing a significant role in re-greening urban areas.

• Environmental stewardship serves as a gateway into democratic practice

• Environmental stewardship and civic engagement are deeply intertwined—in terms of individuals personal identities and associational lives.

• Organizational form of mobilizing structure may contribute to longer term differences in both civic participation and environmental outcomes (urban tree canopy etc.)

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Selected ResourcesFisher, Dana R., Erika S. Svendsen, and James J.T. Connolly. 2015 . Urban

Environmental Stewardship and Civic Engagement: How Planting Trees Strengthens the Roots of Democracy. Routledge Press. http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415723633/

Fisher, Dana R., Erika S. Svendsen, Joseph Waggle, Anya M. Galli, Sarah Low. 2015. “Under the Green Umbrella: A Census of Civic Environmental Stewardship Organizations in the City of Philadelphia.” PSE Whitepaper. Spring.

Fisher, Dana R. and Erika S. Svendsen. (2013). “Hybrid Arrangements within the Environmental State.” Routledge International Handbook of Social and Environmental Change. Lockie, Sonnenfeld and Fisher (eds). Routledge Press. 179-189.

Connolly, J. J., Svendsen, E. S., Fisher, D. R., & Campbell, L. K. (2012). Organizing urban ecosystem services through environmental stewardship governance in New York City. Landscape and Urban Planning, 1–9.

Fisher, D. R., Campbell, L. K., & Svendsen, E. S. (2012). The organisational structure of urban environmental stewardship. Environmental Politics, 37-41.