SYNTHESE (12MIN) Quelle action publique pour l'environnement ? SES Terminales (quand t'es pressé)

Summary

This script explores the environmental public policy action, discussing how environmental issues evolve from social concerns to public problems through political measures. It highlights key actors such as NGOs, political parties, and movements advocating for climate action. The script also discusses the tools used to tackle environmental issues, including regulation, taxation, and market-based solutions like emission quotas. Challenges at both national and international levels are examined, focusing on lobbying, conflicting policies, and the dilemma of climate justice, particularly between developed and developing countries.

Takeaways

• 😀 Environmental issues were not always seen as public problems but became public once political measures were involved.
• 😀 Actors like NGOs, environmental associations, and scientists have been crucial in raising awareness about environmental issues like biodiversity protection and climate change.
• 😀 Political parties, especially green parties, and social movements, such as youth climate movements, play an important role in pushing environmental issues to the political agenda.
• 😀 Howard Becker referred to these actors as 'entrepreneurs of cause' because they bring social issues to the public's attention and make them political problems.
• 😀 Environmental actors can cooperate or conflict with each other, such as through roundtable discussions, or face opposition when defending specific interests, like agricultural lobby resistance to the glyphosate ban.
• 😀 Public environmental action often follows a top-down approach, with international, regional, national, and local levels each playing a role in implementing measures.
• 😀 Key policy tools for combating climate change include regulation (setting environmental standards), taxation (imposing financial costs on polluters), and subsidies (encouraging non-polluting behaviors).
• 😀 The market for emissions quotas allows companies to buy and sell pollution allowances, helping to reduce overall emissions by gradually decreasing quotas over time.
• 😀 National and international environmental action faces challenges, including industrial lobbies, conflicting government policies (e.g., prioritizing jobs over environmental protection), and financial loopholes like tax exemptions for polluting industries.
• 😀 At the international level, environmental issues like climate change are complicated by the 'free rider' problem, where countries benefit from the efforts of others without taking action themselves.
• 😀 Developing countries argue that wealthier, historically polluting countries should take more responsibility for climate change, citing their historical contributions to global warming and requesting fewer obligations in international agreements.

Q & A

What makes an environmental problem become a public issue?

An environmental problem becomes a public issue when political measures are taken to address it, involving a range of stakeholders, including NGOs, political actors, and experts who push for public policies and debates.

What role do environmental NGOs play in addressing environmental issues?

Environmental NGOs raise awareness and advocate for actions on issues like biodiversity protection and pollution. They have been active since the 1960s and work alongside scientific experts to highlight environmental problems.

What is the significance of scientific experts in environmental action?

Scientific experts provide essential data and analysis, publishing reports (such as the IPCC reports) that inform public understanding and shape policy decisions regarding climate change and other environmental issues.

How do political parties and movements contribute to environmental action?

Political parties, especially ecological ones, and movements like 'Youth for Climate' push for environmental issues to be placed on the political agenda. They work to influence legislation and raise public awareness.

What is meant by 'entrepreneurs of cause' in the context of environmental action?

Entrepreneurs of cause, as defined by Howard Becker, are actors who bring a social issue to the forefront and transform it into a public issue. In environmental matters, these include NGOs, political parties, and activists who push for action on climate change and pollution.

What are the two types of relationships that actors in environmental policy can have?

The two types of relationships are cooperation and conflict. Actors may cooperate to co-construct policies or they may face conflict, especially when their interests clash, such as when environmental regulations oppose the interests of industries like agriculture.

What are the key tools used in environmental policy to address issues like climate change?

The key tools include regulation (imposing legal constraints), taxation (imposing environmental taxes), subsidies (rewarding non-polluting behaviors), and emissions trading (allocating pollution quotas to companies). Each has advantages and disadvantages.

How does taxation help in addressing environmental issues?

Taxation helps by internalizing environmental costs, such as taxing polluting activities. The revenue generated can fund environmental initiatives, but taxation can be unpopular, as seen in movements like the 'Yellow Vest' protests.

What is emissions trading, and how does it contribute to environmental goals?

Emissions trading involves allocating a set amount of pollution quotas to companies. If a company pollutes less, it can sell its unused quotas. If it exceeds its allocation, it must buy additional quotas. This system encourages gradual reductions in emissions over time.

What are the primary challenges to environmental public action at the national level?

National-level challenges include lobbying by industrial groups that resist environmental policies, contradictions between policies aimed at promoting employment and environmental protection, and fiscal loopholes that benefit polluting industries, like aviation.

What obstacles do international agreements on climate change face?

International climate agreements face challenges such as the free rider problem, where countries benefit from others' efforts without making their own, and the historical responsibility of developed countries, which are seen as more responsible for past pollution.