CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2008
| Author | Arabidze, Marina |
|---|---|
| Title | Emergence and Evolution of Environmental Movement in Georgia: Historical Perspective and Current Challenges |
| Summary | This particular research attempts to present the historical perspective of emergence and evolution of the Georgian environmental movement. Being the first study of this kind on Georgia the scope is broad attempting to construct the general picture without going too deep into detail. Social movement theory is used as a theoretical framework for the analysis. Events unfolding in the course of the movement formation are analyzed through political opportunities and mobilizing structures. The research roughly divides the timeline of movement existence into two periods. The environmental movement during the Soviet rule and after the regime change is analyzed separately. As the results of the study suggest the Soviet period environmentalism in Georgia mainly fits into the general description of movements active in post Soviet block. Distinct country specific characteristic is viewed in the lights of close ties with national liberation movement also active during that period. However, the independence fully altered the scene and with the influence of civil confrontation and ethnic conflicts the environmental movement followed the course of development different from the rest of the FSU and CEE countries. The post war movement that emerged as a response to international assistance and cooperation and partly as an attempt to counterweigh the policy of the government oriented towards economic development only is not similar to the Soviet time movement in many ways. Unlike the predecessor, it no longer enjoys widespread popularity among the population. Troubled by lack of funding and internal divisions, the focus of modern Georgian environmentalists is directed towards the development projects that bring the issue of environmental protection back into the spotlight, but only for the limited period of time. Economic development model of the country’s new government is emerging as a new challenge that the movement has to address. |
| Supervisor | Steger Tamara Shevaun |
| Department | Environment Sciences and Policy MSc |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2008/arabidze_marina.pdf |
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