Panel 9.14. Roundtable on Commons for Environmental and Climate Justice

Commons – global and local are witnessing a resurgence of interest from scholars, activists, and policymakers. Yet, this resurgence occurs within a context that is remarkably different from the context of the late 1980s and early 1990s when commons and common property gained prominence. The current context is characterized by an explosion of inequality, greatly exacerbated environmental and climate crisis, and increasingly powerful policy regimes captured by global political and economic elites. The effects of the polycrisis are especially intense within the context of resource governance and resource grab. This roundtable brings together a diverse group of scholars who have made unique contributions to the debates on the relationship between the commons and environmental justice, just sustainability, social causes of vulnerability, including the role of social and economic inequality in the constitution and governance of commons.

This roundtable will explore some of the following themes drawing on the expertise on the panel:
What lessons does the scholarship on urban commons and just sustainability offer for enhancing the commons scholars’ engagement with questions of justice?
How might unequal access to markets and other economic opportunities shape the governance and stewardship of commons in rural and urban areas?
What lessons can we draw from radical feminist scholarship to enrich our understanding of commons and commoning in the presence of deeply entrenched inequalities?
What frameworks, other than environmental and climate justice, might help scholars investigate effects of power and inequality in commons?

Julian Agyeman Professor, Urban & Environmental Policy & Planning, Tufts University
Sheila R. Foster, Professor, Climate School, Columbia University.
Prakash Kashwan, Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Brandeis University
Diana Ojeda Professor, International Studies and Geography; Director, Ostrom Workshop Commons Program, Indiana University
Jesse Ribot Professor Environment, Development & Health, School of International Services, American University
Moderator: Praneeta Mudaliar, Assistant Professor Geography, Geomatics and Environment, University of Toronto Mississauga”””