Workshop on Sociological Perspectives on Global Climate Change MAY 30 – 31, 2008 Report prepared by: Joane Nagel University of Kansas Thomas Dietz Michigan State University Jeffrey Broadbent University of Minnesota Sociology Program Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences National Science Foundation American Sociological Association 2010 Foreword As the National Academies of Science stated in a 2009 report: “Climate Change is one of the defining issues of the 21st century….Humans are challenged to find a set of policies, practices, and standards of behavior that provide long-term economic opportunities and improved quality of life around the world while maintaining a sustainable climate and viable eco-systems.”1 The social sciences have an important role to play in meeting these challenges, and sociologists have much to contribute to the global effort to understand the human dimensions of climate change and to design strategies for mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change. There is a growing recognition in the federal government and the scientific community about the value sociological perspectives, analytic tools and research methods can bring to this nationally and internationally important issue. To advance sociological research on global climate change, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded a two-day workshop in 2008 which brought together 40 sociology faculty, graduate students, and policy experts. Workshop participants were asked to answer two questions: what do we know and what do we need to know about the social dimensions of global climate change? This report is the result of their deliberations. The American Sociological Association (ASA) has joined the NSF to make print copies of this workshop report available to ASA members, other social scientists and the general public, under the auspices of the joint ASA-NSF Fund for the Advancement of the Discipline. ASA plans to continue this collaboration to disseminate selected future NSF workshop reports of relevance to sociology. ASA will use its organizational capacity and networks to target appropriate members of the press, sociologists and related social scientists to stimulate new research and new curricula. ASA is pleased to publish this first in a series of NSF-sponsored workshop reports on important and emerging topics in sociology. Copies of this report can be ordered through the ASA on-line bookstore for the cost of postage and handling only at: www.asanet.org. Sally T. Hillsman Executive Officer American Sociological Association 1 National Academies of Science, Ecological Impacts of Climate Change (Washington, DC, 2009), p. 27. Acknowledgments We wish to thank Dr. Patricia White, NSF Sociology Program Director for her help in planning this workshop and preparing this report; Dr. Tom Baerwald, NSF Geography and Regional Sciences Program Director, for presenting a broad overview of climate change research programs in the Foundation; Karen Duke, NSF Social and Political Sciences Cluster Program Specialist for her administrative and technical support; Monique Laney and Lindsey Feitz, University of Kansas graduate assistants to Joane Nagel, for their help in organizing the workshop, designing and maintaining the workshop website, and writing the workshop report; Natalie Parker, Assistant Director, University of Kansas Center for Research on Global Change, Institute for Policy & Social Research, for her help in preparing the final report; the 28 workshop participants who submitted the informed and imaginative papers contained in Appendix 3; and all workshop participants who contributed constructive and creative comments and useful recommendations during and after the workshop, especially those who responded to a draft of the workshop report. Workshop Participants Tom Baerwald, National Science Foundation Marta Maldonado, Iowa State University Nancy Beller-Simms, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Sabrina McCormick, Michigan State University Administration Aaron McCright, Michigan State University Michele Betsill, Colorado State University Linda Mearns, National Center for Atmospheric Research Steven Brechin, Syracuse University Joane Nagel, University of Kansas Jeffrey Broadbent, University of Minnesota Kari Norgaard, Whitman College Robert Bullard, Clark Atlanta University Simone Pulver, Brown University Penelope Canan, University of Central Florida Timmons Roberts, College of William and Mary JoAnn Carmin, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Eugene Rosa, Washington State University Thomas Dietz, Michigan State University Joel Scheraga, Environmental Protection Agency Riley Dunlap, Oklahoma State University Rachel Slocum, St. Cloud State University Barbara Entwisle, University of North Carolina Paul Stern, National Research Council Marina Fischer-Kowalski, Alps-Adria University Kathleen Tierney, University of Colorado Dana R. Fisher, Columbia University Beverly Wright, Dillard University Ken Frank, Michigan State University Richard York, University of Oregon Eric Hanley, University of Kansas Sammy Zahran, Colorado State University Sharon Harlan, Arizona State University Patricia Romero Lankao, National Center for Atmospheric Research Student Associates Anna-Lisa Aunio, McGill University Umar Moulta-Ali, Ohio State University Xiaodong Chen, Michigan State University Vikrum Sequeira, University of Texas at Austin Lindsey Feitz, University of Kansas Rachel Shwom, Michigan State University Monique Laney, University of Kansas John Tribbia, University of Colorado at Boulder Philip Mancus, University of Oregon Executive Summary Executive Summary On May 30–31, 2008, a workshop on Sociological Perspectives on Global Climate Change was held at NSF in Arlington, Virginia. The workshop was funded by an NSF grant from the Sociology Program to Drs. Joane Nagel, University of Kansas; Jeffrey Broadbent, University of Minnesota; and Thomas Dietz, Michigan State University. The purpose of the workshop was threefold: identify ways to 1) increase sociology’s capacity to conduct climate change research, 2) motivate research that contributes solutions to a global problem of historical importance, and 3) expand sociological participation in interdisciplinary research and education about global climate change. Workshop participants were asked to answer two questions in their short papers and workshop deliberations: What is the state of sociological research on global climate change? What are the major research questions that sociologists should be asking and seeking to answer about climate change? The workshop was intended to contribute to advancing sociological research on global climate change, and thus to advancing the research capacity, tools, and infrastructure in the social sciences. This report is organized into four sections; the first three parallel the organization of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2007 Fourth Assessment Report’s Summary for Policymakers1 which identifies causes, impacts, and mitigation and adaptation strategies for climate change. Part I outlines the current state of sociological knowledge and opportunities for future research about the social causes of global climate change; several theoretical and empirical research areas in sociology are referenced both for the knowledge they have already generated and for their potential to contribute to further research on the causes of climate change: global political economy, human ecology and environmental impact models, cultural and meaning systems, macro-comparative policy research, social organization of science and science policy. Part II identifies the current state of sociological knowledge and opportunities for future research aboutsocial impacts of global climate change; relevant theoretical and empirical research areas in sociology are referenced both for the knowledge they have already generated and for their potential to contribute to further research on the causes of climate change: environmental justice, disaster research, human health, security and conflict, and social demography and population research. Part III summarizes the current state of sociological knowledge and opportunities for future research about the social dimensions of mitigation and adaptation to global climate change; several theoretical and empirical research areas in sociology are referenced both for the knowledge they have already generated and for their potential to contribute to further research on mitigation and adaptation efforts: global governance, risk assessment and decision making, cultures of consumption, contributions to advocacy and action research, and organizations and networks. Part IV contains recommendations to sociologists and to funding agencies, including NSF, for advancing sociological research on global climate change including recommendations for catalyzing the discipline of sociology, forging interdisciplinary collaborations, and developing the capacity and infrastructure to increase sociology’s contribution to understanding and responding to global climate change. 1 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report, Summary for Policymakers (Cambridge University Press, 2007). 4 Workshop Proceedings Executive Summary Recommendations for catalyzing the discipline: • Build capacity by increasing the number of researchers in the sociological study of the environment. • Increase the presence of sociologists in climate change research and policy organizations. • Provide funding opportunities to develop and conduct research