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Environmental Injustice, Political Agency and the Challenge of Creating Healthier Communities

Author
Gendreau M. S.
Journal/Series
Environmental Values | Vol. 25 (6), p. 707-728
Date
2016
Source
IUCN (ID: ANA-091214)
Publisher | Place of publication
White Horse Press | Lancaster, UK
ISSN
0963-2719
Document type
Article in periodical
Language
English
Field of application
International
Subject
Environment gen.
Keyword
Public participation Ethics and environment Community management Governance
Abstract

I argue that our current understanding of the philosophical dimensions of environmental injustice neglects an important component of those injustices. Specifically, by focusing on distributive, participatory and recognitional injustice, we fail to respond to the ways that environmental exposures, even in the absence of physiological harms, can impact upon a person’s experience of herself as a political agent. This has important implications for interventions in cases of environmental injustice, but also for how we understand what is required for full participation in a polity.