School of Social and Political Science

Background

I’ve been campaigning on the environment since 1990 and I am now completing my PhD on environmental direct action by social movements. The PhD focuses on the motivation and experiences of Extinction Rebellion arrestees in the UK. My first core finding is that XR’s stark, multidimensional framing resonated with and mobilised arrestees who were frustrated by the failures of mainstream political action to tackle the existential threat posed by the Climate and Ecological Emergency. My second core finding is that when a social movement organisation frames arrest in a positive light as a key strategic and symbolic element of civil disobedience for a justified cause, arrest is often experienced as radicalising and empowering. As well as having academic value, my hope is that my research will prove useful to social movements in general at this time of intersecting existential crises.