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Mays profil

Mine Islar

Senior Lecturer, Docent, Director of PhD Studies

Mays profil

Coloniality as a Barrier to Climate Action : Hierarchies of Power in a Coal-Based Economy

Author

  • Mine Islar
  • Tara Van Ryneveld

Summary, in English

South Africa has a coal-based energy system and extractive economy, largely responsible for its high emission levels relative to countries with similar GDP. This extractive, coal-based economy began during British colonisation and today shows few signs of transitioning rapidly to limit climate change. This paper interrogates the role of coloniality in climate delay, given that colonisation is responsible for establishing fossil fuel dependence in South Africa. Combining theory on decolonisation, specifically colonial hierarchies of power, with a critical discourse analysis, this research uses interview and policy data to show how colonial power hierarchies can lead to climate delay in South Africa, through normalising emissions intensive development and silencing alternatives. In doing so, it highlights the need to recognise the colonial foundations of climate change and the potential for a coalition between decolonisation and climate action to motivate for radical change both in South Africa and at a global level.

Department/s

  • LUCSUS (Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies)

Publishing year

2022-12-02

Language

English

Publication/Series

Antipode

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Wiley-Blackwell

Topic

  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary

Keywords

  • climate
  • coal
  • energy
  • south africa

Status

Epub

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0066-4812