This research examines the conflict against extractivist development in Ecuador, emphasising the resistance of civil society over the past few decades. It explores into the formation of counter...Show moreThis research examines the conflict against extractivist development in Ecuador, emphasising the resistance of civil society over the past few decades. It explores into the formation of counter-hegemonic resistance and its entwinement with decolonial praxis within the Ecuadorian context. This study claims that this resistance advocates for a reimagined concept of development that demands decolonial and epistemological efforts. Through a localized analysis of this developmental paradigm, it investigates the emancipatory nature of these environmental struggles, hypothesizing that they challenge not only the dominant developmental model but also the very concept of development itself.Show less
Master thesis | European Politics and Society: Vaclav Havel Joint Master Programme
open access
This research investigates the convergence between feminism and radical-right populism in the field of women’s representation in the European Union. Although previous research has explored how...Show moreThis research investigates the convergence between feminism and radical-right populism in the field of women’s representation in the European Union. Although previous research has explored how populist radical- right actors exploit feminist narratives to advance Islamophobic anti-immigration stances, little has been said about how feminist arguments contribute to radical-right populist attempts to represent women substantively. This is relevant because, through the representative process, populist radical-right parties construct specific views of women’s identities, interests, and gender equality that are increasingly becoming part of the European political discourse. As the popularity of radical-right populist parties rises across Europe, so does their ability to use seemingly liberal narratives to leave the political fringes and enter the mainstream. Therefore, analysing the nature and the objectives of a potential convergence between feminism and radical-right populism is crucial to understanding which identities and interests would be advanced, marginalised, or erased if a populist radical- right form of feminism became dominant. This research aims to uncover 1) whether a populist radical-right form of feminism exists and what it may look like; 2) which goals populist radical-right parties pursue when they use feminist arguments to represent women; 3) which women are represented or excluded when populist radical-right parties adopt feminist arguments in their claims. To achieve this, the method of reflexive thematic analysis is applied to a sample of 82 representative claims for women advanced by populist radical-right members of the European Parliament during 26 plenary debates held between 2019 and 2023. This study concludes that populist radical-right feminism contributes to reinforcing an ‘us’ versus ‘them’ narrative, which depicts populist radical-right parties as the true champions of women's interests and ‘real’ gender equality. In doing so, populist radical-right feminism promotes an exclusionary understanding of women’s identities and interests that contradicts the inclusive and intersectional efforts undertaken by the most recent waves of feminist activism. Therefore, future research on the relationship between feminism and radical-right populism may build on the present work to explore how we can challenge the spreading of such an exclusionary narrative and promote a more inclusive and intersectional approach to representation.Show less
In the context of a global transition away from fossil-fuelled energy production, the coming shift to low-carbon electromobility will require substantial increases in the extraction of so-called...Show moreIn the context of a global transition away from fossil-fuelled energy production, the coming shift to low-carbon electromobility will require substantial increases in the extraction of so-called energy transition materials. Critical for the production of battery-based electric vehicles, lithium represents a metal whose accelerating extraction in the Chilean salt flats of Atacama and its local consequences are set to pose fundamental questions for the sustainability of the global political economy. In my thesis, I view lithium extraction through an extractivist lens, exploring how corporate sustainability reporting discursively frames and justifies extractive activities in light of shifting global contexts. My point of departure is rooted in critical discourse analysis: Using frame analysis in a qualitative methodological approach, I analyze documents published by the Sociedad Química y Minera (SQM), one of Chile’s foremost lithium producers, to answer the following research question: To what extent are discourses of sustainability employed to legitimize the persistence of lithium extractivism in Chile in the context of the global energy transition? I argue that through its sustainability policies and reporting, SQM develops a corporate brand that situates the company at the intersection of local sustainable development and global climate action. The sustainability frames it employs establish a narrative in which the extraction of natural resources, particularly energy transition metals, becomes a global necessity – SQM positions itself as part of the solution, rather than the cause of socio-environmental challenges. In this way, extractivist modes of economic organization perpetuate themselves through discursive auto-insertion in global visions of more sustainable futures.Show less
