Energy, Climate and Representative Democracy

Abstract

The role of representative political bodies in shaping climate and energy policies and the role of climate and energy issues in political discourses and actions of political actors are the primary focus of this panel. The panel features contributions operating at two levels of analysis. At the supranational level, the panel focuses primarily on the European Parliament. The increasingly complex agenda of the Union’s climate and energy policy brings along new cleavages in its representative body. Most recently, the surge of populism and right-wing extremism has fostered the clima-skeptical voices in the Parliament, threatening its capacity to act as the driving force behind the Union’s ambitious climate policies. The panel explores the climate-skeptical discourse and voting behavior in the Parliament, sheding light on this crucially important problem. At the national level, the impact of the rise of populist and far-right parties on climate and energy policy is illustrated on the case of Germany. The Alternative für Deutschland challenges the long-established political consensus on the necessity of a transition towards low-carbon economy. Its political communication, which builds largely on the appeal for recognizing “the will of the people”, resonates with the notions of energy democracy and energy justice and stirs up local energy conflicts across the country.