This paper looks at the concept of the ecological state form a green political theory perspective and with a special focus on the political system of the state. The way in which an ecological state could implement an environmentally-oriented account of democracy and a related green notion of citizenship is analysed. In order to thematise this relationship, I take as a point of departure Robyn Eckersley’s theory of the ‘green state’. By focusing on normative definitions of democracy and citizenship, and examining the conception, functions and foundations of the state, this paper contributes to research on both the institutional and normative aspects of the ecological state.
Environmental visions of democracy and citizenship represent a challenge to the values and institutions of the liberal democratic state in a number of ways. I investigate how a green state may better address these challenges. This analysis will shed some light on the difference between the green state and its liberal counterpart. The merits of the green state in relation to the implementation of ecological democracy and ecological citizenship are assessed. Yet the problems and limitations are also highlighted. My main claim is that the green state is constrained at different levels precisely because it is built on the foundations of the liberal-capitalist state and, as such, its potential for bringing about socio-environmental change is at risk of being neutralised by liberal democracy and the growth imperative. This suggests that the interaction between environmental democracy, ecological citizenship and the green state is not always a productive one.
