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Consent in a Changing Climate

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The Palgrave Handbook of Climate Resilient Societies

Abstract

The idea of consent is central to the modern social imaginary. As an ethical norm, it mediates diverse interactions between individuals, groups, and organizations. It is also central to influential theories of political legitimacy, in particular the ideal of representative democracy as founded on “the consent of the governed.” Consequently, the effective exercise of consent is important for social cohesion and, therefore, resilience to shocks. Climate change is not only a source of such shocks, but it also poses challenges to the exercise of consent. The transition to a climate-resilient, low-emissions economy will be disruptive due to the scale and urgency of change required. In a society where consent has normative preeminence, the transition will inevitably produce disputes over whether consent is required by affected parties or has genuinely been given. This chapter explores the idea of consent and how it already interacts with projects and activities that both contribute to climate change and to climate mitigation and adaptation. It focuses on four applications of consent: (1) the principle of free, prior and informed consent in international human rights; (2) the government authorization of permits and consents; (3) the social license to operate for businesses; and (4) the procedures and mechanisms in democratic systems that give effect to the will of the people. Finally, it examines trends that seek to bypass consent, such as the rise of technocratic governance and calls for climate emergency declarations, and trends that seek to secure consent, especially the idea of just transitions.

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  1. School of Social Sciences and Public Policy, AUT University, Auckland, New Zealand

    David Hall

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Hall, D. (2021). Consent in a Changing Climate. In: The Palgrave Handbook of Climate Resilient Societies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32811-5_114-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32811-5_114-1

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