Degrees of Optimism

A Study of Youth Climate Activists in British Columbia

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14288/bcs.no219.197871

Keywords:

British Columbia, climate change, activism, youth, social movements

Abstract

This research note introduces an original dataset on youth climate activists (aged 18-29) in British Columbia between 2018-2021. We situate our project within existing literature on youth and environmental activism, and present an overview of our findings organized into four categories: 1) perceptions of climate change and related issues; 2) attitudes towards existing government policies and trade-offs; 3) attitudes towards civil disobedience and lawbreaking; and 4) insights into the climate movement. We conclude by reflecting on the implications of our findings for current and climate policy in British Columbia and Canada, and offer suggestions for further research.

Author Biographies

Wilfrid Greaves, University of Victoria

Wilfrid Greaves is associate professor of international relations at the University of Victoria, where his primary research examines climate change and security and Arctic geopolitics. He has written more than thirty refereed articles and book chapters, and is co-editor of Breaking Through: Understanding Sovereignty and Security in the Circumpolar Arctic (2021) and One Arctic: The Arctic Council and Circumpolar Governance (2017). He is lead for climate and security with three federally funded research networks: the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network/Réseau sur la defense et la sécurité nord-américaines et arctiques (NAADSN/RDSNAA), the Canadian Defence and Security Network/Réseau canadien de défence et de sécurité (CDSN/RCDS), and the Réseau d’analyse stratégique/Network for Strategic Analysis (RAS/NSA), and a member of the NATO Research Task Group on Climate Change and Security. 

Aly Tkachenko, University of Victoria

Aly Tkachenko is a PhD student in international relations and Canadian politics at the University of Victoria. Her research focuses on critical security studies, climate change, oceanic security, and civil disobedience. Tkachenko is a research fellow with the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN/RDSNAA), as well as a 2024 fellowship recipient with the Climate Security Association of Canada (CSAC). Her work at UVic is supervised by Dr. Will Greaves. Tkachenko holds an MA in political science from the University of Victoria (2022) and a BA from McMaster University (2021). She has worked as a researcher and writer for the Firelight Group, and enjoys volunteering with the Cetus Research and Conservation Society. 

An Indigenous woman looking towards us as her hair is interwoven with illustration of a killer whale.

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Published

2024-02-27

Issue

No. 219: Autumn 2023

Section

Research Note