Simin Fadaee
Simin Fadaee is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Manchester. She is currently president of the Research Committee on social classes and social movements (RC47) of the International Sociological Association.
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the discreet, modernist projects undertaken in
the past by centralized authorities to encompass
everything from large-scale construction
to space exploration. Contemporary Megaprojects
explores how these projects have been impacted
by cutting-edge technology, the private sector,
and the processes of decentralization and dematerialization.
With case studies ranging from
mega-plantations in Southeast Asia to ocean
mapping to sports events, the contributions in
this collected volume demonstrate the increasing
ambition and pervasiveness of these projects,
as well as their significant impact on both
society and the environment.
This collection analyses recent events and developments in Southern social movements, introducing well-researched case studies from fifteen countries of the global South. Arranged in two parts, the volume examines firstly movements which focus on rights and quality of life issues, and secondly the post-2011 wave of uprisings which started with Tunisian and Egyptian movements. Contributing to ongoing discussions about the Northern-centric nature of social movement theory and the social sciences more generally, the authors enter into dialogue with the debate on local and national levels, as well as globalizing processes.
Through an interdisciplinary approach this book broadens the theoretical and empirical perspectives for the study of social movements and will appeal to sociologists, political scientists, scholars and students of social movements, and social activists.
Drawing on in-depth original research, the case study of the environmental movement is integrated into a historical and comparative analysis. Implementing the new social movement theory of Touraine and Melucci in the Iranian context, the author shows that although the reform movement of Iran is unique, in some aspects it is a continuation of the past social movements. She places emphasis on the role of women in recent Iranian social movements, exploring the significance of social movements in civil society and in instigating social change.
Using the case of Iran to offer a critical framework for studying social change and transformation of non-European countries, this book fills an important gap in the existing literature on the topic. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars and students of sociology, political science and Middle Eastern studies.
in harmony with natural ecosystems. It embraces solutionoriented
approaches to contemporary social and environmental problems.
Originating in Australia, permaculture was initially considered
a design system but it has become a global social movement and it is
practiced in different countries in various forms and at multiple
scales. It is manifested in numerous networks of local practitioners,
teachers, promoters, demonstration sites, organisations and magazines
where various ideas and practices converge. Despite its popularization
scant attention has been given to analysis of permaculture
as a social movement. Moreover, the few academic writings which
analyse permaculture as a social movement do not systematically
engage with its manifestation and adaptation in the global South.
The latter is the main contribution of this article. Based on original
research this paper narrates the origins of the permaculture movement
in India, and it pays close attention to its contextual adaptation
by a diverse group of practitioners. It demonstrates that these diverse
actors and their strategies have clear linkages to the independence
movement; they are influenced by the incomplete project of Indian
liberal democracy; they operate on the sphere of civil and political
society; and they engage middle and lower classes in a formal and
informal political nexus.
to radical democracy in Turkey has set the ground for a redefinition of strategies
from ethnic rights to civil rights. In this sense, the Kurds have put forward a metapolitical
critique of society by going beyond ethnic claims. We show how, as the result
of criticizing the neoliberal representative democracy and the capitalist state, the
Kurdish liberation movement’s strategies were transformed to advancing broader
civil claims. Based on original research, we elaborate on three concrete expressions
which have emerged as the result of this transformation: The Democratic Society
Congress, the women’s movement and the environmental movement. Finally, we
explore the emancipatory potential of this shift for recognition of the rights of minorities
in particular and for broader social change in general.
‘world-class’ urban megaproject, and the complex social and economic pressures that affect some of its users.
environmental issues mostly focuses on ideals, goals and practices of
these designs. It remains unclear under which circumstances these
initiatives emerge and expand. Moreover, those scholars who address
the emergence and expansion of these initiatives focus on examples
which are located in advanced industrialised societies. It remains unclear
why and how these alternative institutions emerge in non-industrialised
societies and countries which have not gone through the same growth
path as their advanced industrialised counterparts. Consequently,
transformative implication of these initiatives for broader social change
in non-advanced industrialised societies has not been explored. In this
paper, I show that in Iran the emergence of these alternative designs
should be understood within the context of post-contentious politics. I
present original research on a cooperative that embraces an alternative
lifestyle and whose aim is to create Iran’s first ecovillage. This case study
discusses one kind of response to the contraction of space for civil
society and environmental non governmental organisations in Iran. The
paper adds to our understanding of the interplay between
democratisation processes and environmental activism.
the lack of an aligned frame within a movement. It shows how the existence of a dominant and a
subordinate faction (European activists and refugees) with different social and ideological identities
within the immigrant rights mobilizations in Berlin led to the emergence of paradoxes, and became
counterproductive. This had two consequences: first, a power structure emerged which privileged
European activists over the very people they sought to empower. Second, some refugees began to
adopt the European activists’ framing of the issue as anti-colonial/capitalist, in spite of the fact that
it contradicted their primary demands concerning permission to work and reside in Germany.
most of which has focused on the movement’s tactics or goals, or sought to explain its
emergence. Nevertheless, we lack an explanation for the movement’s broad appeal and mass
support. In this article we present original research on Occupy in New York City, Detroit,
and Berlin, which demonstrates that the movement’s heterogeneous participants coalesced
around the concept of vulnerability. Vulnerability is an inability to adapt to shocks and
stresses, and it inhibits social reproduction and prohibits social mobility. Rather than
specifically discussing the wealth of elites per se, Occupy participants consistently expressed
the feeling that the current political economic system safeguards elites and increases the
vulnerability of everyone else. We argue that the Occupy movement has reworked the
relationship among a range of political struggles that were hitherto disconnected (i.e. ‘old’
and ‘new’ social movements) and rendered them complementary through the politics of
vulnerability.
has been the emergence of a new group referred to as the “new middle class.” The
relatively recent and growing literature on this topic represents the new middle
class as a relatively homogenous social group with specific lifestyles and politics.
The main objective of this article is to critically engage with these homogenizing
assumptions. Based on original research, I introduce presence of a group within
the new middle class – critical activist milieu – who in their work and lifestyle are
contentious and explicitly reject the bourgeoisie values and attitudes that are widely
ascribed to the Indian new middle class.
society organisations (CSOs) around the world and especially in the global south. At
the same time, the same discourse has generated enormous negative and critical
assessments from different scholars and disciplines who consider human rights as
Eurocentric, exclusionary and against the people of the global south. However, these
two trends remain contradictory. By presenting original research on the
multidimensionality of human rights practice by CSOs in New Delhi, this article
considers both notions of ‘human’ and ‘rights’ as empty signifiers. Hence, recognition
of their nominal status becomes central to our understanding of the adoption of human
rights by social movements and CSOs.
the discreet, modernist projects undertaken in
the past by centralized authorities to encompass
everything from large-scale construction
to space exploration. Contemporary Megaprojects
explores how these projects have been impacted
by cutting-edge technology, the private sector,
and the processes of decentralization and dematerialization.
With case studies ranging from
mega-plantations in Southeast Asia to ocean
mapping to sports events, the contributions in
this collected volume demonstrate the increasing
ambition and pervasiveness of these projects,
as well as their significant impact on both
society and the environment.
This collection analyses recent events and developments in Southern social movements, introducing well-researched case studies from fifteen countries of the global South. Arranged in two parts, the volume examines firstly movements which focus on rights and quality of life issues, and secondly the post-2011 wave of uprisings which started with Tunisian and Egyptian movements. Contributing to ongoing discussions about the Northern-centric nature of social movement theory and the social sciences more generally, the authors enter into dialogue with the debate on local and national levels, as well as globalizing processes.
Through an interdisciplinary approach this book broadens the theoretical and empirical perspectives for the study of social movements and will appeal to sociologists, political scientists, scholars and students of social movements, and social activists.
Drawing on in-depth original research, the case study of the environmental movement is integrated into a historical and comparative analysis. Implementing the new social movement theory of Touraine and Melucci in the Iranian context, the author shows that although the reform movement of Iran is unique, in some aspects it is a continuation of the past social movements. She places emphasis on the role of women in recent Iranian social movements, exploring the significance of social movements in civil society and in instigating social change.
Using the case of Iran to offer a critical framework for studying social change and transformation of non-European countries, this book fills an important gap in the existing literature on the topic. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars and students of sociology, political science and Middle Eastern studies.
in harmony with natural ecosystems. It embraces solutionoriented
approaches to contemporary social and environmental problems.
Originating in Australia, permaculture was initially considered
a design system but it has become a global social movement and it is
practiced in different countries in various forms and at multiple
scales. It is manifested in numerous networks of local practitioners,
teachers, promoters, demonstration sites, organisations and magazines
where various ideas and practices converge. Despite its popularization
scant attention has been given to analysis of permaculture
as a social movement. Moreover, the few academic writings which
analyse permaculture as a social movement do not systematically
engage with its manifestation and adaptation in the global South.
The latter is the main contribution of this article. Based on original
research this paper narrates the origins of the permaculture movement
in India, and it pays close attention to its contextual adaptation
by a diverse group of practitioners. It demonstrates that these diverse
actors and their strategies have clear linkages to the independence
movement; they are influenced by the incomplete project of Indian
liberal democracy; they operate on the sphere of civil and political
society; and they engage middle and lower classes in a formal and
informal political nexus.
to radical democracy in Turkey has set the ground for a redefinition of strategies
from ethnic rights to civil rights. In this sense, the Kurds have put forward a metapolitical
critique of society by going beyond ethnic claims. We show how, as the result
of criticizing the neoliberal representative democracy and the capitalist state, the
Kurdish liberation movement’s strategies were transformed to advancing broader
civil claims. Based on original research, we elaborate on three concrete expressions
which have emerged as the result of this transformation: The Democratic Society
Congress, the women’s movement and the environmental movement. Finally, we
explore the emancipatory potential of this shift for recognition of the rights of minorities
in particular and for broader social change in general.
‘world-class’ urban megaproject, and the complex social and economic pressures that affect some of its users.
environmental issues mostly focuses on ideals, goals and practices of
these designs. It remains unclear under which circumstances these
initiatives emerge and expand. Moreover, those scholars who address
the emergence and expansion of these initiatives focus on examples
which are located in advanced industrialised societies. It remains unclear
why and how these alternative institutions emerge in non-industrialised
societies and countries which have not gone through the same growth
path as their advanced industrialised counterparts. Consequently,
transformative implication of these initiatives for broader social change
in non-advanced industrialised societies has not been explored. In this
paper, I show that in Iran the emergence of these alternative designs
should be understood within the context of post-contentious politics. I
present original research on a cooperative that embraces an alternative
lifestyle and whose aim is to create Iran’s first ecovillage. This case study
discusses one kind of response to the contraction of space for civil
society and environmental non governmental organisations in Iran. The
paper adds to our understanding of the interplay between
democratisation processes and environmental activism.
the lack of an aligned frame within a movement. It shows how the existence of a dominant and a
subordinate faction (European activists and refugees) with different social and ideological identities
within the immigrant rights mobilizations in Berlin led to the emergence of paradoxes, and became
counterproductive. This had two consequences: first, a power structure emerged which privileged
European activists over the very people they sought to empower. Second, some refugees began to
adopt the European activists’ framing of the issue as anti-colonial/capitalist, in spite of the fact that
it contradicted their primary demands concerning permission to work and reside in Germany.
most of which has focused on the movement’s tactics or goals, or sought to explain its
emergence. Nevertheless, we lack an explanation for the movement’s broad appeal and mass
support. In this article we present original research on Occupy in New York City, Detroit,
and Berlin, which demonstrates that the movement’s heterogeneous participants coalesced
around the concept of vulnerability. Vulnerability is an inability to adapt to shocks and
stresses, and it inhibits social reproduction and prohibits social mobility. Rather than
specifically discussing the wealth of elites per se, Occupy participants consistently expressed
the feeling that the current political economic system safeguards elites and increases the
vulnerability of everyone else. We argue that the Occupy movement has reworked the
relationship among a range of political struggles that were hitherto disconnected (i.e. ‘old’
and ‘new’ social movements) and rendered them complementary through the politics of
vulnerability.
has been the emergence of a new group referred to as the “new middle class.” The
relatively recent and growing literature on this topic represents the new middle
class as a relatively homogenous social group with specific lifestyles and politics.
The main objective of this article is to critically engage with these homogenizing
assumptions. Based on original research, I introduce presence of a group within
the new middle class – critical activist milieu – who in their work and lifestyle are
contentious and explicitly reject the bourgeoisie values and attitudes that are widely
ascribed to the Indian new middle class.
society organisations (CSOs) around the world and especially in the global south. At
the same time, the same discourse has generated enormous negative and critical
assessments from different scholars and disciplines who consider human rights as
Eurocentric, exclusionary and against the people of the global south. However, these
two trends remain contradictory. By presenting original research on the
multidimensionality of human rights practice by CSOs in New Delhi, this article
considers both notions of ‘human’ and ‘rights’ as empty signifiers. Hence, recognition
of their nominal status becomes central to our understanding of the adoption of human
rights by social movements and CSOs.
transformation. Emergence, dynamics and development of social movements
not only signal major transformations of societies; but, social movements are
indicators of societal conditions, and capable of influencing social and political
structures as well. By presenting the case of environmentalism in Iran, this article
is seeking to provide an insight into the life of the Iranian social movements.
Further, by implementing the new social movement theory in the Iranian context,
it contributes to a better understanding of non-western social movements.
The article first, establishes the fact that the emerged collective action around
environmental issues in Iran can be regarded as a social movement. Second, it
introduces the characteristics of environmentalism in Iran. Finally, it examines the
relevance of the new social movement theory of Alaine Touraine, and Alberto
Melucci in relation to the environmental movements of Iran.