The Politics of the Green Backlash
The Politics of the Green Backlash
Thursday 25 June and Friday 26 June 2026, SAL 3.05
Recent years have witnessed a marked shift in climate politics, from regulatory rollbacks and the mainstreaming of anti‑environmental positions in the United States to the rise of anti‑net zero campaigns across Europe. This special issue brings together experts from multiple disciplines to examine the drivers and consequences of the current backlash against ambitious climate and environmental policies: from distributional conflicts over the costs of the green transition to the role of anti-elite sentiment and rejection of established scientific expertise; and from the rise of populist parties at the national and regional level to the crisis of environmental multilateralism at the international level.
| 10:30-11:00 | Welcome, introductions, opening talk about special issue |
| 11:00-12:30 | Session 1 Andres Rodriguez-Pose (LSE Geography and Environment) Discussant: Richard Perkins (LSE Geography and Environment) Ben Braun (LSE European Institute) and Donato di Carlo (LSE European Institute) Discussant: Michael Lerner (LSE Government) Liam Beiser McGrath (LSE Social Policy) with Antonio Valentim (LSE European Institute), Diane Bolet (Science Pro Paris) Discussant: Jared Finnegan (University College London) |
| 12:30-13:30 | Lunch |
| 13:30-15:00 | Session 2 Adam Brzezinski (STICERD) and Luis Garicano (LSE School of Public Policy) Discussant: Abby Innes (LSE European Institute) Tim Forsyth (LSE International Development) Discussant: Rebecca Elliot (LSE Sociology) Bob Ward (LSE Grantham Research Institute) and Pallavi Sethi (LSE Grantham Research Institute) Discussant: Charlie Beckett (LSE Media and Communications) |
| 15:00-15:30 | Tea and coffee break |
| 15:30-16:30 | Session 3 Mette Eilstrup-Sangiovanni (University of Cambridge), Ian Higham (LSE Grantham Research Institute), Joana Setzer (LSE Grantham Research Institute), Harro van Asselt (University of Cambridge), Nina Hall (John Hopkins University) Discussant: Giulia Leonelli (LSE Law School) Carlos Milani (Rio de Janeiro University, Brazil) Discussant: Peter Newall (Sussex University) |
| 16:30-16:40 | Break |
| 16:40-17:40 | Session 4 Alina Averchenkova (LSE Grantham Research Institute) and Aishwarya Machani (LSE Grantham Research Institute) Discussant: Rowan Conway (LSE Grantham Research Institute) Robert Falkner (LSE International Relations) Discussant: Timo Leiter (LSE Grantham Research Institute) |
| 17:40-18:00 | Closing remarks |
| 19:00 | Speakers Dinner |
| 9:15-9:30 | Welcome and breakfast |
| 9:30-10:30 | Katharina Klaube (LSE, International Relations) and Michael Lerner (LSE, Government) Presentation and discussion of scoping study on green backlash data |
| 10:30-11:00 | Tea and coffee break |
| 11:00-12:15 | Roundtable discussion on future research needs and trends |
| 12:15-12:30 | Conclusions, next steps |
| 12:30-13:30 | Lunch |
The symposium will take place on campus and is open to in-person participants. To enquire about participation, please email Dr Irene Bucelli
The LSE Public Policy Review is an open-access, refereed journal which publishes thematic issues focused on key topics at the heart of current debates in public policy.
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