Chapter 4 Climate Protection and Civil Society: Does Effective Local Climate Policy Need the Participation and Engagement of Citizens? A Comparison Between the Cities of Potsdam and Muenster

Abstract

Findings – The findings show that Muenster has performed better in urban climate protection than Potsdam. Also the level of civil society engagement is higher in Muenster. Thus, the hypothesis that cities with a higher level of civil society engagement also perform better in urban climate policy can be confirmed. However, Muenster performs just slightly better than Potsdam. Both cities have failed to meet their climate goals. A closer look to the local climate policy performance leads us to the final conclusion that cities should be more active in supporting and including citizens in their local climate policies in all areas of life – including lifestyle politics and political consumerism.

Citation

Neebe, M. and Reusswig, F. (2012), "Chapter 4 Climate Protection and Civil Society: Does Effective Local Climate Policy Need the Participation and Engagement of Citizens? A Comparison Between the Cities of Potsdam and Muenster", Holt, W.G. (Ed.) Urban Areas and Global Climate Change (Research in Urban Sociology, Vol. 12), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley, pp. 75-104. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1047-0042(2012)0000012007