Contesting aeromobility, constructing alternatives: the prefigurative politics of staying on the ground
Ullström, Sara LU
(2024)
In Environmental Politics
33(6).
p.1087-1108
- Abstract
- The concept of prefiguration has gained attention within environmental politics as a way to describe how everyday activism can enable transformation of unsustainable consumption practices, particularly around material necessities. Drawing on the case of Sweden’s flight-free movement, this article extends the research on prefigurative environmentalism to activism aimed at changing non-essential, yet culturally embedded, consumption practices. Through key informant interviews and document analysis, I show that prefigurative attempts to reduce flying go beyond finding more sustainable ways of travel, to experimenting with an alternative way of life where the need or desire for long-distance travel in itself is reconsidered. As such, the... (More)
- The concept of prefiguration has gained attention within environmental politics as a way to describe how everyday activism can enable transformation of unsustainable consumption practices, particularly around material necessities. Drawing on the case of Sweden’s flight-free movement, this article extends the research on prefigurative environmentalism to activism aimed at changing non-essential, yet culturally embedded, consumption practices. Through key informant interviews and document analysis, I show that prefigurative attempts to reduce flying go beyond finding more sustainable ways of travel, to experimenting with an alternative way of life where the need or desire for long-distance travel in itself is reconsidered. As such, the flight-free movement illustrates a form of prefigurative environmentalism focused on avoiding rather than merely replacing non-essential consumption. This analysis contributes to literature on everyday environmental activism by highlighting the importance of cultural change, rather than just material change, in attempts to prefigure low-carbon ways of life. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/20f7106c-572a-4880-bece-d0d946965694
- author
- Ullström, Sara
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-03-22
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Everyday environmentalism, prefiguration, sustainable consumption, social change, flying less
- in
- Environmental Politics
- volume
- 33
- issue
- 6
- pages
- 22 pages
- publisher
- Routledge
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85188272769
- ISSN
- 0964-4016
- DOI
- 10.1080/09644016.2024.2328502
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 20f7106c-572a-4880-bece-d0d946965694
- date added to LUP
- 2024-04-08 18:02:35
- date last changed
- 2025-10-14 12:53:43
@article{20f7106c-572a-4880-bece-d0d946965694,
abstract = {{The concept of prefiguration has gained attention within environmental politics as a way to describe how everyday activism can enable transformation of unsustainable consumption practices, particularly around material necessities. Drawing on the case of Sweden’s flight-free movement, this article extends the research on prefigurative environmentalism to activism aimed at changing non-essential, yet culturally embedded, consumption practices. Through key informant interviews and document analysis, I show that prefigurative attempts to reduce flying go beyond finding more sustainable ways of travel, to experimenting with an alternative way of life where the need or desire for long-distance travel in itself is reconsidered. As such, the flight-free movement illustrates a form of prefigurative environmentalism focused on avoiding rather than merely replacing non-essential consumption. This analysis contributes to literature on everyday environmental activism by highlighting the importance of cultural change, rather than just material change, in attempts to prefigure low-carbon ways of life.}},
author = {{Ullström, Sara}},
issn = {{0964-4016}},
keywords = {{Everyday environmentalism; prefiguration; sustainable consumption; social change; flying less}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{03}},
number = {{6}},
pages = {{1087--1108}},
publisher = {{Routledge}},
series = {{Environmental Politics}},
title = {{Contesting aeromobility, constructing alternatives: the prefigurative politics of staying on the ground}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2024.2328502}},
doi = {{10.1080/09644016.2024.2328502}},
volume = {{33}},
year = {{2024}},
}