Climate Politics on the Border: Environmental Justice Rhetorics

Climate change and extreme weather are negotiated politically in a border community, as explored in Kenneth Walker's book "Climate Politics on the Border: Environmental Justice Rhetorics." He takes a place-based approach to study how these events shape local places, publics, and politics, with an eye toward a future characterized by severe climate breakdown. Walker examines the effects of extreme weather events on radically inequitable social categories and shows how diverse coalitions have resisted and responded to these forces. He also explores the ethics of Latinx and Anglo relations, the coalitional capacities of environmental activists, and the obligations of place-keeping in Latinx urban design and ecological restoration. The book demonstrates why ecological and anticolonial approaches to rhetoric are essential for grappling with climate politics.

Format: Hardback
Length: 216 pages
Publication date: 30 March 2022
Publisher: The University of Alabama Press

Climate change and extreme weather are complex and multifaceted issues that have significant impacts on communities around the world. In the case of San Antonio, Texas, as a borderland city with a history of slow violence and extreme weather events such as flash flooding and intense heat waves, these issues take on a particularly urgent and political dimension.

In his book, "Climate Politics on the Border: Environmental Justice Rhetorics," Kenneth Walker takes a place-based approach to explore how these issues shape local places, publics, and politics. By examining the local histories and micropolitics of San Antonio, Walker seeks to understand how extreme weather events and responses to them reinforce or challenge existing social orders, and how diverse coalitions can work together to address these challenges.

One of the key themes of the book is the ethics of Latinx and Anglo relations within state-sponsored productions of racial inequity and environmental degradation. Walker argues that these relations are often fraught with tension and conflict, but that they also provide opportunities for collaboration and resistance. He explores the coalitional capacities of environmental activists and second-wave Chicana/o organizations to protect clean water and transform local political representation, as well as the obligations of place-keeping in Latinx urban design and ecological restoration.

Walker also examines the need to foster pluriversal worlds in city-level climate action and adaptation plans. He argues that these plans should not only address the immediate needs of communities, but also consider the long-term impacts of climate change on ecosystems and biodiversity. By adopting a more holistic and interdisciplinary approach, Walker suggests that cities can become more resilient and sustainable in the face of the challenges posed by climate change.

Overall, "Climate Politics on the Border: Environmental Justice Rhetorics" provides a valuable insight into the complex and interconnected issues of climate change and extreme weather. By taking a place-based approach, Walker offers a fresh perspective on these issues and highlights the importance of collaboration, resistance, and place-keeping in addressing them. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the political dimensions of climate change and the potential for positive change in communities across the globe.

Weight: 470g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780817321116