Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency

Can we conceive of a continuity in the way right-wing nationalisms address environmental issues from the origins of fascism to the currently ongoing global “polycrisis”? This article explores the use of the term “eco-fascism” in connection with the climate crisis and considers the political relation...

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Main Author: Daniele Conversi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024-04-01
Series:Frontiers in Human Dynamics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fhumd.2024.1373872/full
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author Daniele Conversi
Daniele Conversi
author_facet Daniele Conversi
Daniele Conversi
author_sort Daniele Conversi
collection DOAJ
description Can we conceive of a continuity in the way right-wing nationalisms address environmental issues from the origins of fascism to the currently ongoing global “polycrisis”? This article explores the use of the term “eco-fascism” in connection with the climate crisis and considers the political relationship between ecologism and the contemporary far right through a historical perspective, seeking to determine persisting patterns in the relationship between the far right and the environment. Section 1 travels back to the historical origins of this relationship between nationalism, fascism and the environment, arguing that the conceptions of nature adopted and nourished by fascism had scarcely anything to do with ecology in its contemporary meaning. Section 2 explores the most well-known and consolidated studies on the relationship between the far right and climate change denialism, identifying a broad consensus that unites scholars from various disciplines on the density, intensity and persistence of this political relationship in the current millennium. The article concludes by underlining the irreality, falsifiability and internal contradictions of the notion of “eco-fascism” at a time when right-wing regimes have seized power in many countries through the use of vocabularies and sentiments in defense of the territory and its resources, but with a substantial refusal to tackle global environmental problems.
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spelling doaj.art-5a3149b0fe5c4a75bc2adb65eb6c692a2024-04-09T14:13:10ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Human Dynamics2673-27262024-04-01610.3389/fhumd.2024.13738721373872Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergencyDaniele Conversi0Daniele Conversi1IKERBASQUE Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, SpainDepartment of Contemporary History, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, SpainCan we conceive of a continuity in the way right-wing nationalisms address environmental issues from the origins of fascism to the currently ongoing global “polycrisis”? This article explores the use of the term “eco-fascism” in connection with the climate crisis and considers the political relationship between ecologism and the contemporary far right through a historical perspective, seeking to determine persisting patterns in the relationship between the far right and the environment. Section 1 travels back to the historical origins of this relationship between nationalism, fascism and the environment, arguing that the conceptions of nature adopted and nourished by fascism had scarcely anything to do with ecology in its contemporary meaning. Section 2 explores the most well-known and consolidated studies on the relationship between the far right and climate change denialism, identifying a broad consensus that unites scholars from various disciplines on the density, intensity and persistence of this political relationship in the current millennium. The article concludes by underlining the irreality, falsifiability and internal contradictions of the notion of “eco-fascism” at a time when right-wing regimes have seized power in many countries through the use of vocabularies and sentiments in defense of the territory and its resources, but with a substantial refusal to tackle global environmental problems.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fhumd.2024.1373872/fullclimate changenationalismfar-righteco-fascismdenialdenialism
spellingShingle Daniele Conversi
Daniele Conversi
Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
Frontiers in Human Dynamics
climate change
nationalism
far-right
eco-fascism
denial
denialism
title Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
title_full Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
title_fullStr Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
title_full_unstemmed Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
title_short Eco-fascism: an oxymoron? Far-right nationalism, history, and the climate emergency
title_sort eco fascism an oxymoron far right nationalism history and the climate emergency
topic climate change
nationalism
far-right
eco-fascism
denial
denialism
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fhumd.2024.1373872/full
work_keys_str_mv AT danieleconversi ecofascismanoxymoronfarrightnationalismhistoryandtheclimateemergency
AT danieleconversi ecofascismanoxymoronfarrightnationalismhistoryandtheclimateemergency