Qualitative study reveals that perceived spatial and social injustices drive green discontent among rural residents, highlighting the need to address everyday impacts of environmental policies.
Rural areas are rapidly becoming the focal points of green transition and its associated political conflicts. The resulting ‘green discontent’ is currently fuelling a broader ‘rural discontent’. However, little is known about how people living in rural areas interpret green policies. In this study, we analyse interview data and examine focus groups with participants from two rural, peripheralised research areas in eastern Germany. Results reveal that questions of justice lie at the heart of green discontent and clarify how these questions align with people's experiences and conceptions of rural life. Based on Fraser's three dimensions of social justice and concepts of spatial justice, we examine green discontent as a multifaceted issue. Consequently, we emphasise the importance of attenuating, recognising and representing the profound (but sometimes mundane) changes caused by green policies to everyday rural realities.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Bischof et al. (2026) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: