Unbounding environmentalism: ecology movements and intersectional alliances in Turkey

This paper examines divergences within the environmental movement in Turkey as its ecological wing consolidates and seeks new constituencies. Drawing on fieldwork data, it asks how ecology movements extend environmental action beyond single-issue campaigns and foster intersectional alliances. These actors emphasise flexible grassroots organising and connect environmental struggles with labour, feminist, Kurdish, or climate justice claims. Focusing on campaign practices, the paper traces how these connections develop through solidarity campaigns, grassroots networking, and transnational activism. It argues that the adoption of the term ‘ecology’ signals a shift within part of the environmental movement towards a broader project of socio-political change. Building on the concept of unbounding environmentalism, the analysis shows how activists broaden environmental framings and create spaces for collaboration and exchange across movements and scales. Despite restrictive political opportunity structures, these practices contribute to politicising environmental issues, reframing socio-environmental conflicts, and strengthening coalition-building capacities.