Nature, environmentalism, and the politics of citizenship in post-civil war Lebanon

Abstract

More than 20 years after its devastating civil war (1975–1990), Lebanon has seen a burgeoning of environmental activism and discourse. Contemporary environmentalism is articulated largely by Western-educated activists, many of them working in the Western donor–financed non-governmental organization sector. Like romantic nationalists and urban reformers of the late 19th century, these activists view access to green space and nature as promoting patriotic attachments, civic virtue, and healthy social behaviors. They view green space and nature, as well, as an actual site for peaceful social interaction between ordinarily hostile groups and, hence, for the creation of national cohesion. This article explores the faith that activists place in the natural environment and open space as an instrument of citizenship and as a solution to Lebanon’s sectarian factionalism. Lebanese environmentalism, we suggest, provides an important alternative political vision for Lebanon and a form of dissent against the political status quo. Ultimately, however, it cannot disentangle itself completely from the very sectarian political structure it seeks to dislodge.