Environmental justice movements are the natural testbed for agonistic pluralist ideals

Evidence

My argument here is that the ideals of pluralist engagement and agreement should be attainable within and across the communities dedicated to a particular end—environmental and ecological justice. While there may be something critical to be said about the idealism of an agonistic pluralism in an entrenched and divisive society, if such pluralistic aims are to be realized anywhere, they should be attainable by a diverse community that still has key conceptions and ends in common. In other words, if pluralist engagement cannot bring a form of recognition of others’ positions, validation of their reasonableness, and the effort necessary to ally and network where there is a preexisting common ground, around both environmental sustainability and the conception and attainment of justice, then it simply cannot happen anywhere. Movements for environmental and ecological justice, then, can be an important testbed for pluralist ideals, engagement, and practice. — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice, 630

Categorization

• XREF: Positions EJ as the empirical proving ground for ideal theories — useful for the Legal Systems course on what institutions can actually deliver. — connects to: Environmental justice movements are inherently plural and network-based, not singular in principle or structure — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice:…, 617; Environmental justice groups pursue community functioning beyond distributional equality — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice:…, 258; Environmental justice comprises recognition and participation as well as distribution — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice:…, 12 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Environmental justice comprises recognition and participation as well as distribution #expands (0.75) — David Schlosberg, Defining Environmental Justice, 12