Translated and reviewed by Matheus Lucas Hebling
August 25, 2025
The article El medio ambiente como objeto político: aportes desde la cultura política para la construcción de una ciencia política posnormal en América Latina [The Environment as a Political Object: Contributions from Political Culture toward the Construction of a Post-Normal Political Science in Latin America], by Sofia Isabel Vizcarra Castillo (Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, UFRGS), Daniel Capistrano (Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI/Trinity College Dublin), and Mariana Alves dos Santos (UFRGS), draws on a narrative theoretical review to discuss the groundwork for understanding the environment as a political object in Latin America.
The text is part of a thematic dossier on “Environment and Society in Latin America and the Caribbean” and was produced within the framework of the project “Attitudes and Values on Climate Change and Energy Transition,” coordinated by Vizcarra. Among its aims, the authors reconstruct the entry of environmental issues into political science, assess the potential and the limits of the political culture approach in the regional context, and point to themes for a research agenda.
The article situates the debate within the context of the Anthropocene and describes two movements that bring politics and the environment closer together: (1) the politicization of the exact sciences by way of political ecology, with emphasis on Latin American contributions concerning socio-environmental conflicts, climate justice, and local epistemologies; and (2) the incorporation of environmental issues into political theory (green political theory, international relations, and studies of green parties).
Within this framework, post-normal science is presented as a deliberative, value-based approach that works with “extended peer communities” and broadens the dialogue between science and society, opening space for a political science with a more plural epistemological foundation in the region.
Within the political culture tradition, environmental issues gained ground in the 1990s, associated with the postmaterialism hypothesis and tested against international comparative data. The authors summarize contradictory findings on the links between wealth, democracy, and environmental attitudes, and highlight recurring limitations: culturally situated measurement instruments, a utilitarian focus, and restricted explanatory reach when it comes to accounting for preferences regarding climate action in Latin America.
Although programs such as the World Values Survey (WVS), the European Values Study (EVS), and the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), along with regional barometers, remain in use, their coverage is still centered on the Global North and does little to incorporate diverse environmental ontologies.
For the Latin American case, the text turns to the notion of hybrid political culture (diffuse support for democracy combined with institutional dissatisfaction) in order to discuss the “paradox of the ecological imagination”: the distance between an intense tradition of socio-environmental struggles and the limited influence of those ideas on public opinion and the governmental agenda.
The research cited indicates high levels of concern about global warming, together with the presence of optimism and a belief in the effectiveness of individual action, even as a lower willingness to prioritize environmental protection over economic growth has been observed in recent years. Among the barriers to social influence over environmental policy, the authors mention institutional distrust, the technocratization of management, and the activity of corporate actors.
By way of a way forward, the article proposes a research agenda along three fronts: (i) ontological and epistemological plurality, incorporating local knowledge and environmental justice; (ii) the empirical challenge, with instruments and methods, both qualitative and quantitative, aligned with a value-based science; and (iii) the theoretical challenge, with interdisciplinary sociotechnical models that integrate nature, technology, and society.
For policy and public communication, the authors recommend taking into account factors such as trust in institutions, authoritarian tendencies, and expectations regarding the state when designing strategies for engagement with climate action.
In summary
- The article examines the environment as a political object in Latin American political science, on the basis of a narrative theoretical review.
- It frames the debate within the context of the Anthropocene and of post-normal science, underscoring the need for more plural epistemological approaches.
- It points to two main movements: (1) the politicization of the sciences by way of political ecology and (2) the incorporation of environmental issues into political theory.
- It discusses the role of political culture in understanding environmental attitudes in Latin America, with emphasis on the postmaterialism hypothesis.
- It identifies limitations in the instruments used to measure environmental attitudes, given that these are culturally situated and centered on the Global North.
- It explores the “paradox of the ecological imagination”: a strong tradition of socio-environmental struggles, but little influence over public policy and public opinion.
- It highlights barriers such as institutional distrust, the technocratization of environmental management, and the influence of corporate actors.
- It proposes a research agenda along three fronts: (i) epistemological plurality, (ii) methodological refinement, and (iii) theoretical integration of nature, technology, and society.
- It recommends taking institutional trust, authoritarian tendencies, and expectations of the state into account when developing climate policy and communication.
About the authors
Sofia Vizcarra Castillo is a professor in the Department and Graduate Program in Political Science at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, UFRGS).
Daniel Capistrano is a researcher at the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) and a lecturer at the School of Education of Trinity College Dublin.
Mariana Alves dos Santos is a doctoral candidate in the Graduate Program in Political Science (Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciência Política, PPGCP) at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul.
Publication details
Title: El medio ambiente como objeto político: aportes desde la cultura política para la construcción de una ciencia política posnormal en América Latina
Authors: Sofia Vizcarra Castillo, Daniel Capistrano, and Mariana Alves dos Santos
Year of publication: 2025
Available in: Debates en Sociología, no. 60
Keywords: environmental politics, political culture, post-normal science, Latin American political science, Anthropocene, political ecology, postmaterialism, climate change attitudes, environmental justice, socio-environmental conflicts, green political theory, public opinion and climate policy, epistemological pluralism, comparative survey research, energy transition
