Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
such as Acción Ecológica(ecoresisters) and Vida para Quito (ecoindepen-
dents), suggests that greater local autonomy is possible.
Notes
Thanks to JoAnn Carmin, Russ Dalton, Bob Edwards, and Patrick Gilham for
sharing their organizational surveys with me. Special thanks to JoAnn Carmin
and Ken Gould for their ongoing dialog. This research was supported by the
Fulbright Commission and by Muhlenberg College's Class of '32 Research
Professorship.
1. There have been some studies that address aspects of environmental amenities.
For instance, this line of thinking can be found in Robert Bullard's (1990) classic
topic,
Dumping in Dixie.
Though Bullard focuses primarily on the distribution
of “bads,” he also writes that getting an area declared a Superfund site is
positive. Though ironic, being able to get this designation for a site ensures some
commitment to cleanup. Bullard shows that Superfund sites have disproportion-
ately been sited in white communities. Similarly, the Environmental Protection
Agency has charged higher fi nes for polluters in white neighborhoods.
2. See Gould, Lewis, and Roberts 2004 on the diffi culty of forming coalitions
among various progressive organizations.
3. See, for example, Escobar 1995.
4. Power relations are inherent in the distribution of resources. In the social
movement literature, researchers debate whether patronage for social movement
organizations is benefi cial or whether it co-opts organizations. For works on this
topic, see Brulle 2000; Jenkins and Eckert 1986; Jenkins and Halci 1999;
McAdam 1982; McCarthy, Britt, and Wolfson 1991; McCarthy and Zald 1977;
and Walker 1991.
5. My analysis also fi ts into a tradition in development studies of understanding
the consequences of Northern interventions in issues of the South. This is analo-
gous to the issue raised by social movement theorists—understanding the conse-
quences of elite intervention for indigenous activities. Both question whether
powerful groups are able to co-opt weaker groups to promote the powerful
groups' interests. In the development literature, there is a range of fi ndings. On
one end of the spectrum, some argue that international interactions create the
growth of a “world culture”; on the other end of the spectrum are those who
highlight diversity and resistance in the global South to the global North's neo-
liberal agenda. See Frank, Hironaka, and Schofer 2000 for the world culture
argument, and Taylor et al. 1993 for the resistance argument. This work con-
tributes to the growing body of literature on transnational social movements:
Bandy and Smith 2005; Carmin and Hicks 2002; Della Porta and Tarrow 2005;
Keck and Sikkink 1998; Martin 2003; Pellow 2007; Rodrigues 2003; Smith and
Johnston 2002; and Tarrow 2005.
6. The survey population consists of organizations with offi ces in Ecuador
working on environmental issues with valid e-mail addresses. Of the population
of 176 organizations, 45 percent responded to the survey (
n
= 80). The survey
