Democracy, ecological transition and (tech-)media: convergences and contradictions

"Green democracy, or ecological democracy, is grounded in the basic insight that we are ecologically interdependent. Humans cannot flourish if the rest of the natural environment doesn’t flourish. And so, we have a responsibility toward ourselves and nature, now and in the future."

IOS Global Futures of Democracy would like to invite you to one of our upcoming debates where Robyn Eckersley, professor of Political Science, School of Social and Political Sciences (The University of Melbourne) and Ruth Moon assistant professor of media and public affairs (Louisiana State University) will debate “Democracy, ecological transition and (tech-)media: convergences and contradictions”.

The Speakers

Robyn Eckersley is Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor in the Discipline of Political Science, School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Melbourne and a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia since 2007. She has published widely in the fields of environmental politics, political theory and international relations with a special focus on the ethics, politics and governance of climate change. Her book The Green State: Rethinking Democracy and Sovereignty (2004) won a Melbourne Woodward Medal in 2005 for the best research in Humanities and Social Sciences and was runner up in the International Studies Association’s Sprout Award for 2005 for the best book on Environmental Studies.She received a Distinguished Scholar Award from the Environmental Studies Section of the International Studies Association in 2019 and she received an honorary doctorate from Utrecht University in 2024 for her contribution to green political theory and democracy.

Ruth Moon (PhD, University of Washington) is an assistant professor of media and public affairs at Louisiana State University. She studies power relationships and knowledge production with a focus on journalism practice in authoritarian contexts in the Global South. She has published research in Digital Journalism, Journalism Studies, Journalism, Information, Communication & Society, African Journalism Studies, International Journal of Communication, and other journals. Her first book, Authoritarian Journalism: Controlling the Press in Post-Conflict Rwanda (Oxford University Press), was published in 2023. Her research is informed by more than 10 years’ professional journalism experience.

The debate is hosted by ‘Global Futures of Democracy an initiative of Institutions for Open Societies and coordinated by Lars Behrisch (Political History) and Bruce Mutsvairo (Media, Politics and the Global South).

Everyone interested in the present and future of democracy is welcome to join.

This event will be hosted in English