Research Projects

SMARTRURAL - Building resilient rural communities through synergy of traditional knowledge and technological innovation

Climate crisis and geopolitical uncertainties - the engagement of young people

• Lisbon team: Carlos Smaniotto Costa, Nagayamma Aragão, Diogo Mateus
  Bristol team: Sandrine Simon
• 01/05/2026 - 30/04/2027
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.60543/ecati/8svp-d513

Synopsis

Climate crisis and geopolitical shifts challenge society more than ever. Both threaten security, development and sustainability efforts, affecting vulnerable populations in particular. In actual times, with the increasingly polarised society, the debates on climate change, its consequences and who the culprits and who the victims are, are being constantly questioned and often denied. The increasing combination of factors, like deliberate disinformation campaigns, political and economic interests, ideological positions, to name a few, are particularly worrying, as they risk not only undermining efforts to safeguard the planet, but also how we all live together and share the resources. Geopolitical shifts and uncertainties are indeed jeopardising environmental and climate actions and leading to a decline in international cooperation on climate action, hindering efforts to transition to a low-carbon economy. Navigating through such challenges requires both individual and collective action, this in turn, calls for new forms of collective agency to drive necessary transformations. ENGAGE will advance knowledge in how young people, from a range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds living in Lisbon (Portugal) and Bristol (United Kingdom), face climate change, geopolitical uncertainties and willingness to participate in actions towards their mitigation.

The objective is not only to clarify young people’s understanding of how socio-economic and geopolitical issues relate to climate change but also to better understand how their different perspectives encourage various types of ‘climate action’ and attitudes towards changing our economic practices. To achieve this, ENGAGE will establish an open research path to involve young researchers from Urbanismo (Lisbon) and the master’s programme in Sustainable Development in Practice (UWE Bristol), to co-create the research design, perform the survey, reflect findings and report insights.

SEED Funding

ENGAGE - Climate crisis and geopolitical uncertainties - the engagement of young people

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