A study published in a peer-reviewed academic journal has argued that “authoritarianism” could be necessary to fight against the impact of climate change.
The study which was published in Cambridge University’s American Political Science Review and first reported by the Foundation For Economic Education, started out with the question of “is authoritarian power ever legitimate?”.
This was before the author outlined how it could be when combating climate change.
Read also: Expert says Seawall damage sign of things to come amid sea level rise
Assistant professor of political theory at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile Ross Mittiga who wrote the study’s abstract noted that while under normal conditions, maintaining democracy and rights is typically compatible with guaranteeing safety, in emergency situations, conflicts between these two aspects of legitimacy can and often do arise.
“A salient example of this is the COVID-19 pandemic, during which severe limitations on free movement and association have become legitimate techniques of government. Climate change poses an even graver threat to public safety,” she wrote. “Consequently, I argue, legitimacy may require a similarly authoritarian approach.”
She added that “While unsettling, this suggests the political importance of climate action.
“For if we wish to avoid legitimating authoritarian power, we must act to prevent crises from arising that can only be resolved by such means.”
According to the study, it is “ultimately an empirical question whether authoritarian governance is better able to realize desired environmental outcomes and, if so, why and to what extent.”
The study drew criticism on Twitter, particularly from Alexander Wuttke, a political psychology professor at the University of Mannheim, who referred to it as “disturbing.”
“In my reading, it explicitly argues that we must put climate action over democracy and adopt authoritarian governance if democracies fail to act on climate change,” Wuttke wrote.
