Tranter, B: The Social and Political Bases of Environmentali

The environmental movement in Australia is anenduring and influential social phenomenon comprisinga myriad of organisations, groups, small cells andnon-affiliated activists and sympathisers. Spawninggreen politicians on the federal and state level itremains influential after several decades, as newissues such as climate change emerge and establishedissues like the protection of old growth forestsremain salient.Attempts have been made to link environmentalconcerns with the rise of new classes, the formationof new status groups, the ascendancy of postwargenerations, postmaterial value shifts and mediaexposure of environmental hazards. Yet systematic,empirical studies of environmentalism remainrelatively rare. In this book political sociologistBruce Tranter seeks to bridge this gap by criticallyexamining key sociological accounts ofenvironmentalism and systematically assessing theirefficacy. Drawing upon nationally representativesurvey data, he considers the explanatory value ofmajor sociological accounts of politics when appliedto the most influential element of 'new politics',the environmental movement.