‘Scientists don’t care about truth anymore’: the climate crisis and rejection of science in Canada’s oil country

IF 2.4 Q3 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

Environmental Sociology Pub Date : 2021-08-30 DOI:10.1080/23251042.2021.1973656

Timothy J. Haney

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引用次数: 6

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recent research in the area of science and technology studies focuses on climate change denial, the spread of misinformation, and public distrust in climate scientists; these beliefs are held especially by those dependent on fossil fuel extraction for their livelihoods. Many of the same individuals who deny the scientific consensus on climate change are nevertheless directly impacted by the climate crisis and environmental disasters. In fossil fuel dependent locations, do people continue to deny the scientific consensus on climate change and distrust climate scientists even after themselves experiencing a catastrophic flood? This paper investigates this question through interviews with 40 people affected by the 2013 Southern Alberta Flood, the costliest flood in Canadian history, who also live in the City of Calgary, the economic hub for Canada’s tar sands. Results indicate the participants rejected the scientific consensus on climate change, voiced a distrust in the motivations of climate scientists, though hoped they would one day discover the ‘truth’, and worked discursively to protect the oil industry. The findings reveal the complexity of post-disaster environmental views and trust in science, as well as how fossil fuel dependence shapes these views.

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“科学家不再关心真相了”:气候危机和加拿大石油国家对科学的排斥

摘要科技研究领域的最新研究集中在否认气候变化、错误信息的传播以及公众对气候科学家的不信任；这些信念尤其被那些以化石燃料开采为生的人所持有。然而，许多否认气候变化科学共识的人却直接受到气候危机和环境灾难的影响。在依赖化石燃料的地区，即使在经历了灾难性的洪水之后，人们是否仍继续否认气候变化的科学共识，不信任气候科学家？本文通过采访40名受2013年阿尔伯塔省南部洪水影响的人来调查这个问题，这是加拿大历史上代价最高的洪水，他们也住在加拿大焦油砂的经济中心卡尔加里市。结果表明，参与者拒绝接受关于气候变化的科学共识，对气候科学家的动机表示不信任，尽管他们希望有一天能发现“真相”，并努力保护石油行业。这些发现揭示了灾后环境观点和对科学的信任的复杂性，以及化石燃料依赖如何塑造这些观点。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Environmental Sociology ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES-

CiteScore

4.60

自引率

12.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： Environmental Sociology is dedicated to applying and advancing the sociological imagination in relation to a wide variety of environmental challenges, controversies and issues, at every level from the global to local, from ‘world culture’ to diverse local perspectives. As an international, peer-reviewed scholarly journal, Environmental Sociology aims to stretch the conceptual and theoretical boundaries of both environmental and mainstream sociology, to highlight the relevance of sociological research for environmental policy and management, to disseminate the results of sociological research, and to engage in productive dialogue and debate with other disciplines in the social, natural and ecological sciences. Contributions may utilize a variety of theoretical orientations including, but not restricted to: critical theory, cultural sociology, ecofeminism, ecological modernization, environmental justice, organizational sociology, political ecology, political economy, post-colonial studies, risk theory, social psychology, science and technology studies, globalization, world-systems analysis, and so on. Cross- and transdisciplinary contributions are welcome where they demonstrate a novel attempt to understand social-ecological relationships in a manner that engages with the core concerns of sociology in social relationships, institutions, practices and processes. All methodological approaches in the environmental social sciences – qualitative, quantitative, integrative, spatial, policy analysis, etc. – are welcomed. Environmental Sociology welcomes high-quality submissions from scholars around the world.