Retournement de situation

The text examines the global decline of trust in democracy, linking it to economic inequality, technological shifts, and social transformation. It positions Green politics as a solution to this crisis through the promotion of active citizenship, the creation of a socially just and sustainable vision of prosperity to replace fossil-fuel-based social democracy, and the democratic reform of the European Union.

• Global public trust in democracy has been declining since the early 1990s, a trend that accelerated following the 2008 financial crisis, suggesting that economic recession and inequality are key drivers of this instability.
• The document identifies several movements as responses to perceived democratic dysfunction: the 'gilets jaunes' sought to integrate rural and suburban realities into climate policy, Black Lives Matter focuses on legal equality and systemic injustice, and Greta Thunberg's actions sparked a global climate movement to represent the interests of future generations.
• Green politics aims to revitalize democracy by combining representative systems with innovations like citizens' assemblies to ensure diversity and the inclusion of marginal interests.
• The author argues that 20th-century social democracy was tied to a fossil-fuel economy that is now declining, necessitating a new progressive vision of a sustainable and socially just future to protect democracy in the 21st century.
• The European Union faces democratic and constitutional constraints that make its achievements fragile; the document suggests improving transparency, representation at the European level, and support for civil society and media to strengthen transnational democratic politics.

APA

Kendrick, J. (2021). Retournement de situation. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/retournement-de-situation/

Chicago

Kendrick, Jamie. Retournement de situation. Green European Journal, 2021. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/retournement-de-situation/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Kendrick |first1=Jamie |title=Retournement de situation |publisher=Green European Journal |date=26 November 2021 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/retournement-de-situation/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{kendrick2021retournement, author = {Kendrick, Jamie}, title = {{Retournement de situation}}, publisher = {Green European Journal}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/retournement-de-situation/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }