This research started from a concern about the changing role of the environmental movement in government decision making in newly democratised Korea. Many empirical studies found that environmental movements in other transitional democracies reached their peak during the liberalisation of authoritarian regimes, and considerably declined after democratisation. Unlike these cases, the Korean environmental movement grew greatly after democratisation, but faced its decline later within civil society-friendly administrations (1998-2007). This trajectory raises questions about what actually happened between the government and the environmental movement in Korea. To explain this phenomenon, this research selected the political opportunity structure (POS) approach, which stresses the importance of political environment around social movements. Based on the two dimensions of the POS – “access to the political system” and “configuration of actors”, this research has explored, (i) what forms of access chances were created by the Korean government in decision making; (ii) what change occurred in the relationships between the environmental movement, government, and other social actors; and (iii) how these factors influenced the environmental movement’s ability to influence outcomes. The research is based on case studies of two anti-dam movements, the Dong River dam movement and the Hantan River dam movement, and interviews were carried out with key stakeholders, including environmental activists, public officials, experts, and newspaper reporters.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:557531 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Kim, Myung Jun |
| Contributors | Dabinett, Gordon |
| Publisher | University of Sheffield |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/2346/ |
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