Social Movements for the Preservation of Forests in North-West Russia

From Consumer Boycotts to Fostering Forest Certifications

Author(s): Maria Tysiachniouk
Editor(s): Stephen Aris, Matthias Neumann, Robert Orttung, Jeronim Perovic, Heiko Pleines, Hans-Henning Schröder
Series: Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)
Issue: 79
Pages: 20-23
Publisher(s): Center for Security Studies (CSS), ETH Zurich; Research Centre for East European Studies, University of Bremen; Institute of History, University of Basel
Publication Year: 2010

This article examines the transformation of Russia social movements and their gradual de-radicalization. It shows how a single social movement evolved in Karelia, starting with efforts to use market campaigns to preserve the forests, then becoming involved in negotiations to create special nature preserves, and ultimately participating in the process of forestry certification as an expert organization. It examines how the social movements relate to businesses and the state. Using concrete examples, it demonstrates how a non-governmental organization succeeded in reconciling two completely different roles: serving in opposition to corporations with the goal of requiring them to behave in a socially and ecologically responsible manner and providing expert support to them. In doing this, the article shows how the environmental movement itself and the NGOs within it are changing.

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