POLLEN (Political Ecology Network) is an umbrella organization of political ecology researchers, groups, projects, networks and ‘nodes’ across the globe. POLLEN was founded in 2015 by a group of European ‘nodes’ and quickly became a global network.
As the name suggests, POLLEN seeks to provide a platform for the ‘cross-fertilization’ of ideas, where the world’s many rich, diverse traditions can come together, discuss, and debate the latest developments in the field. Historically, the term ‘political ecology’ has not been confined only to an analytical approach and research agenda, but also to the theories and narratives that mobilize social and political movements with an ecological agenda. We, therefore, aim to function as a vehicle to promote, encourage and facilitate political ecological research with other academic fields and disciplines, as well as civil society.
Hence, while POLLEN seeks to foster a certain ‘strength in numbers’ for political ecology researchers, it also highlights our common ‘strength in diversity’, acknowledging that it is the interaction between many and varied traditions of theorization on social-environmental relations that continues to make this field so vibrant. The members of POLLEN are both individuals and ‘nodes’. These nodes are really what POLLEN is all about: autonomous groups of political ecologists working in and on different traditions. It is established mainly to coordinate between, but also to support, the various nodes in ensuring that political ecology messages, lessons and insights are shared, broadcasted and heard more widely.
Our objectives:
- To be the umbrella organisation for political ecology research and conversations;
- To enable and facilitate the cross-fertilization of information about political ecology research, literature, and relevant funding opportunities among the many nodes;
- To organise and support activities that encourage and strengthen political ecology work, both within and outside academia;
- To find ways to engage with activist, civil society and political groups and work to bring these groups into discussion with the network.
To start your own POLLEN node, please fill in your details on our open Google Sheets membership database, and email the POLLEN secretariat at politicalecologynetwork@gmail.com to request that your node is added to the website.
The POLLEN Secretariat is currently hosted by the Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies (LUCSUS). Previous hosts were:
- Resources, Environment and Development Group, Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University (2021-2022)
- Global Development Group, University of Copenhagen (2019-2021)
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University (2017-2019)
- Sociology of Development and Change Group, Wageningen University (2015-2017)
POLLEN 