Synopsis "environmental politics in southern europe (in English)"
`europe is sometimes credited with a `polis, but not a `demos. political integration and economic globalisation cannot diminish local identity and social memories. this fascinating collection of national case studies shows why there will always be a local `demos located in ecology, economy, and society. but there will never be a transnational `demos, precisely because locality is the basis for meaningful sustainability. long may it triumph. tim oriordan, cserge, university of east anglia the book offers a refreshing perspective on the diversity of europe and at the same time, on the interdependence of the policies, economies, and societies of european countries. going beyond the dichotomies of `good and bad and `leaders and laggards in environmental matters, the authors contribute to a different understanding of the north-south divide in the process of european integration. angela liberatore, european commission, directorate general for research `this is a self-consciously revisionist volume, whose findings are theoretically significant, policy-relevant, and timely. its insistence on `bringing society back in, its debunking of the notion of a `mediterranean syndrome, its emphasis on developmental `leapfrogging capacity of late-comers to emerge as leaders in contexts of late modernity, and its systematic attempt to reconceptualize the politics of europeanization should be carefully listed to students and policy-makers concerned with collective action, southern europe, european integration, and environmental politics. p. nikiforos diamandouros, university of athens
