AUTHOR=Dibattista Ilaria 

TITLE=Building a collective ecological identity: A multidisciplinary reflection

JOURNAL=European Journal of Cultural Management and Policy

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontierspartnerships.org/journals/european-journal-of-cultural-management-and-policy/articles/10.3389/ejcmp.2022.11106

DOI=10.3389/ejcmp.2022.11106

ISSN=2663-5771

ABSTRACT=In this paper, the phenomenon of collective ecological identity will be theoretically investigated, with the aim to understand the role of public opinion and policy in driving action.
In the recent years, awareness towards environmental issues is increasing, but the environmental targets set by political agendas are yet far to be reached. 
Hilgartner and Bosk’s “The Rise and Fall of Social Problems” (1988) offers an insight into the mismatch between public opinion and action, suggesting that public attention towards certain social issues depends on interconnected public arenas, that produce a feedback effect boosting the social problem. From this point of view, public opinion on a social problem does not engender collective action. However, according to Schudson (1989), the resonance and the institutionalization of a certain cultural object is fundamental to its becoming part of the culture of a given community, making cultural policy a necessary condition to change a society.