Reading Response: Civil Society

Reading Response 4: Civil Society

In the reading, “Civil Society,” Edwards discusses the concepts of civil society as a voluntary, associational life that primarily thrives within western cultures and deals with a community of citizens that have a shared common interest. The reading also focused on how civil societies promote progressive policies, nurture positive social norms that encourages stability, and advocates accountability and checks against state authority. Moreover, noting the beneficial work that civil societies provide for not only their community (or gemeinschaft) but also the broader society (or gesellschaft) as a whole. The concepts discussed in the reading also relate to nature and environmental issues that such civil societies
as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), activist groups, and social movement organizations impact through their efforts to preserve the environment. Two examples of these movements that work to help protect the environment through their civil societies are that of the Sierra Club and the Dakota Access Pipeline protest movement. The Sierra Club is a non-governmental environmental organization that through its work of advocating green energy, weakening global warming, and opposing fossil fuels fights to protect the environment and nature as they strive toward a clean energy economy.
Similar to the Dakota Access Pipeline protest movement that also seeks to preserve the environment by protesting the underground oil pipeline that is being planned by the Dakota Access as a means of water protection from oil spills in the native land. Both these civil societies are prime examples of communities with the shared common interest of environment preservation that focuses on preventing damage caused by humans in order to protect nature and environment for the future. In addition, the civil societies also aid in educating the community to protect and restore the quality of the natural environment as well as getting involved in politics as further steps to continue the effort of economic preservation. For instance, some civil societies form political parties or work within various political parties to highlight their cause for the awareness, conservation, and protection of the environment. Thus, the community not only works within various organizations and social movements as a means of protecting natural resources and the environment but also works to gain political power as a way to then implement such laws or guidelines that will further help in the advocacy of environmental
conservation. In all, the community’s relationship with the environment and natural resources is clearly evident through the impact that the civil societies have on the struggle to acknowledge environmental issues and preserve natural resources. As the civil societies such as the non-governmental organizations, activist groups, political parties, and social movement organizations all work to continue the cause of striving toward a naturally cleaner environment. Therefore, by advocating for such things as water protection, natural gases, and weakening global warming the civil societies demonstrate their close relationship with environmental issues as through their advocacy one can see the significant ties to protect the environment. Overall, highlighting how impactful their work and efforts are to the cause of environmental preservation as it not only draws attention to the issue of natural resources and the environment but the civil societies also seek ways to educate others on the importance of environmental issues and ways to implement policies to further protect the environment.