ABSTRACT

This chapter examines the effects of the collapse of the Soviet Union on citizen-based environmental movements in Russia. It reviews some of the important influences on the movement since the beginning of perestroika. Citizen participation was also empowered by the connection of environmental concerns to nationalist movements and the straggle for greater national autonomy from the Soviet government. The collapse of the Soviet Union has created increasingly difficult conditions for those citizens making efforts to improve environmental quality. Plagued by an unstable system of markets, legal regimes, and political decision-making, Russia has limited social resources to address environmental difficulties. Environmental activists are learning new strategies, such as tapping new sources of funds, using computer networks, developing negotiating and communication skills, and applying recent environmental legislation to aid their cause. Russia, like all the other former communist countries, must contend with economic and political instability that affects the viability of a citizen-based environmental movement.