ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 suggested that representation could be simultaneously a cultural and a political act. Representations, as we saw there, both depict (resemble) and stand in place of something or someone (represent). They define, but they also speak for that something or someone. In this sense, all acts of cultural representation might be regarded as political because they are fundamental to the activities by which differing sets of individual and group interests compete to be heard within society. Analysing the power to define what things mean, to win support for certain kinds of cultural values and identity over others, and to examine how this in turn shapes and is shaped by access to wealth and social resources, are central to understanding cultural politics. Certainly for the study of environmental representations, the issues of power encapsulated in the idea of cultural politics are crucial to our ability to make connections between culture and the expression of social values
concerning the environment. Following Jordan and Weedon (2000, 13), we might highlight several key areas:
The power to name: concerning both the assertion of identity and claims to represent reality that are central for the struggle to gain support for certain kinds of cultural value in environmental debates.
