ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the principal lines of criticism that have been mounted against localist agendas within eco-political thinking. It describes the ways in which local arenas may possess positive qualities for transitions to sustainability: in providing contexts for the creation of more diverse, contextually embedded solutions to environment and development problems; and in mobilising resistance to unsustainable business-as-usual. The chapter explores how the Coalition Government's localism agenda intersects with qualities of local environmental action, focusing on renewable energy policy and land use planning in the UK, and particularly England. Successive UK governments have signalled their support for more sustainable systems of energy provision, in which dependence on fossil fuels is substantially replaced by low carbon sources. The chapter concludes by critically examining the relationship between localism and the environment, focusing on the extent to which decentralising power towards smaller units might be functional for environmental sustainability.
