From campaign-style governance to multiple environmentalities: urban political ecologies of e-waste regulation in Guiyu, China

Recent urban political ecology (UPE) literature on urban environmentality, drawing on Foucauldian power analytics, sheds important light on how powers in non-coercive, non-sovereign, and diffused forms emerge and produce docile environmental subjects. Meanwhile, much literature on urban environmental politics in the Global South works with an environmental governance approach, focusing on the role of sovereign power in governing urban socio-ecological changes. This paper collapses the distinction between sovereign and non-sovereign forms of governance by engaging with the multiple environmentalities thesis. This theoretical perspective is illustrated through a case study of a highly polluted global e-waste processing hub, namely Guiyu Town, Guangdong Province, China. In all, this study not only highlights the relevance of the multiple environmentalities paradigm to UPE but also paves a way towards developing situated theories and empirics amidst environmental politics in the urban South.

Automated summary

Recent research in urban political ecology (UPE) focuses on urban environmentality and sheds light on the emergence of non-coercive and diffused forms of power that shape environmental subjects. Meanwhile, studies on urban environmental politics in the Global South examine the role of sovereign power in governing socio-ecological changes. This paper bridges the gap between sovereign and non-sovereign governance by exploring the concept of multiple environmentalities. Through a case study of Guiyu Town, China, a polluted e-waste processing hub, this study highlights the relevance of the multiple environmentalities paradigm to UPE and suggests the need for situated theories in the urban South.