Globalization and Social Movements: Human Agency and Mobilizations for Change

Contrary to economists or marketing specialists, sociologists are particularly uncomfortable when it comes to thinking about the future (Schulz, 2015a). We know too well the limits of over-determinist perspectives and wishful thinking scenarios. The current ecological crisis obliges us however to consider seriously the debate about possible futures: How will we live together on a finite planet with limited resources? The first part of this text will briefly present and question some concepts of the future and of social change that are widespread among actors of the global environmentalist movement who take this question very seriously. In the second part, I argue that social movement studies is a particularly insightful field when it comes to possible futures, as it provides us with empirical elements that allow us to grasp dimensions of our possible futures on a limited planet. Therefore, as Markus Schulz (2015b) suggests, it is particularly insightful to articulate the sociology of the future with social movement studies