CSSN is an international network of social science scholars focused on understanding the cultural and institutional dynamics of the political conflict over climate change.

ABOUT CSSN

The Latest

Latest
Nature-based Solutions Valuation Report
There is growing momentum in support of Nature-based Solutions to climate change, but it is difficult to assess the costs and benefits of each solution. CSSN Scholars Laura Kuhl and Alaina Boyle have a new report analyzing existing toolkits and projects to identify best practices for evaluating Nature-based Solutions.
Latest
Climate institutions in Brazil: three decades of building and dismantling climate capacity
What national climate institutions are needed to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement? In a new paper in Environmental Politics, CSSN Scholar Kathryn Hochstetler analyzes climate institutions in Brazil, and shows how a broad definition of climate institutions is needed to understand important national climate dynamics.
Strategic State Capacity: How States Counter Opposition to Climate Policy
Latest
Strategic State Capacity: How States Counter Opposition to Climate Policy
How can the state overcome organized opposition to climate policy from interest groups? CSSN Scholar Jonas Meckling examines the question in this new peer-reviewed research article.
New polling shows support for Biden clean energy goals
Latest
New polling shows support for Biden clean energy goals
Axios covers a new poll conducted by CSSN Scholar Matto Mildenberger and coauthors showing widespread support for federal action to reach a 100% clean energy grid.
Latest
Global Warming: From Scientific Warning to Corporate Casualty
How long has the fossil fuel industry known about global warming? And what can we do about it today? CSSN Scholar Benjamin Franta discusses the hidden history of climate science in this TEDxStanford talk.
Beyond the discourse of denial: The reproduction of fossil fuel hegemony in Australia
Latest
Beyond the discourse of denial: The reproduction of fossil fuel hegemony in Australia
New published research by CSSN Scholars Christopher Wright and Daniel Nyberg examines the narrative strategies that the Australian fossil fuel industry uses to delay climate action.
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CSSN in Action

The Latest Research
 The latest releases of research from CSSN Scholars around the world, advancing knowledge about climate conflicts and organizations obstructing action on climate change.
Our Working Groups
 CSSN working groups bring together scholars with shared interests, for discussion and collaborative research. The working groups will provide input into the CSSN Research Agenda. The groups are self-organizing and directing, and we hope to provide seed funding.
Our Projects
 CSSN scholars have several projects underway that evaluate the institutional and cultural dynamics of climate-related political conflicts.

Welcome to CSSN

CSSN Seeks to:

  • Coordinate, conduct, and support peer-reviewed research into the institutional and cultural dynamics of political conflicts around climate change,
  • Assist scholars to communicate the results of this research to policymakers, the public, and the wider climate change community, and
  • Conduct educational activities regarding the results of the research to inform the political, legal, and media communities.

Featured Scholar: Farhana Sultana

Farhana Sultana is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and the Environment at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. She is also the Research Director for Environmental Collaboration and Conflicts in the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration (PARCC) at the Maxwell School. Prior to joining Syracuse University, she was a faculty member in the Department of Geography at King’s College London and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Manchester, UK. Before becoming an academic, Farhana was a Programme Officer at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for a $26M large environment-development program in Bangladesh. She obtained my M.A. and Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Minnesota, where she was a John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellow and International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Fellow. She obtained her A.B. (Cum Laude) in Geosciences and Environmental Studies from Princeton University. As an internationally-recognized interdisciplinary scholar, Farhana us broadly interested in nature-society relationships, political ecology, critical development studies, feminist theories, urban studies, climate justice, water governance, human rights, citizenship, and South Asia. Her work is informed by not only her background and training in the natural sciences, social sciences, and policy experience, but also from having lived and worked on three continents, being a post-colonial subject and scholar, and having a lifelong commitment to critical praxis and social justice. Farhana is the recipient of the 2019 Glenda Laws award from the American Association of Geographers.

Learn more about Farhana Sultana.

Featured Research

Solar Geoengineering Research in the United States: Key Critical Questions

In a new CSSN Position Paper, CSSN Scholars Prakash Kashwan, Duncan McLaren, Jennie Stephens, and Kevin Surprise outline three areas of key questions to ask about any effort to advance solar geoengineering research using public funds.

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