Från miljövård till hållbart samhällsbyggande - Förändringar i den Svenska miljöpolitiska diskursen under perioden 1987 - 2005
Environmental discourseDiscourse analysisSwedish environmental politics sustainable developmentEcological modernizationOur Common Future.Political and administrative sciencesStatsvetenskapFörvaltningskunskapLaw and Political Science
The aim of this thesis is to study discursive change in the Swedish environmental political discourse between 1987-2005. The text of three Swedish budget propositions are analysed for this purpose.The results from the analysis are related to a few relevant theoretical perspectives that hold partly different views on what constitutes ?sustainable development? and ?ecological modernization?. Through these theories the thesis continues the discussion around the two central but somewhat blurry terms sustainable development and ecological modernization. The aim of this discussion is to conclude whether the discursive change in Swedish environmental politics can be said to go more in the direction of sustainable development or ecological modernization, or if elements of both perspectives can be found.The analysis shows that the Swedish environmental discourse has come to include more and more political fields such as general welfare politics, during the period. And although the term sustainable development is most commonly used, the perspectives and solutions in the texts can mainly be said to belong to an ecological modernization discourse towards the end of the period. However, the analysis also shows that in the field of foreign- and development politics at the end of the period, stronger aspects of a sustainable development discourse can be found.