Call for Papers – Issue 1/2026

In recent decades, growing awareness of the climate crisis increased interest on the topic among the public, the media and the scientific community (Clayton & Manning, 2018). This attention contributed to widespread changes in environmental attitudes and a growing focus on issues such as sustainability, climate justice and eco-anxiety, that significantly involve the younger generations (de Moor et al., 2020; Fisher, 2019).

At the same time, the digitalisation of social experience has reached unprecedented levels. The transformations linked to online communication and participation have accelerated sharply as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has redefined modes of learning, consumption and socialisation on a global scale (Bond et al., 2021). While this evolution has highlighted critical issues, such as the exacerbation of digital inequalities (van Dijk, 2020) and the spread of forms of superficial participation (e.g., slactivism, clicktivism), on the other hand, it has opened up new possibilities for civic and political participation that go beyond traditional collective action (Boulianne, 2020).

In the field of pro environmental participation and engagement, increased digitalisation has encouraged the emergence of new forms of action and interaction: online petitions, e-participation in local decision-making processes promoted by local administrations, campaigns and mobilisations coordinated via social media (He-stres, 2015; Neumayer & Svensson, 2016). These practices constitute a new space for collective and connective action (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012), in which the boundaries between “traditional” and “digital” participation are becoming increasingly blurred.

However, it is not yet clear how widespread these forms of pro environmental participation and engagement, are, how effective people consider them to be, how inclusive they are, and what skills are needed to put them into practice. With regard to skills, the literature seems to focus mainly on digital skills, but in order to act in defence of the environment with or without digital tools, skills and opportunities are also needed to support people's ability to think of themselves as agents of individual and collective change (Moonsun, 2016). Many questions remain open about environmental participation and online interactions, for example, regarding representations and beliefs about digital participation for the environment and against the climate crisis, the role of digital technology in maintaining or reducing the participation opportunity gap, and appropriate actions to support the training of community leaders to combat climate change.

This call aims to stimulate theoretical and empirical research, as well as intervention experiences, that critically and multidimensionally explore the transformations taking place in participation in the actions against the climate crisis, with a view to answering the following questions:

• What are the psychosocial antecedents of online and offline participation against the climate crisis?
• What characteristics (material, symbolic, relational) favour the adoption of some practices over others? 
• What does it mean to be an environmentalist today, and what are the representations and meanings attributed to participation against climate crisis in its various forms (individual, collective, connective)? Is digital participation perceived as more or less effective, rewarding or demanding than in-person participation?
• What is the role of emotions in environmental participation? Can eco-anxiety be mitigated by online participation? What is the role of other emotions (e.g., eco-hope, eco-anger)?
• What is the role of digital technology in maintaining or reducing the participation opportunity gap rooted in ethnic, age, gender, sexual, socioeconomic and geographical differences? Do marginalised groups find inclusive spaces to take action against climate change online, or are they exposed to further forms of marginalisation on platforms?

A further area for reflection on which the call seeks contributions concerns the role of educational contexts in promoting ecological, civic and participatory skills in digital natives, with a particular focus on educational practices that integrate participatory and transformative approaches to promoting environmental engagement and climate justice.