WP2 – Research on issues environmental - related activism and radicalization. OS1.4 – Understand the phenomenon of youth participation in movements promoting environmental sustainability and the fight against climate change, and the factors that can contribute to prevent radicalization. (A2.4)

The qualitative study aims to understand the motivations and ways of involvement of activists and to investigate the factors that can lead to the radicalization of some individuals and groups. The qualitative investigation was based on semi-structured interviews and focus groups carried out in five European countries (Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal and Spain). The thematic analysis of the data (Braun & Clarke, 2021, 2006) highlights some key factors that influence the adhesion to activism: curiosity, the family context and the sense of impotence in reference to the climate crisis. Three profiles of activists were identified: teachers activists, oriented towards dissemination; critics activists, with an analytical and critical approach; and avant-garde action, which adopt direct mobilization strategies. The study highlights the need to integrate different strategies to enhance the impact of climate activism, underlining the importance of a more accessible scientific language and of building spaces of “radical dialogue” to strengthen the public debate on the climate crisis.