Green Criminology Before ‘Green Criminology’: Amnesia and Absences

Abstract

Although the first published use of the term 'green criminology' seems to have been made by Lynch in 1990, elements of the analysis and critique represented by the term were established well before this date. There is much criminological engagement with, and analysis of, environmental crime and harm that occurred prior to 1990 that deserves acknowledgement. In this article, we try to illuminate some of the antecedents of green criminology. Proceeding in this way allows us to learn from 'absences', i.e. knowledge that existed but has been forgotten. We conclude by referring to green criminology not as an exclusionary label or barrier but as a symbol that guides and inspires the direction of research.

Systematic Review Study: A Comparative Analysis of the State of the Art of Green Criminology

“…The literature on green criminology has expanded to include theoretical, qualitative and quantitative studies dealing with the causes, consequences and control of damage and green crime. These studies have focused on food crime; genetic food modification; agricultural chemicals; crimes against animals; illegal trade and transnational environmental crimes; issues related to environmental justice; environmental crime; law and social control; and even specific issues like global warming Lynch & Stretesky, 2016;Goyes & South, 2017).…”

“…Green criminology is multidisciplinary and covers the environmental and political sciences, epidemiology, medical literature, geography, sociology, among others. In view of this, green criminology has been described as a perspective rather than a theory, so there is no unified -theory‖ of this concept (Lynch & Stretesky, 2014;Lynch & Stretesky, 2016;Goyes & South, 2017).…”

Breaking the Divide: Setting Environmental Precedent in the Chicago River

“…Literature in green criminology is the most directly applicable to the argument developed here. While earlier studies document the complex interactions between governments and polluters (e.g., Hawkins ; see also Goyes and South ), this literature began to coalesce into a distinct and impactful subset of criminology in the 1990s. According to Ruggiero and South (, 360), the term green criminology is best understood as a somewhat loose “umbrella category” for a diverse grouping of scholars with often different perspectives, literatures, and methodologies.…”

Ecocide, genocide, capitalism and colonialism: Consequences for indigenous peoples and glocal ecosystems environments

“…And while various writers within green criminology have argued that a global approach is essential (see e.g. Ellefsen et al, 2012;White, 2011;South, 2016), this has not always meant that relevant work in languages other than English or from fields of study other than criminology have been acknowledged (Goyes and South, 2017a).…”