Environmental justice movements are taking place at an ever accelerating rate through out the world. Through mobilization of people with diverse societal backgrounds, race, ethnicity, age, gender and income levels, they not only challenge the existing state-society-economy spectrum but also contain important clues about an alternative to capitalism. As crisis vocabulary has become a chronic part of today’s neoliberal world, an alternative to capitalism is sought by many. Since environmental justice movements are one of the most widespread counter-hegemonic movements, and that they counter capital by their nature, understanding the demands of the participants might shed a light on an alternative world design. All in all, only an alternative design which addresses and understands the demands of the people challenging the current system can offer a true alternative to it. Accordingly, this article aims to find out what originates from community based environmental justice movements in the South about an alternative world design. It aspires to empower the link between the de-growth paradigm and the grassroots community demands. It comparatively evaluates the protestors' demands, and visions about an alternative world design in two environmental justice movements, Bergama and Artvin protests.

This media entry was a contribution to the special session „How to construct the alternative to capitalism? Discovering the commons in the environmental justice movements “ at the 5th International Degrowth Conference in Budapest in 2016.