(NO) HOPE FOR A FUTURE

Abstract

We, living beings, find ourselves in a rapidly changing world. Humanity can no longer deny that it is damaging and having an indisputable impact on our planet. The effects of these changes are becoming increasingly unpredictable, but one thing is certain: this century is a time of irreversible changes. Therefore, this thesis aims to demonstrate how futural imaginations impact our “being” and “moving” in the present world. This study draws from three months of ethnographic research among members of Extinction Rebellion (XR) Amsterdam who are campaigning for a climate-just world. It presents how XR members imagine climate futures, resulting in different orientations and how this translates into activist citizenship. First, I present how XR portrays two dichotomous futural imaginations: going extinct or surviving. However, the rebels of XR are not a homogenous group as they demonstrate that their futural ideas are personal, multi-layered, and more nuanced. Second, I elaborate on how these imaginations trigger feelings and cause rebels to orientate differently towards the future. Two orientations that strongly emerged were hope and anticipation – in the form of eco-anxiety. Third, I demonstrate how futural imaginations and orientations impact the way of being and acting in the present. I conclude that one can see an activating process among the rebels: The futural imaginations affect rebels in the present as they become activist citizens. In turn, the rebels hope they can live a worthwhile life by becoming activist citizens; a moral person that fits the ethics and morals of XR and maybe somehow influence the future.