Greenpeace as a Non-State Actor in Politics: Lobbying Against Fossil Fuel Expansion in the European Union

Abstract

This paper looks into the activities of Greenpeace as a non-state actor in environmental governance within the European Union, with an emphasis on the organization's lobbying for fossil fuels reduction over the past two decades. Within the scope of the topic, this paper will look at the use of different kinds of strategies, including but not limited to research, public mobilization, coalition formation, and institutional participation. This will be done with reference to the concept of advocacy coalitions and using the case study of Greenpeace's activities related to reducing the impact of fossil fuels. In particular, it is possible to say that the organization uses its capacity for both insider and outsider lobbying and, thus, can influence the policy process from within and from outside. It can be seen that Greenpeace has succeeded in its attempts to shape the policy debate, stimulate energy transitions, and reduce the dominance of fossil fuel industry. At the same time, it cannot be said that the results of its activities have been fully effective because of different kinds of structural constraints. The findings suggest that although non-state actors like Greenpeace play a critical role in accelerating climate governance, their influence is complementary rather than decisive, requiring strong governmental action to achieve long-term decarbonization goals.