Scholarly record

RELATIONS BETWEEN REGIONAL AUTHORITIES AND CIVIL SOCIETY INSTITUTIONS AS A FACTOR OF ENHANCING ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY

Z. S. Grigoryevich, L. A. Nikolaevich

Abstract

The article analyzes the process of forming a dialogue between Russian civil society and the authorities with a view to solving environmental problems more effectively. One of the reasons that hinders the existence of system communication is that the authorities sacrifice ecology for the sake of developing the region's economy and yield to pressure from business, in the structure of whose interests the task of preserving a favorable natural environment for people's lives is peripheral. At the same time, the presence of favorable natural environment is one of the basic interests of the population. In modern political practice this disagreement of interests should be resolved as a result of a dialogue between the authorities and civil society institutions. However, the peculiarity of modern political life in Russia is that some institutions of Russian civil society are initiative-created by the authorities and only imitate a dialogue with it. A similar phenomenon is possible under conditions of low civilian activity of Russians, which is in fact confirmed by numerous sociological studies. The authors substantiate the necessity and inevitability of the emergence of new self-organizing associations of citizens, resolutely and consistently defending their right to live in a favorable natural environment. Their activity in protecting their interests will steadily increase. This, in a positive scenario, will ultimately lead to reformatting relations between the authorities and this segment of civil society.

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