2024/08/07 by François‐Mathieu Poupeau · 1 voice
Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #Atmospheric and Environmental Gas Dynamics #French Urban and Social Studies #Sustainability and Climate Change Governance
paper · doi:10.1080/09644016.2024.2386795
openalex publication_date 2024/08/07 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
National climate policies have generated a considerable body of research in academic literature. Focusing on the little-studied case of France, this article examines the way in which, in this country, the State has drafted its latest low-carbon strategy (SNBC). Drawing on approaches such as ‘bureaucratic politics’ and ‘administrative capacity’, it questions the ability of the administration responsible for writing this document (and thus defending the climate cause) to make its voice heard within the political-administrative arena. Based on an in-depth sociological study, this article shows that this administration found itself in a position of ‘powerlessness’, due to three main factors: instrumental (the limited scope of the tool, reflecting an initial will to reduce its impact), organizational (the subordinate position of this administration within the bureaucratic hierarchy) and political (weak support from government). The result is a contested strategy, unlikely to bring about a credible roadmap to implement the necessary changes.