Climate change and the green transition are increasingly framed as matters of security and societal resilience. While democratic societies depend on dissent, climate activism is increasingly treated as a disruption to critical infrastructure, economic stability, and public order.

This panel discusses the broader governance of climate dissent, including the growing role of private actors who are turning to legal strategies such as Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) to deter protest. States often play a key role in facilitating or reinforcing these pressures – whether through policing, legislation, or the protection of economic interests.

The panel will discuss questions such as:

• How does crisis framing reshape the boundaries of legitimate dissent?
• What roles do powerful private actors play in restricting protest, and how do state institutions enable or resist this?
• Who is protected, and whose freedoms are curtailed, when environmental protest targets critical infrastructure or corporate activity?
• How can preparedness policies be designed in ways that protect both societal resilience and democratic freedoms?