Environmental digital activism: Profile and main drivers

This chapter explores the role and importance of social media platforms and other digital tools for social advocacy. A digital activist leverages digital tools to advocate for social, political, economic, and environmental causes online. The goal of digital activists is to mobilize individuals through the Internet and various communication channels to achieve widespread impact and awareness. This study explores environmental digital activism through a survey conducted in February 2024. Its purpose is to identify the profiles and motivations of environmental digital activists and to examine the complex relationship between being a digital activist and the potential adoption of sustainable lifestyles. The results show a remarkable overlap between the two self-identified groups of individuals. A substantial portion of attributes, both socio-demographic and related to digital activism, are quite similar in the two subsets. Considering the findings, in comparison with the existing literature, a considerable number of environmental digital activists’ activities fall into the “Spectator” category. Consequently, this may lead to their categorization as “slacktivists”.