Relationships Between Activist Groups and Political Parties Shaping the Portuguese Climate Movement: Dynamics of Resistance and Collaboration

Aiming to better understand the relationship between youth activism and institutional politics, this article analyzes young climate activists’ interactions with political parties and how they shape the dynamics of the School Strike for Climate. Through a multi-sited ethnography in Portugal’s two major cities, we examined the participation experiences of young climate strikers from both chapters of the movement, revealing the contingent and complex development of their relationships with party politics, which ultimately influences the dynamics of Portuguese youth climate activism. The ethnographic data uncovered ambivalent and tensional relationship patterns with political parties in the two local groups. While closeness and collaboration with actors linked to institutional politics aimed at strengthening the climate movement’s broader political representation, it also prompted resistance, leading to internal conflicts within the movement. Our findings highlight differing political strategies and ideological stands among local groups, as well as tensions and ambivalences in the interactions with political parties. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the challenges of sustaining the School Strike for Climate movement over time and the ways in which activist movements negotiate political affiliations and internal cohesion.