Prospects for Coalition Building Across Difference: Discourse Similarity, Complementarity, or Equivalence?

This paper builds on social movement studies literature with the objective of contributing to a better understanding of how discourse can serve as a foundation for coalition building among grassroots organizations struggling for environmental sustainability and social justice in the city of Utrecht (the Netherlands). We analyze podcast recordings and webpages featuring 10 grassroots organizations and identify five signifiers that emerged as the most prominent: connection; diversity and inclusion; sustainability; awareness, learning, and knowledge; and Utrecht. For each signifier, we identify discourses giving distinct meanings to the signifier and articulated by one or more of the studied organizations. Our study makes an empirical and practical contribution to the discussions about the critical role of discourse in coalition formation at the local level. It is explorative of the prospects for coalition building which can be envisaged on the basis of an analysis of current discourses of distinct grassroots organizations. While our findings support and potentially strengthen the collaboration among grassroots organizations and movements in Utrecht, our theory-informed discussion of this case study offers practical insights into bottom-up civic initiatives in urban contexts elsewhere.