Placial Thickness in Social Movement Coalitions: The Case of the Ex-GKN for Future

Alliances between climate activists and workers at the grassroots level are growing but remain marginal even though they may prove critical for climate change mitigation and a just transition. Our paper looks at the exemplary case of a coalition between metalworkers who were formerly part of the automotive industry and the Italian branch of the climate justice organization Fridays for Future. We argue that the coalition formed as a part of process of placial thickening where platially thick coalitions are those with high levels of shared values, identity, and ideas or solidarity. Place is typically not accounted for in coalition typologies and, unlike space, place emphasizes shared meaning that can only be arrived at from the participants within the space. Thus, placial thickness can change over time as participants’ views change. Through interviews of coalition partners and participant observation of coalition events, we argue for the importance of placially thick coalitions in establishing and deepening climate consciousness and actions across greater numbers of sectors and segments of the population. Furthermore, the case study demonstrates the critical role of solidarity within intermovement or inter-sector coalitions where shared values, identity, and ideas require development.