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Abstract
Drawing from Environmental Sociology perspectives, this thesis assesses the role of Ecological Modernization and Political Economy theories in understanding and addressing climate change. Situated within the context of increasing environmental damage and irreversible changes in the climate, this study investigates how economic and political structures influence environmental performance, vulnerability, and adaptive capacity in a global context. Ordinary least squares regressions models were used to investigate predictors of sensitivity, adaptive capacity, and environmental performance cross-nationally. The findings of this study demonstrate that, even though Ecological Modernization and Political Economy theory have opposing perspectives, there is also a need to assess them as complementary. This suggests that, while Ecological Modernization provides key factors to addressing vulnerability and mitigation efforts to climate change, it fails to account for power dynamics and global inequalities inherent in the capitalist system, which Political Economy theory underscores. This thesis argues for a more integrated approach, recognizing the complementarity of both theories in addressing the global climate crisis and its unequal impacts.