A Meta-Analysis of Rural Collective Action and Grassroots Mobilisation in Turkey in the 21st Century

The paper conducts a meta-analysis of grassroots mobilisations and collective action in Turkey over the past two decades, exploring the dynamic intersection of citizen agency and sociopolitical struggle. Through categorisation by thematic concerns such as environmental justice, land and food rights, urban transformation, and resistance to extractivism, the analysis sheds light on the evolution of rural and urban protests, cooperative initiatives, and social movements that have emerged in response to ecological and social crises.

Drawing on case studies from significant protests and grassroots efforts, environmental protests against mining projects, agrarian struggles over land ownership and its dispossession by extractivism, this paper explores the self-organising nature of these initiatives, their interaction with formal political institutions, and their wider sociopolitical implications. Following, the paper evaluates the duration, effectiveness, and transformative potential of these movements, identifying key factors that influence their success and longevity.

The paper also critically engages with the intersectionality of these movements, examining how gender, ethnicity, and socio-economic backgrounds have shaped the nature of protests and their outcomes. We argue that these mobilisations demonstrate a hybrid and pluralistic approach to grassroots citizenship, where localised struggles become platforms for broader claims of justice and sustainability, transcending geographic and political boundaries. By doing so, these initiatives contribute not only to ecological resilience but also to the reconfiguration of civic agency in the rural Turkish context.

Ultimately, this meta-analysis highlights the enduring impact of organised collective action in Turkey, offering insights into how rural localized struggles can transform into sustained movements for ecological and social change.