Eco-Friendly Communities of St. Petersburg: Motivations and Practices of Participation

The aim of this work is to identify motivations for the participation of residents of St. Petersburg in the activities of eco-friendly communities, as well as an analysis of their eco-activism practices. The main part of the work contains an overview of the main theories on this topic, the features of the phenomenon in different periods. The empirical base consists of 14 semi-structured leitmotif interviews with male and female eco-activists involved in various urban communities. A vertical entry into the community was made (through community leaders), and then informants were recruited using the “snowball” method. The data were analyzed by open coding. The results of the study showed that the key motivations for the participation of eco-activists are altruistic. The most common of these are motives such as a sense of duty, concern for the planet and subsequent generations, as well as the desire to be useful and inspire people with their own examples.