The metamorphosis of autonomy in the digital sphere: Implications for the eco-emancipatory project

Environmental politics are in crisis. As the window for mitigating lasting ecological damage closes, eco-emancipatory efforts become increasingly marginalised. This article argues that an investigation through the lens of autonomy can shed new light on the crisis of the eco-emancipatory project (EEP) in today's late-modern, digitally mediated and repoliticised societies. Moving beyond narratives of autonomy's demise in the digital age, the article explores how autonomy has been reconfigured in the digital sphere into what can be termed hyper-autonomy – self-legislation rooted in trivialised authenticity (Taylor) while lacking solidarity and compromise. It concludes that hyper-autonomy reinforces authoritarian positions, aligning more with the exclusionary logic of the far right than with eco-critical calls for collective self-limitation. While this investigation deepens the perception of the EEP as anachronistic, it also offers a platform to rethink the future of autonomy in environmental politics, navigating between adaptation and resistance.