3.1.- Consumerism and political participation
“Political consumerism” is a form of political participation that is becoming increasingly widespread throughout Europe. The effects of capitalism and globalization have led to a significant increase in interest groups, social movements, and transnational social networks that serve as channels for understanding and acting on political issues. Among the different ways in which citizens are acting, we are going to focus on people who use the market to express their political concerns. The intention is to open up at least two fields of research: one is limited to the study of political mobilization through the market, given that the proliferation of social networks and transnational social movements makes us see that the impact of new technologies and the different means of disseminating information can be valuable in determining the scope of this form of political participation; a second is gender-based, considering that political consumerism (boycott and “buycott”) is a form of participation in which there is an inverted gender gap that it is interesting to examine in depth, especially in a comparative perspective.
3.2.- Food institutions, obesogenic environments, and food choices
It is argued that a large part of today’s food problems have to do with environmental pressure to eat unhealthy products. The role of the different actors involved in food, from producers to companies, including public administration, becomes particularly significant, especially when each of them launches a multitude of narratives and pressures, often contradictory, that add to consumers’ uncertainty and mistrust. The components of the modern agri-food system and their role in establishing guidelines for appropriate food and nutrition will be the main object of analysis, focusing on the continuing rise in obesity in both developed and emerging countries.