Environmental Conflicts and Social Innovation on the Balearic Islands (Spain)

New environmental conflicts arise all the time as a consequence of the industrial economy and economic growth. The search for new energy and new materials jeopardizes the margin to promote sustainable development in many local communities. In this paper, we examine a conflict related to hydrocarbons projects in the Balearic Sea (Spain) from the social innovation perspective. This novel approach allows us to focus on how socially innovative responses can be triggered by environmental threats. A set of mixed methods (qualitative analysis and social network analysis) are implemented to study the emergence and development of Alianza Mar Blava in Ibiza–Formentera. This is an initiative that succ…