The Fall of Communism & Its Effect on the Environment of Eastern Europe

Author: Martyna Kluczynska

Field of Study: Social Sciences

Program Affiliation: Source Project Research Program

Faculty Mentors: Robert Holahan

Easel: 45

Timeslot: Afternoon

Abstract: How has the environment changed in Eastern Europe since the end of communism in 1990? How has environmental policy changed in these countries? What caused the changes in these policies? Eastern Europe has seen significant changes in the quality of its environment in the past 35 years, and this study will be exploring these changes as well as their causes. The study compares communist environmental policies and current European Union environmental policies. It also compares UNFCCC data sets and charts depicting different environmental factors such as pollution and air quality. The comparison of the policies will offer an explanation for the changes in the environment, and the comparison of the data will determine the effectiveness of the policies. The study also includes peer-reviewed articles that discuss differences and observations of the area under different policies. Ultimately, the study discovers that the quality of the environment in Eastern Europe has significantly improved since the end of communist regimes in 1990, due to many of these former communist countries implementing stricter environmental policies (especially those who went on to join the European Union).