Ekologia polityczna powietrza: o uwidzialnianiu miejskiego ryzyka

In this text the author attempts to reconstruct contemporary disputes about air quality in Poland using the language of actor-network theory (ANT). The purpose is to show the process of making urban risk visible—in this instance, the risk of polluted air—through the development of hybrid alliances and the formulation of translations aimed at the final elimination of air pollution. The article consists of three parts and a theoretical introduction in which the author discusses the basic tools and concepts of ANT, as well as Latour’s programme of political ecology. In the first part, the author sketches the map of actors and actants involved in air-pollution discussions. Then she examines the role of things—material objects—in air pollution conflicts, with special emphasis on the agency of these non-human actants. Finally, she focuses on alternative translations, which are attempts to negotiate smog’s place in the hierarchy of the collective.