ResearchArticle / Araştırma Makalesi Cite as/ Atıf: Konak, N., Uysal D. & Taş, T.(2020).Climate change, green economy, run-of-river hydro power development and socio-ecological conflicts in Turkey. Turkish Studies - Economy, 15(4), 2477-2492. https://dx.doi.org/10.47644/TurkishStudies.43774 Received/Geliş:25 May/Mayıs 2020 Checkedbyplagiarismsoftware Accepted/Kabul:20 December/Aralık 2020 Published/Yayın: 25 December/Aralık 2020 Copyright © INTAC LTD, Turkey CC BY-NC 4.0 Climate Change, Green Economy, Run-of-River Hydro Power Development and Socio- Ecological Conflicts in Turkey Türkiye'de İklim Değişikliği, Yeşil Ekonomi, Hidroelektrik Enerji Gelişimi ve Sosyo-Ekolojik Çatışmalar Nahide Konak * - Doğan Uysal ** - Taner Taş *** Abstract: In the name of climate change mitigation, initiatives for the greening of the economy in Turkey through the post-politicization procedure have accelerated renewable energy developments. The investment in renewable energy, as a transition to a low-carbon economy, along with the plan to increase the energy production through coal mining in Turkey reproduced the contradiction involved with the current policies for transitioning to low-carbon energy path at the global level, and it has also perpetuated socio-ecological conflicts in Turkey. The oppositions to the run-of-river hydropower development projects (HEP) in Turkey have illustrated that these hydro projects have been accelerating the already-existing water and land grabbing issues that exert various adverse ecological and social consequences, which is directly inconsistent with the concept of sustainability. Run-of-river hydroelectricity development appears to fail in ensuring the sustainability of the vital ecosystem and that of the local economic, social, and cultural systems that depend on healthy ecosystems. Examining the socio-ecological conflicts that emerged due to the run-of-river hydropower development may prove to be fruitful in revealing the contradictions, inconsistencies, and problems in the design of climate change mitigation through green economy. It is more accurate to conceptualize green economy as a method advanced for economic crisis rather than the ecological crisis, because the discourses and policies of green economy conceal the real structural factors underlying the climate change – the growth-dependent and market-based capitalist system and the fossil-fuel dependent industrial development. Local social, ecological and economic actors should be listened in order to understand that green economy encourages the business as usual attitude. * Prof. Dr., Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal Üniversitesi, Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi, Sosyoloji Bölümü Prof. Dr. Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Faculty of ArtsandSciences, Department of Sociology 0000-0001-9560-7777. nahide.konak@ibu.edu.tr ** Prof. Dr., Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi, İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi, İktisat Bölümü Prof. Dr. Doğan Uysal, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Faculty of EconomicsandAdministrativeSciences, Department of Economics 0000-0001-9406-0757 dogan.uysal@cbu.edu.tr *** Dr. Öğr. Üyesi, Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi, İşletme Fakültesi, Ekonomi ve Finans Bölümü Asst. Prof, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Faculty of Business Administration, Department of Economics and Finance 0000-0002-2861-5467 taner.tas@gmail.com