Why do people in climate-vulnerable regions of Kenya and Namibia express more hope for the future than many in Germany, despite facing greater environmental threats? Drawing on ethnographic research and the philosophy of Gabriel Marcel, we make two arguments. First, in contrast to structural theories, we see hope as tied not to economic security but to experiences of “captivity” or constraint. In Germany, the second half of the 20th century was marked by a diminished sense of captivity, and this led to a diminished capacity for hope. Second, in Kenya and Namibia, climate change is experienced concretely, through failed rains or livestock losses. The concrete experience of climate change allows people to respond, in Marcel's words, with “techniques of liquefaction,” which imagine an alternative future within a given framework of goals, and “acts of transcendence,” which reorient aspirations toward a radically different future. By contrast, in Germany, climate change is often perceived in the abstract, through scientific discourse and the media, fostering feelings of despair and powerlessness. We suggest that reengaging with climate change on a human scale and embracing socially creative or religious forms of transcendence may help reawaken hope.

Social scientists routinely characterize religious influence in electoral politics as conservative and left-wing parties as fundamentally secular. Against these claims, I argue that the relationship between religion and electoral politics is shaped by the redistributive beliefs and preferences of religious leaders, who can become valuable allies of left-wing parties. I evaluate this argument in Brazil following the appointment of Pope John Paul II, leveraging as-if random variation in municipalities’ exposure to progressive Catholic bishops. I show that bishops who actively supported state-led redistribution were essential to the electoral success of the left-wing Workers’ Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores [PT]). Voters in municipalities with longer exposure to these bishops supported the PT at higher rates. The findings highlight the under-examined role of religious leaders in shaping the electoral influence of religion and provide evidence that these leaders can, in fact, be key for the development of left-wing parties, especially in the developing world.