The King’s Speeches: Legitimation Via Environmental Sustainability Traced Through the Royal Speeches in Morocco

The hydrocarbon wealth of West Asian and North African (WANA) countries has traditionally underpinned perceptions of regime stability, with rentier economies closely tied to oil and gas revenues. However, the escalating climate crisis challenges these traditional models of resource-driven governance, prompting a shift towards diversification and climate adaptation strategies. Morocco, with its limited hydrocarbon reserves, stands out as a regional leader in adopting renewable energy and environmental policies. In recent years, sustainability has become a cornerstone of Morocco’s foreign policy and domestic governance. This study conducts an in-depth discourse analysis of royal speeches on climate change, environmentalism, and sustainability from 2007 to 2023 to examine the regime's efforts to position itself as a pioneer in sustainability. The speeches, serving as quasi-binding directives for domestic actors, encapsulate Morocco’s evolving foreign policy strategy and its engagement with international partners. We explore how sustainability narratives function as tools for regime legitimation and international integration, particularly within the context of Morocco’s authoritarian governance model. By tracing shifts in these narratives, we reveal the dynamic interplay between domestic policy, international positioning, and the naturalization of sustainability as a regime-defining principle. This analysis contributes to the understanding of how autocratic regimes in the WANA region navigate global governance challenges, particularly in the context of environmental policy and sustainability. It sheds light on the strategies employed by such regimes to maintain legitimacy and stability amid shifting global paradigms.