1st Edition

Routledge Handbook of Ecological Economics Nature and Society

Edited By Clive L. Spash Copyright 2017
    570 Pages 33 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    570 Pages 33 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Since becoming formally established with an international academic society in the late 1980s, ecological economics has advanced understanding of the interactions between social and biophysical reality. It initially combined questioning of the basis of mainstream economics with a concern for environmental degradation and limits to growth, but has now advanced well beyond critique into theoretical, analytical and policy alternatives. Social ecological economics and transformation to an alternative future now form core ideas in an interdisciplinary approach combining insights from a range of disciplines including heterodox economics, political ecology, sociology, political science, social psychology, applied philosophy, environmental ethics and a range of natural sciences.

    This handbook, edited by a leading figure in the field, demonstrates the dynamism of ecological economics in a wide-ranging collection of state-of-the-art essays. Containing contributions from an array of international researchers who are pushing the boundaries of the field, the Routledge Handbook of Ecological Economics showcases the diversity of the field and points the way forward. A critical analytical perspective is combined with realism about how economic systems operate and their essential connection to the natural world and society. This provides a rich understanding of how biophysical reality relates to and integrates with social reality. Chapters provide succinct overviews of the literature covering a range of subject areas including: heterodox thought on the environment; society, power and politics, markets and consumption; value and ethics; science and society; methods for evaluation and policy analysis; policy challenges; and the future post-growth society. The rich contents dispel the myth of there being no alternatives to current economic thought and the political economy it supports.

    The Routledge Handbook of Ecological Economics provides a guide to the literature on ecological economics in an informative and easily accessible form. It is essential reading for those interested in exploring and understanding the interactions between the social, ecological and economic and is an important resource for those interested in fields such as: human ecology, political ecology, environmental politics, human geography, environmental management, environmental evaluation, future and transition studies, environmental policy, development studies and heterodox economics.

    List of figures

    List of tables

    Preface

    Part I Foundations

    1. Social ecological economics

    Clive L. Spash

    2. A critical and realist approach to ecological economics

    Armin Puller and Tone Smith

    Part II Heterodox thought on the environment

    3. Critical institutional economics

    Arild Vatn

    4. Political ecology and unequal exchange

    Alf Hornborg

    5. Ecofeminism

    Ariel Salleh

    6. Ecological Marxism and ecological economics: from misunderstanding to eeaningful dialogue

    Ali Douai

    7. Post Keynesian economics and sustainable development

    Eric Berr

    8. Evolutionary economics

    Karolina Safarzynska

    Part III Biophysical reality and its implications

    9. Thermodynamics: relevance, implications, misuse and ways forward

    Kozo Torasan Mayumi

    10. Geophysical limits, raw material use and their policy implications

    Armin Dieter

    11. Social metabolism

    Fridolin Krausmann

    12. The biophysical realities of ecosystems

    Vincent Devictor

    13. Coevolutionary social ecological economics

    Richard B. Norgaard

    Part IV Society, power and politics

    14. Theories of power

    Lorenz Stör

    15. The Imperial Mode of Living

    Ulrich Brand and Markus Wissen

    16. A guide to environmental justice movements and the language of ecological distribution conflicts

    Joan Martinez-Alier

    17. Social movements and resistance

    Viviana Asara

    Part V Markets, production and consumption

    18. Unregulated markets and the transformation of society

    Asad Zaman

    19. Theory of the firm

    Peter E. Earl

    20. Theories of (un)sustainable consumption

    Clive L. Spash and Karin Dobernig

    21. Work and leisure: money, identity and playfulness

    Wolfgang J. Fellner

    Part VI Value and ethics

    22. Pluralism and incommensurability

    John O’Neill

    23. Intrinsic values and economic valuation

    Katie McShane

    24. Needs as a central element of sustainable development

    Felix Rauschmayer and Ines Omann

    25. Future generations

    Richard B. Howarth

    Part VII Science and society: uncertainty and precaution

    26. Precautionary appraisal as a response to risk, uncertainty, ambiguity and ignorance

    Andy Stirling

    27. Addressing strong uncertainty: safe minimum standards

    Irmi Seidl

    28. Post-normal science

    Roger Strand

    Part VIII Methods

    29. The NUSAP approach to uncertainty appraisal and communication

    Jeroen P. van der Sluijs

    30. Multi-criteria evaluation in environmental policy analysis

    Salvatore Greco and Giuseppe Munda

    31. Multicriteria mapping

    Rebecca White

    32. Q methodology

    Ben Davies

    33. Participation in the context of ecological economics

    Kirsty L. Blackstock

    34. Deliberative monetary valuation

    Jasper Kenter

    35. Participatory modelling in ecological economics: lessons from practice

    Nuno Videira, Paula Antunes and Rui Santos

    36. Input-output analysis

    Jon D. Erickson and Melinda Kane

    37. Sustainability indicators

    Philippe Roman and Géraldine Thiry

    Part IX Policy challenges

    38. Commons

    Bengi Akbulut

    39. Uneven development and resource extractivism in Africa

    Patrick Bond

    40. Mining conflicts

    Begüm Özkaynak and Beatriz Rodriguez-Labajos

    41. Peak-oil and ecological economics

    Christian Kerschner and Iñigo Capellán-Pérez

    42. Human induced climate change from a political economy perspective

    Max Koch

    43. Ecosystem services

    Erik Gómez-Baggethun

    Part X Future post-growth society

    44. Degrowth and democracy

    Daniel Hausknost

    45. The steady state economy

    Brian Czech

    46. Post-growth economics

    Niko Paech

    47. The bioregional economy: celebrating the local in production and consumption

    Molly Scott Cato

    48. The coming sustainable city

    Laura Frye-Levine and Richard S. Levine

    49. Eco-social enterprises

    Nadia Johanisova and Eva Fraňková

    50. Democracy, participation and social planning

    Fikret Adaman and Pat Devine

    Index

    Biography

    Clive L. Spash