Culture of Ecology : Reconciling Economics and Environment

__Culture of Ecology__ marks the beginning in a struggle to prove that, given the right approach, economy and ecosystem need not be mutually exclusive.

There is a fundamental contradiction between economics and ecology. Activities that increase well-being by economic criteria often erode ecosystem vitality, and what preserves and enhances environmental well-being is often deemed 'inefficient' to economic demands. Regrettably, in our culture, we usually accord much greater importance to economic concerns than to ecology. However, given many indicators of continued environmental degradation - escalating rates of species extinctions, global warming, the profusion of toxins in our air, water, and soil - it is increasingly urgent that economics be infused with ecological principles.

In Culture of Ecology, Robert Babe proposes a move towards more ecologically-sound waysof thinking, communicating, and acting, including those usually termed 'economic.' His vision for a sustainable future entails recognizing and compensating for the inherent bias of all modes of communicating, reducing the centrality of money as a medium of communication, re-establishing systems of valuation outside the bounds of commodity exchange, and heightening equality to ease flows of information more in keeping with ecological realities. Culture of Ecology marks the beginning in a struggle to prove that, given the right approach, economy and ecosystem need not be mutually exclusive.

"In Culture of Ecology, Robert Babe proposes a radical move towards more ecologically sound ways of thinking, communicating, and acting, especially in terms of economics and technology. His vision for a truly sustainable future entails reformulating economics to make that discipline more environmentally friendly and in essence requires a shift in our entire cultural outlook. In his analysis, Babe presents a comparison and critique of economic and ecological discourses in the context of ecosystem vitality. While focusing mainly on present-day, dominant ecological paradigms - neoclassical economics and the ecosystem concept in ecology - he also looks at the evolution of mainstream theories as well as heterodoxies, particularly 'ecological economics.' He argues that economics must not simply take into account environmental matters, as does mainstream environmental economics, but rather that it become fundamentally transformed so as to conform to principles of ecology. Culture of Ecology is a work that challenges many of our assumptions about environmental issues and their solutions, the uses of technology, and the nature of progress."--Résumé de l'éditeur Contents 9 Preface 11 Acknowledgments 13 1. Sustainable Development vs Sustainable Ecosystem 17 2. Economics and Ecology as Discourses 44 3. Ancient Syntheses 85 4. Shattering the Synthesis: Hobbes, Smith, and Neoclassicism 104 5. Environmental vs Ecological Economics 123 6. Information, Entropy, and Infinite Earth 155 Conclusion 167 Glossary 173 Notes 181 Bibliography 217 Index 233