Governance, scale and the environment: the importance of recognizing knowledge claims in transdisciplinary arenas

Any present day approach of the world’s most pressing environmental problems involves both scale and governance issues. After all, current local events might have long-term global consequences (the scale issue) and solving complex environmental problems requires policy makers to think and govern beyond generally used time-space scales (the governance issue). To an increasing extent, the various scientists in these fields have used concepts like social-ecological systems, hierarchies, scales and levels to understand and explain the “complex cross-scale dynamics” of issues like climate change. A large part of this work manifests a realist paradigm: the scales and levels, either in ecological processes or in governance systems, are considered as “real”. However, various scholars question this position and claim that scales and levels are continuously (re)constructed in the interfaces of science, society, politics and nature. Some of these critics even prefer to adopt a non-scalar approach, doing away with notions such as hierarchy, scale and level. Here we take another route, however. We try to overcome the realist-constructionist dualism by advocating a dialogue between them on the basis of exchanging and reflecting on different knowledge claims in transdisciplinary arenas. We describe two important developments, one in the ecological scaling literature and the other in the governance literature, which we consider to provide a basis for such a dialogue. We will argue that scale issues, governance practices as well as their mutual interdependencies should be considered as human constructs, although dialectically related to nature’s materiality, and therefore as contested processes, requiring intensive and continuous dialogue and cooperation among natural scientists, social scientists, policy makers and citizens alike. They also require critical reflection on scientists’ roles and on academic practices in general. Acknowledging knowledge claims provides a common ground and point of departure for such cooperation, something we think is not yet sufficiently happening, but which is essential in addressing today’s environmental problems

Let's talk aluminium : Evaluating the aluminium stewardship initiative's effectiveness and applicability as a mechanism in sustainability governance from a multi-stakeholder perspective

Mining bauxite and producing aluminium causes severe sustainability challenges. Although the usage of these non-renewable resource is inherently unsustainable, the global economy fosters an increased use of supposed “eco-friendly” aluminium. German industry is an important user of aluminium and a key player in the aluminium industry. The production of aluminium causes many sustainability challenges, including biodiversity loss and land use change. The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) is a voluntary alliance of companies and NGOs; its aim is to establish a certification to decrease the sustainability impacts of aluminium. Despite high expectations, little is known about the motivation for the ASI, its strengths and weaknesses and legitimacy as a governance mechanism. This thesis analyses the viability of aluminium certification, concentrating specifically on the motivation for the standard, its potential effectiveness and legitimacy as a governance mechanism. To carry out the analysis, I use Germany as a case. Grounded in sustainability science and transdisciplinarity, I used a literature review and in-depth interviews with German stakeholders from the industry, civil society and academia to create solution-oriented knowledge. My research is located in the field of sustainability science, as it expands the field into the realm of sustainability certification and applies a transdisciplinary research. The findings of this study reveal that underlying motivations for the ASI are competitive advantages, risk mitigation and reputation for involved companies. The motivation to increase the sustainability of the production chain is only secondary. Despite the involvement of stakeholders, the actual legitimacy of the ASI is contested, as NGOs lack capacities to engage deeply in such a multi-stakeholder approach. Truly affected stakeholders, such as indigenous people, are only indirectly represented. As there is no functioning alternative to a voluntary certification, the ASI is the only applicable mechanism to tackle cross-border challenges of aluminium. Regardless of the limited legitimacy, the ASI has the potential to improve the sustainability of certain parts of the production chain, and can act as a role model. Albeit the great expectations on the ASI, a certification alone is not sufficient to solve affiliated sustainability challenges. Additional measures, such as capacity development and the mitigation of corruption, are necessary for less impactful aluminium production systems. In the long run, a transition is needed towards a circular economy that uses only recycled aluminium. Until humanity reaches such a sustainable economy, the ASI is the most promising tool to diminish at least some sustainability challenges of aluminium

Learning in a changing climate : examining trans-municipal learning processes for sustainable urban planning

Learning partnerships are becoming increasingly common for municipalities to fulfill their roles as important actors in adaptive governance regimes for sustainability. However, there is little theoretical guidance for municipalities, endangering the effectiveness of partnerships. The Ball-Bearing Framework used in this thesis is one of the first attempts to understand inter-municipal partnerships, but lacks wider application and theoretical grounding. Simultaneously, transdisciplinarity has emerged as a valuable research approach to provide socially robust knowledge for the solution of complex, societal problems. These two trends have resulted in an increasing need to understand trans-municipal partnerships. Taking a critical realist perspective, I therefore aim to improve the understanding of the generative mechanisms of successful trans-municipal learning. I do so by applying the Ball-Bearing Framework as well as the Lang et al. (2012) framework for transdisciplinary research processes on the trans-municipal learning partnership “Urban Transition Öresund”, and then integrating the two frameworks theoretically and empirically, following a mixed methods approach. Thus, my research contributes to the problem-solving aspect of sustainability science, to further the transition towards a sustainable society. My findings show a strong overlap between the two concepts by enhancing each other and forming a more complete picture of trans-municipal partnerships. Especially the Mutuality, Valuation and Reframing / Transformation components of the Ball-Bearing Framework show strong, internal as well as interconnected, logical relationships that can be described with the Lang et al. (2012) framework. I argue that a clear methodological framework is highly important to achieve mutuality, valuation and reframing. Researchers can strongly contribute to reframing activities, but need to be integrated properly in the project structure. An unclear definition of roles and the subsequent wrong expectations as well as a lack of structures are the biggest hurdles to an effective trans-municipal cooperation. It is not only a challenge to integrate academia and practice but also various academic disciplines and different research paradigms, making it difficult to establish clear roles. In large, mixed research teams, inherent conflicts of interest make a mutual, transdisciplinary partnership challenging but ever more necessary to ensure valuation from all parties. With practice often still having a science-advice expectation, reframing needs to be clearly articulated as a project aim to avoid expectancy dissonances. Lastly, there is a conflict between the informal nature of reframing exercises and the necessity to produce formal outcomes for external dissemination. I conclude that these connections can be seen as generative mechanisms for successful trans-municipal learning

Paradigms lost:integrating history and organization studies

This article reviews recent attempts at mapping research paradigms in Management and Organizational History and argues that the old distinctions between supplementarist, integrationist, and reorientationist approaches have been superseded by attempts at integrating historical research in organization studies. A typology of these integrationist approaches differentiates between pluralist and unitary integration, as well as between models based on either historical theory or organization theory. Each has distinct weaknesses and strengths, but essentially all limit their integration of historical research paradigms to only a few. As a result, there is a danger that history might become reduced to a methodology, an empirical endeavor, narrative representations, or indeed be considered the subject of research rather than a research approach in its own right. I argue that all of these present an impoverished picture of the rich research traditions available in the discipline of history, which has unique insights and approaches to offer to the study of organizations

Paradigmatic differences, power, and status: a qualitative investigation of faculty in one interdisciplinary research collaboration in sustainability science

Interdisciplinary research collaborations are fraught with challenges, including the need to overcome paradigmatic differences. The current study sought to understand how 25 faculty members involved in an interdisciplinary endeavor related to sustainability experienced these differences. Using Biglan’s classification and Becher and Trowler’s conceptualizations, the study found issues related to disciplinary status and hierarchy between the soft and hard scientists involved in the project

PRAGMATIST ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS: FOCUSING ON HUMAN-NATURE RELATIONSHIPS AND SOCIAL-ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

I propose pragmatist philosophy as a companion for ecological economics, a research tradition with a focus on addressing sustainability issues and integrating ecological principles, economics, and the broader social sciences. Ecological economics laudable goals include balancing competing values, tradeoffs, and insights for more equitable decision-making. However, the field is built upon somewhat tenuous philosophical and theoretical foundations, which has resulted in a muddled body of literature, concerns about relativistic science, and questions about the future viability of the field. To address such concerns, I propose and articulate pragmatist ecological economics. Generally, joining pragmatism and ecological economics provides established beliefs about: the nature of reality with a contextual ontology; the way we learn via Dewey’s experience model; the way to assess knowledge based upon deliberative democracy and ‘wary assessment’ and; a clear purpose to communicate, understand, and facilitate social learning about the human-nature relationship. Specific recommendations include a core subject matter (a comprehensive understanding of human-nature relationships), integration of normative sustainability, and a focus on better processes and methods that synthesize across big ideas (e.g., relationship to place research, ecosystem services). I stress that all approaches to understanding the human-nature relationship provide different, partial understandings. Consequently, I demonstrate a ‘research menu’ framework by weighing into a methodological debate between Q- and R-methodology. Finally, I propose that a social-ecological systems perspective and a pragmatist ecological economics are compatible, as the former can help the latter better achieve its applied goals by orienting the understanding of the human-nature relationships within the larger system

The Paradigm of Peircean Biosemiotics

The failure of modern science to create a common scientific framework for nature and consciousness makes it necessary to look for broader foundations in a new philosophy. Although controversial for modern science, the Peircean semiotic, evolutionary, pragmatic and triadic philosophy has been the only modern conceptual framework that can support that transdisciplinary change in our view of knowing that bridges the two cultures and transgresses Cartesian dualism. It therefore seems ideal to build on it for modern biosemiotics and can, in combination with Luhmann’s theory of communication, encompass modern information theory, complexity science and thermodynamics. It allows focus on the connection between the concept of codes and signs in living systems, and makes it possible to re-conceptualize both internal and external processes of the human body, mind and communication in models that fit into one framework

Material Details in Edith Wharton’s Writings

Edith Wharton was among the most prominent writers of her time and could compete with any of her contemporary colleagues. However, she as a female writer rose above her colleagues in her style and attitudes towards novel writing. The central themes in her novels were the conflict between social and individual fulfillment, repressed sexuality, and the manners of old families and the new elite, who had made their fortunes in more recent years. The contradictions in the upper class society were yet another theme that intrigued Wharton. The question of what is moral to one part of the society did not necessarily mean that it is moral for the other part of the society. Some people could at that time escape without any hidden or open punishment from the rest of the society if they were enough skillful and clever. On the other hand, for some people it was difficult to avoid pressure from the society and behave according what their mind and heart were telling them. This paper in particular deals with the Wharton's biographical background with the special attention to her family and life experience and how it influence and shaped her style of writing. The paper also deals with material and graphic details in her novels and the reasons behind usage of those graphic details.  Wharton's novel The Age of Innocence is still one of the most read novels and is required reading in High Schools and at the Universities. The final part of the paper deals with the abovementioned novel that influenced and shaped the writings of the generations of writers after her death.  

Observing Environments

> Context • Society is faced with “wicked” problems of environmental sustainability, which are inherently multiperspectival, and there is a need for explicitly constructivist and perspectivist theories to address them. > Problem • However, different constructivist theories construe the environment in different ways. The aim of this paper is to clarify the conceptions of environment in constructivist approaches, and thereby to assist the sciences of complex systems and complex environmental problems. > Method • We describe the terms used for “the environment” in von Uexküll, Maturana & Varela, and Luhmann, and analyse how their conceptions of environment are connected to differences of perspective and observation. > Results • We show the need to distinguish between inside and outside perspectives on the environment, and identify two very different and complementary logics of observation, the logic of distinction and the logic of representation, in the three constructivist theories. > Implications • Luhmann’s theory of social systems can be a helpful perspective on the wicked environmental problems of society if we consider carefully the theory’s own blind spots: that it confines itself to systems of communication, and that it is based fully on the conception of observation as indication by means of distinction