Economy
This chapter further develops this idea of ‘economy’ by exploring the concept of economics and how this relates to ‘ecology’ in the contemporary sense. While these two areas are often perceived as being at odds with each other, I recap from chapter one th
- PDF / 1,441,203 Bytes
- 13 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 91 Downloads / 210 Views
ECONOMY
This chapter further develops this idea of ‘economy’ by exploring the concept of economics and how this relates to ‘ecology’ in the contemporary sense. While these two areas are often perceived as being at odds with each other, I recap from chapter one that the disciplines once shared common roots in the ancient Greek idea of the household: Oikos. In their etymological meanings, the disciplines were originally defined as: • Economics – study of the management of a household’s financial resources; • Ecology – study of the management of a household’s physical resources. A recent definition of economics as defined by Merriam-Webster is: the social science concerned chiefly with description and analysis of the production,
Figure 10. A well-managed home (Bandung, Indonesia)
37
Chapter 5
distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics is in turn informed by economic theory, principles, or practices (as in sound economics). Also, economy can be defined as the sum of the economic conditions in a specific country, region or community. In the ‘growing a home’ vignette (previous chapter), I retold a story in which the ecology and economy of my own household were intertwined. Synergies between ecological or economic thought can be relatively straightforward when these ideas can be “amortized” over of a longer timeframe. However, for many: a long term commitment to specific places or communities is not feasible due to changing physical, social or economic conditions that we may experience. In this scenario, economy and ecology can be at odds with each other if the ‘sustainable’ thing to do also becomes the most expensive. What are we to do? To a certain extent, the choice of definitions we use for the idea of economy sets the stage for the conflict. Some theorists argue that the disciplines of ecology and economy are hopelessly split because they serve or have adopted competing goals: In economics the goal is human welfare maximization while for ecology it is species’ survival. If we are to integrate the best insights each discipline has to offer about life on earth, then recovery of the larger notion of household may serve as a common metaphor for a deeper conversation (Haught, 1995). HOW BIG IS THE HOUSEHOLD?
Underlying many ecological issues is a fundamental disagreement over the question: How big is the household? Whether we are conscious of this or not, many of us view local disputes in terms of whether we feel personally responsible for the property or natural resources involved. For example, in the popular NIMBY (not in my backyard) mindset the world is big and has many households. This view tends to focus on the size of the household, as defined by the area of mutual responsibility (Ellerbrock, 1998). If you are not responsible for the resource in question, then what you think about what should happen to it is irrelevant. This view seriously limits ideas about a collective household to areas of convergence among competing interests, to a choice of economics OR ecology. Holders of the NIMBY
Data Loading...
