MACMILLAN Co-Evolution of Nature and Society: Foundations for Interdisciplinary Sustainability Studies

This book offers support for interdisciplinary research on the interactions of nature and society. It is based on the hypothesis that a science of coevolution is needed to explore paths to a sustainable future. Jens Jetzkowitz initially discusses why social science knowledge only rarely finds its way into sustainability discourse. One significant issue is a view of science that separates knowing and acting, and the book illustrates current problems in conceptualising interdisciplinary knowledge production. It then goes one step further and introduces a workable alternative concept, taking philosophical pragmatism as a point of departure. Sustainable development goals and transdisciplinarity are currently subject to widespread discussions and Jetzkowitz takes a stance on the debates from the perspective of coevolutionary science. This book will appeal to scholars and students interested in environmental and sustainability discourses and to anyone willing to think outside the box. From the Back Cover This book offers support for interdisciplinary research on the interactions of nature and society. It is based on the hypothesis that a science of coevolution is needed to explore paths to a sustainable future. Jens Jetzkowitz initially discusses why social science knowledge only rarely finds its way into sustainability discourse. One significant issue is a view of science that separates knowing and acting, and the book illustrates current problems in conceptualising interdisciplinary knowledge production. It then goes one step further and introduces a workable alternative concept, taking philosophical pragmatism as a point of departure. Sustainable development goals and transdisciplinarity are currently subject to widespread discussions and Jetzkowitz takes a stance on the debates from the perspective of coevolutionary science. This book will appeal to scholars and students interested in environmental and sustainability discourses and to anyone willing to think outside the box. About the Author Jens Jetzkowitz is a sociologist working and teaching at the Helmut Schmidt University in Hamburg, Germany, with expertise in sustainability research, environmental sociology and, the sociology of culture and religion and methods of empirical social research. Currently he is collaborating with the Natural History Museum in Berlin, Germany. Central issues of his research concern how people give meaning to the social and biophysical world and how they draw consequences from of it. To answer these questions, he has studied a variety of research areas, e.g. biodiversity, agriculture, tourism, lifestyles, inequality and social change.