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Contents
Customer reviews
Biography
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About this book
This book lays out a new 'pathways approach' to address sustainability challenges such as these in today's changing world. Through an appreciation of dynamics, complexity, uncertainty, differing narratives and the values-based aims of sustainability, the pathways approach allows a vision of how some approaches are dominant, even though they do not produce the desired results, and how to create successful alternative pathways responding to the challenges that are faced.
Contents
1. Sustainability Challenges in a Dynamic World 2. Dynamic Systems: Environment and Development Challenges 3. Pathways to Sustainability: Responding to Dynamic Contexts 4. Governance in a Dynamic World 5. Opening Up, Broadening Out: Empowering Designs for Sustainability 6. An Alternative Politics for Sustainability 7. Towards Pathways to Sustainability
Customer Reviews
Biography
Melissa Leach is the main Director and Ian Scoones and Andy Stirling are co-Directors of the STEPS Centre, Sussex.
By: Ian Scoones, Andrew Charles Stirling and Melissa Leach
224 pages, figs, tabs
'The twin challenges of sustainability and ensuring that science and technology contribute to poverty reduction and social justice in a complex and dynamic environment are re-framed in this book. The alternative narratives offered are to be commended for showing that new thinking can lead to change.' David J. Grimshaw, Head of International Programme (New Technologies) at Practical Action and Senior Research Fellow (New and Emerging Technologies), UK Department for International Development. 'This book should be welcomed by all who take an holistic view of sustainable development and poverty reduction. For those of us rooted in the Appropriate Technology movement, the STEPS team provide analytical rigour for the notion that technological 'silver bullets' are misconceived and that technology users have a range of options. Drawing from across disciplines, Dynamic Sustainabilities provides a contemporary approach to understanding the complicated and ever-changing world we live in; one which explicitly recognises that there are different ways of understanding the world, and that development is indeed a political process.' Andrew Scott, Policy and Programmes Director, Practical Action 'Melissa Leach, Ian Scoones and Andy Stirling of the STEPS Centre put the finger on a fundamental challenge. How to ensure that science and technology in a highly complex, dynamic and interconnected world, help improve livelihoods and social justice in the quest for social-ecological sustainability. In their pathways to sustainability approach they constructively suggest novel and practical ways forward for issues like empowerment, styles of knowledge-making, governance, political engagement simultaneously confronting uncertainty, ambiguity and ignorance in comprehensive case studies. Their way of "normative framing" provides inspiring and significant food for thought and action. Highly recommended reading!' Carl Folke, Stockholm Resilience Centre and the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics