Overview

Building on its origins at a seminar in Oslo organized by two of the editors, this book combines classic texts of Nordic ecophilosophy and the original contributions of those influenced by this tradition to present the view that critical realism is indeed a worthy intellectual tradition to carry forward and further develop the work of the founders of Nordic ecophilosophy. It was clear at the seminar that there was a promising convergence of interests and themes in the two approaches; while at the same time, within the Nordic ecophilosophical tradition, there was appreciation of the capacity of critical realism, with its provision of a robust philosophical ontology and generation of totalizing immanent critiques of Western philosophy, to provide an expansive and secure home for the development of ecophilosophical work generally. If there is a single overarching theme of critical realist philosophy, it surely must be that of the unity of theory and practice, which Bhaskar, following Hegel, has also called seriousness . This makes the applicability, relevance and actionability of critical realism key considerations for critical realists. There can be no doubt that this concern was shared fully by the Nordic ecophilosophers; and this quality of seriousness is a striking feature of the Nordic contributions presented in this book.

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9781136621550

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[This book] will appeal to philosophically informed and inquiring scientists, planners, geographers - all those of us who knowingly intervene in the world. [...] The pleasure [...] of this book lies in hearing the early ecophilosophers in their own voices together with today's generation as they make sense of the same serious themes and concerns in the context of ever more pressing environmental issues using the structuring insights from critical realism. Sarah E. Cornell, Stockholm University, Sweden, in Journal of Critical Realism

Author Information

Roy Bhaskar is the originator of the philosophy of critical realism, and the author of many acclaimed and influential works including A Realist Theory of Science, The Possibility of Naturalism, Scientific Realism and Human Emancipation, Dialectic: The Pulse of Freedom, Plato Etc., From Science to Emancipation and (with Mervyn Hartwig) The Formation of Critical Realism. He is an editor of Critical Realism: Essential Readings and Interdisciplinarity and Climate Change and was the founding chair of the Centre for Critical Realism. He is currently a World Scholar at the University of London Institute of Education. Karl-Georg Hoyer is Professor and Research Director at Oslo University College. He holds a Master's Degree in technology and a PhD in social sciences with a dissertation on Sustainable Mobility . Most of Hoyer's research is related to sustainable development, with a main focus on transport and energy. Petter Naess is Professor in Urban Planning at Aalborg University, Denmark, with part-time position at Oslo University College, Norway. Main research interests: land use and travel; impacts and driving forces of urban development; philosophy of science. His most recent book is Urban Structure Matters (Routledge, 2006).

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