Overview
The developed world, increasingly aware of ""inconvenient truths"" about global warming and sustainability, is turning its attention to possible remedies--eco-efficiency, sustainable development, and corporate social responsibility, among others. But such measures are mere Band-Aids, and they may actually do more harm than good, says John Ehrenfeld, a pioneer in the field of industrial ecology. In this deeply considered book, Ehrenfeld challenges conventional understandings of ""solving"" environmental problems and offers a radically new set of strategies to attain sustainability. The book is founded upon this new definition: sustainability is the possibility that humans and other life will flourish on Earth forever. There are obstacles to this hopeful vision, however, and overcoming them will require us to transform our behavior, both individually and collectively. Ehrenfeld identifies problematic cultural attributes--such as the unending consumption that characterizes modern life--and outlines practical steps toward developing sustainability as a mindset. By focusing on the ""being"" mode of human existence rather than on the unsustainable ""having"" mode we cling to now, he asserts, a sustainable world is within our reach.
Full Product Details
Author: John R. Ehrenfeld
Publisher: Yale University Press
Imprint: Yale University Press
Dimensions:
Width: 14.00cm
, Height: 2.40cm
, Length: 21.00cm
Weight: 0.535kg
ISBN: 9780300137491
ISBN 10: 0300137494
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 01 September 2008
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
,
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Availability: Awaiting stock
Reviews
[Ehrenfeld] looks at mindset . . . and that's what is so attractive. . . . John's been thinking about this for a long time, and it shows in how he approaches the challenge of sustainability. . . . -- Matthew May On Sustainability, Part 3 (04/09/2009)
A daring, well-researched, and convincing case that the sustainability agenda cannot focus on the material part of the equation alone but must encompass the wider questions about what is the purpose of life. --;i>Journal of Industrial Ecology --Arnold Tukker Journal of Industrial Ecology
Author Information
John R. Ehrenfeld, who before his retirement was affiliated with the MIT Center for Technology, Policy, and Industrial Development and the Departments of Chemical Engineering and Civil and Environmental Engineering, now serves as executive director of the International Society for Industrial Ecology and is senior research scholar at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. In 1999 he became the first recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Resources Institute. He lives in Lexington, MA.
