Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability

Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability

Author: Aidan Davison

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2001-04-19

Total Pages: 298

ISBN-13: 0791490599

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This transdisciplinary inquiry presents a new way of thinking about sustainability and technology that takes us beyond the familiar preoccupation with ecoefficiency, and toward the contested moral question of what most nourishes our ability to care for our world. In contrast to the technocratic aim of controlling a perilous future, the author proposes that we develop the practical craft of sustenance. Beginning with debates in environmental policy, he draws upon recent philosophical interest in ecology, technology, and moral experience to argue that the challenge of sustainability is that of undermining those traditions that present technology as somehow external to our inherent moral ambiguity. This discussion responds to the work of Langdon Winner, Albert Borgmann, Charles Taylor, Martin Heidegger, David Abram, and others.


Book Synopsis Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability by : Aidan Davison

Download or read book Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability written by Aidan Davison and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2001-04-19 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This transdisciplinary inquiry presents a new way of thinking about sustainability and technology that takes us beyond the familiar preoccupation with ecoefficiency, and toward the contested moral question of what most nourishes our ability to care for our world. In contrast to the technocratic aim of controlling a perilous future, the author proposes that we develop the practical craft of sustenance. Beginning with debates in environmental policy, he draws upon recent philosophical interest in ecology, technology, and moral experience to argue that the challenge of sustainability is that of undermining those traditions that present technology as somehow external to our inherent moral ambiguity. This discussion responds to the work of Langdon Winner, Albert Borgmann, Charles Taylor, Martin Heidegger, David Abram, and others.

Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability

Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability

Author: Aidan Davison

Publisher: SUNY Press

Published: 2001-04-19

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 9780791449806

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This discussion responds to the work of Langdon Winner, Albert Borgmann, Charles Taylor, Martin Heidegger, David Abram, and others."--BOOK JACKET.


Book Synopsis Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability by : Aidan Davison

Download or read book Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability written by Aidan Davison and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2001-04-19 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This discussion responds to the work of Langdon Winner, Albert Borgmann, Charles Taylor, Martin Heidegger, David Abram, and others."--BOOK JACKET.

Just Technology

Just Technology

Author: Thomas J. Siller

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2022-05-31

Total Pages: 81

ISBN-13: 3031795008

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

To address the complexity of today's global challenges requires new ways of thinking. The idea that technology is always the best, maybe only, approach worth taking needs to be reconsidered. Sustainable approaches must also draw from non technological areas. To that end, this book introduces the idea of just technology by rephrasing the idea of just war in order to include concepts of sustainability in future engineering design. The book begins by defining justice and relating these definitions to technology. This is followed by illustrating several notions of sustainability and the awareness that needs to be focused on societal challenges due to the finite resources available in the natural world. Four questions are enumerated to be addressed in order to qualify as a just use of technology: (1) Is the harm being inflicted by the problem on the community, the environment, or humanity, in general lasting, serious, and certain? (2) Have all alternative solutions been investigated first, including non-technology-based solutions? Technology is the last choice, not the first! (3) Do we have confidence in the successful implementation of this technological solution? and (4) Is the potential harm from the technological solution potentially worse than the issue being addressed? Have all unintended consequences been considered that could arise from the technological solution? The book ends with a description for implementing these questions into the traditional engineering design process. Examples are included for reflection and help to understand how the design process proceeds.


Book Synopsis Just Technology by : Thomas J. Siller

Download or read book Just Technology written by Thomas J. Siller and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2022-05-31 with total page 81 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To address the complexity of today's global challenges requires new ways of thinking. The idea that technology is always the best, maybe only, approach worth taking needs to be reconsidered. Sustainable approaches must also draw from non technological areas. To that end, this book introduces the idea of just technology by rephrasing the idea of just war in order to include concepts of sustainability in future engineering design. The book begins by defining justice and relating these definitions to technology. This is followed by illustrating several notions of sustainability and the awareness that needs to be focused on societal challenges due to the finite resources available in the natural world. Four questions are enumerated to be addressed in order to qualify as a just use of technology: (1) Is the harm being inflicted by the problem on the community, the environment, or humanity, in general lasting, serious, and certain? (2) Have all alternative solutions been investigated first, including non-technology-based solutions? Technology is the last choice, not the first! (3) Do we have confidence in the successful implementation of this technological solution? and (4) Is the potential harm from the technological solution potentially worse than the issue being addressed? Have all unintended consequences been considered that could arise from the technological solution? The book ends with a description for implementing these questions into the traditional engineering design process. Examples are included for reflection and help to understand how the design process proceeds.

Technology

Technology

Author: Aidan Davison

Publisher:

Published: 2023-05

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781614720669

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

What is technology? The answer seems obvious. Technology is the chair you sit on, the roof above you, and the airplane above that. A speaker fills the room with sound, wifi connects you with people around the world, a pill dissolves within you. Technology, it would seem, consists of things humans design and manufacture. Yet computers and books are not just objects that we make and use. They arise from, and become part of, our lived experience. Their existence is lodged in human needs and wants. And every technology alters the ways in which human needs and wants take shape. Technology straddles the boundary between facts and values. It binds together objects and subjects. As a result, two vital and inseparable questions will occupy us in this book. How do we make material worlds? And how do these worlds make us? In addition, debates about sustainability and development in the Anthropocene require new habits of inquiry into technology. Modern societies typically treat technology as neutral objects that put science into action. Experts use objective measures of development and sustainability to sort good technologies from bad. In contrast, this book argues that the Anthropocene, the technological remaking of the Earth, calls us to attend to the way technological practices shape what it means to be human. How are we made, or changed, as we alter the planet's climate and ecosystems?Ranging across disciplines, this introduction to technology links together big questions of planetary futures with practical, everyday realities. It points towards a technological practice of sustainability that does not divide facts from values or objects from subjects. And it suggests an understanding and practice of technology that we urgently need as dwellers in the Anthropocene.


Book Synopsis Technology by : Aidan Davison

Download or read book Technology written by Aidan Davison and published by . This book was released on 2023-05 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What is technology? The answer seems obvious. Technology is the chair you sit on, the roof above you, and the airplane above that. A speaker fills the room with sound, wifi connects you with people around the world, a pill dissolves within you. Technology, it would seem, consists of things humans design and manufacture. Yet computers and books are not just objects that we make and use. They arise from, and become part of, our lived experience. Their existence is lodged in human needs and wants. And every technology alters the ways in which human needs and wants take shape. Technology straddles the boundary between facts and values. It binds together objects and subjects. As a result, two vital and inseparable questions will occupy us in this book. How do we make material worlds? And how do these worlds make us? In addition, debates about sustainability and development in the Anthropocene require new habits of inquiry into technology. Modern societies typically treat technology as neutral objects that put science into action. Experts use objective measures of development and sustainability to sort good technologies from bad. In contrast, this book argues that the Anthropocene, the technological remaking of the Earth, calls us to attend to the way technological practices shape what it means to be human. How are we made, or changed, as we alter the planet's climate and ecosystems?Ranging across disciplines, this introduction to technology links together big questions of planetary futures with practical, everyday realities. It points towards a technological practice of sustainability that does not divide facts from values or objects from subjects. And it suggests an understanding and practice of technology that we urgently need as dwellers in the Anthropocene.

Sustainability Beyond Technology

Sustainability Beyond Technology

Author: Pasi Heikkurinen

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2021

Total Pages: 318

ISBN-13: 0198864922

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"Current debates on sustainability are largely building on a problematic assumption that increasing technology use and advancement are a desired phenomenon, creating positive change in human organizations. This kind of techno-optimism prevails particularly in the discourses of ecological modernization and green growth, as well as in the attempts to design sustainable modes of production and consumption within growth-driven capitalism. This transdisciplinary book investigates the philosophical underpinnings of technology, presents a culturally sensitive critique of technology, and outlines feasible alternatives for sustainability beyond technology. By examining the conflicts and contradictions between technology and sustainability in human organizations, the book develops a novel way to conceptualize, confront and change technology in modern society. The book draws on a variety of scholarly disciplines, including humanities (philosophy and environmental history), social sciences (ecological economics, political economy, and ecology) and natural sciences (geology and thermodynamics) to contribute to sustainability theory and policy"--Publisher's description.


Book Synopsis Sustainability Beyond Technology by : Pasi Heikkurinen

Download or read book Sustainability Beyond Technology written by Pasi Heikkurinen and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Current debates on sustainability are largely building on a problematic assumption that increasing technology use and advancement are a desired phenomenon, creating positive change in human organizations. This kind of techno-optimism prevails particularly in the discourses of ecological modernization and green growth, as well as in the attempts to design sustainable modes of production and consumption within growth-driven capitalism. This transdisciplinary book investigates the philosophical underpinnings of technology, presents a culturally sensitive critique of technology, and outlines feasible alternatives for sustainability beyond technology. By examining the conflicts and contradictions between technology and sustainability in human organizations, the book develops a novel way to conceptualize, confront and change technology in modern society. The book draws on a variety of scholarly disciplines, including humanities (philosophy and environmental history), social sciences (ecological economics, political economy, and ecology) and natural sciences (geology and thermodynamics) to contribute to sustainability theory and policy"--Publisher's description.

The Illusory Boundary

The Illusory Boundary

Author: Martin Reuss

Publisher: University of Virginia Press

Published: 2010-08-06

Total Pages: 329

ISBN-13: 0813929881

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This compelling new book challenges the view that a clear and unwavering boundary exists between nature and technology. Rejecting this dichotomy, the contributors show how the history of each can be united in a constantly shifting panorama where definitions of "nature" and "technology" alter and overlap.


Book Synopsis The Illusory Boundary by : Martin Reuss

Download or read book The Illusory Boundary written by Martin Reuss and published by University of Virginia Press. This book was released on 2010-08-06 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This compelling new book challenges the view that a clear and unwavering boundary exists between nature and technology. Rejecting this dichotomy, the contributors show how the history of each can be united in a constantly shifting panorama where definitions of "nature" and "technology" alter and overlap.

Sustainability

Sustainability

Author: Leslie Paul Thiele

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2016-10-05

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1509511105

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The pursuit of sustainability has generated lifestyle changes for individuals across the globe; innovations within the arts and sciences, business, design, engineering, and agriculture; historic policies and laws at municipal and state levels; and crucial international protocols and agreements. Yet the meaning of sustainability remains unsettled, and the term frequently serves as green veneer for business as usual rather than a driver of fundamental change. The second edition of this popular and lively book explores the concept and practice of sustainability through a broad range of current issues and debates. Fully revised and updated, the book integrates expanded global breadth with increased attention to the importance of local relationships and responsibilities, while illustrating that sustainability demands creativity as well as conservation. New Inquiry and Exploration sections with links to web-based resources are also included to help students probe and deepen central debates and topics. Sustainability presents a hopeful account of crucial opportunities while directly confronting the hurdles, disputes and challenges that lie ahead. It will be a valuable resource for students and general readers keen to grapple with one of the most pressing issues of our times.


Book Synopsis Sustainability by : Leslie Paul Thiele

Download or read book Sustainability written by Leslie Paul Thiele and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-10-05 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The pursuit of sustainability has generated lifestyle changes for individuals across the globe; innovations within the arts and sciences, business, design, engineering, and agriculture; historic policies and laws at municipal and state levels; and crucial international protocols and agreements. Yet the meaning of sustainability remains unsettled, and the term frequently serves as green veneer for business as usual rather than a driver of fundamental change. The second edition of this popular and lively book explores the concept and practice of sustainability through a broad range of current issues and debates. Fully revised and updated, the book integrates expanded global breadth with increased attention to the importance of local relationships and responsibilities, while illustrating that sustainability demands creativity as well as conservation. New Inquiry and Exploration sections with links to web-based resources are also included to help students probe and deepen central debates and topics. Sustainability presents a hopeful account of crucial opportunities while directly confronting the hurdles, disputes and challenges that lie ahead. It will be a valuable resource for students and general readers keen to grapple with one of the most pressing issues of our times.

Partial Truths and Our Common Future

Partial Truths and Our Common Future

Author: Donald A. Crosby

Publisher: SUNY Press

Published: 2018-08-20

Total Pages: 214

ISBN-13: 1438471335

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Argues that a pluralistic understanding of truth can foster productive conversations about common concerns involving religion, science, ethics, politics, economics, and ecology without falling into relativism. In this book, Donald A. Crosby defends the idea that all claims to truth are at best partial. Recognizing this, he argues, is a necessary safeguard against arrogance, close-mindedness, and potentially violent reactions to differences of outlook and practice. Crosby demonstrates how “partial truths” are inevitably at work in conversations and debates about religion, science, morality, economics, ecology, and social and political progress. He then focuses on the concept in the discipline of philosophy, looking at a number of distinctions that are taken to be strictly binary—those between fact and value, continuity and novelty, rationalism and empiricism, mind and body, and good and evil—and demonstrates how in all of these cases, each on its own can offer only an incomplete picture. Partial Truths and Our Common Future invites ongoing dialogue with others for the sake of mutual enlargements of understanding rather than mere civility, and provides incentive for continuing open-minded and shared inquiries into the important issues of life. “This is a transdisciplinary philosophical work that moves with grace across traditions, time periods, and thinkers. It is a master class in the existential and public relevance of philosophy and a rare example of a book that is both timely and timeless.” — Michael S. Hogue, author of The Promise of Religious Naturalism


Book Synopsis Partial Truths and Our Common Future by : Donald A. Crosby

Download or read book Partial Truths and Our Common Future written by Donald A. Crosby and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2018-08-20 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Argues that a pluralistic understanding of truth can foster productive conversations about common concerns involving religion, science, ethics, politics, economics, and ecology without falling into relativism. In this book, Donald A. Crosby defends the idea that all claims to truth are at best partial. Recognizing this, he argues, is a necessary safeguard against arrogance, close-mindedness, and potentially violent reactions to differences of outlook and practice. Crosby demonstrates how “partial truths” are inevitably at work in conversations and debates about religion, science, morality, economics, ecology, and social and political progress. He then focuses on the concept in the discipline of philosophy, looking at a number of distinctions that are taken to be strictly binary—those between fact and value, continuity and novelty, rationalism and empiricism, mind and body, and good and evil—and demonstrates how in all of these cases, each on its own can offer only an incomplete picture. Partial Truths and Our Common Future invites ongoing dialogue with others for the sake of mutual enlargements of understanding rather than mere civility, and provides incentive for continuing open-minded and shared inquiries into the important issues of life. “This is a transdisciplinary philosophical work that moves with grace across traditions, time periods, and thinkers. It is a master class in the existential and public relevance of philosophy and a rare example of a book that is both timely and timeless.” — Michael S. Hogue, author of The Promise of Religious Naturalism

Digital Technology and Sustainability

Digital Technology and Sustainability

Author: Mike Hazas

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-11-22

Total Pages: 260

ISBN-13: 1315465957

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book brings together diverse voices from across the field of sustainable human computer interaction (SHCI) to discuss what it means for digital technology to support sustainability and how humans and technology can work together optimally for a more sustainable future. Contemporary digital technologies are hailed by tech companies, governments and academics as leading-edge solutions to the challenges of environmental sustainability; smarter homes, more persuasive technologies, and a robust Internet of Things hold the promise for creating a greener world. Yet, deployments of interactive technologies for such purposes often lead to a paradox: they algorithmically "optimize" heating and lighting of houses without regard to the dynamics of daily life in the home; they can collect and display data that allow us to reflect on energy and emissions, yet the same information can cause us to raise our expectations for comfort and convenience; they might allow us to share best practice for sustainable living through social networking and online communities, yet these same systems further our participation in consumerism and contribute to an ever-greater volume of electronic waste.By acknowledging these paradoxes, this book represents a significant critical inquiry into digital technology’s longer-term impact on ideals of sustainability. Written by an interdisciplinary team of contributors this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of human computer interaction and environmental studies.


Book Synopsis Digital Technology and Sustainability by : Mike Hazas

Download or read book Digital Technology and Sustainability written by Mike Hazas and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-11-22 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book brings together diverse voices from across the field of sustainable human computer interaction (SHCI) to discuss what it means for digital technology to support sustainability and how humans and technology can work together optimally for a more sustainable future. Contemporary digital technologies are hailed by tech companies, governments and academics as leading-edge solutions to the challenges of environmental sustainability; smarter homes, more persuasive technologies, and a robust Internet of Things hold the promise for creating a greener world. Yet, deployments of interactive technologies for such purposes often lead to a paradox: they algorithmically "optimize" heating and lighting of houses without regard to the dynamics of daily life in the home; they can collect and display data that allow us to reflect on energy and emissions, yet the same information can cause us to raise our expectations for comfort and convenience; they might allow us to share best practice for sustainable living through social networking and online communities, yet these same systems further our participation in consumerism and contribute to an ever-greater volume of electronic waste.By acknowledging these paradoxes, this book represents a significant critical inquiry into digital technology’s longer-term impact on ideals of sustainability. Written by an interdisciplinary team of contributors this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of human computer interaction and environmental studies.

Sustainability

Sustainability

Author: Leslie Paul Thiele

Publisher: Polity

Published: 2013-04-01

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780745656090

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The pursuit of sustainability has generated lifestyle changes for individuals across the globe, widespread initiatives within civil society and business, historic policies for municipal, regional, and national governments, and crucial protocols and agreements by international organizations. Increasingly, sustainability provides a common language and goal for diverse peoples and nations. Yet the meaning of sustainability remains unsettled, and the term frequently serves as a PR strategy--a green veneer for business as usual--rather than a driver of fundamental change. Leslie Paul Thiele's accessible yet thorough book provides a broad-ranging introduction to the concept and practice of sustainability today. It addresses the history, scope, and contested meanings of sustainability as an ethical ideal, an ascendant ideology, and a common sense approach to living in an ever more crowded world of increasingly scarce resources. Key topics covered include environmental health and ecological resilience, the promise and unintended consequences of technology, political and legal challenges, economic limits and opportunities, and cultural change. Unlike most other approaches to this crucial topic, Thiele argues that sustainability requires innovation and adaptation as much as the conservation of resources. His book will be a valuable resource for students in a broad range of courses, including environmental studies and related areas, as well as general readers keen to grapple with one of the most pressing issues of our times.


Book Synopsis Sustainability by : Leslie Paul Thiele

Download or read book Sustainability written by Leslie Paul Thiele and published by Polity. This book was released on 2013-04-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The pursuit of sustainability has generated lifestyle changes for individuals across the globe, widespread initiatives within civil society and business, historic policies for municipal, regional, and national governments, and crucial protocols and agreements by international organizations. Increasingly, sustainability provides a common language and goal for diverse peoples and nations. Yet the meaning of sustainability remains unsettled, and the term frequently serves as a PR strategy--a green veneer for business as usual--rather than a driver of fundamental change. Leslie Paul Thiele's accessible yet thorough book provides a broad-ranging introduction to the concept and practice of sustainability today. It addresses the history, scope, and contested meanings of sustainability as an ethical ideal, an ascendant ideology, and a common sense approach to living in an ever more crowded world of increasingly scarce resources. Key topics covered include environmental health and ecological resilience, the promise and unintended consequences of technology, political and legal challenges, economic limits and opportunities, and cultural change. Unlike most other approaches to this crucial topic, Thiele argues that sustainability requires innovation and adaptation as much as the conservation of resources. His book will be a valuable resource for students in a broad range of courses, including environmental studies and related areas, as well as general readers keen to grapple with one of the most pressing issues of our times.