An Introduction to

Sustainability

Chapter 9

MCQs

Annotated Bibliography

  1. Delanty, Gerard, 2003, Community,London: Routledge.

    This is a masterful ‘key ideas’ book on the sociology of community by UK sociologist Gerard Delanty. In the view of the textbook author, a significantly revised second edition, published in 2010, is not as good as the first.

  2. Dresner, Simon 2008 2nd edition, ‘Taking Sustainability into Economics’, chapter 2 in The Principles of Sustainability, London: Earthscan

    This chapter provides an overview of efforts made to make mainstream economics more responsive to environmental issues.

  3. Dryzek, John, 2005, 2nd edition, The Politics of the Earth: Environmental Discourses, Osford: Oxford University Press.

    Having been educated in England and the USA, Australian social and political theorist John Dryzek gained early insights on the differing values and assumptions that underpin different positions within international debates on environmental sustainability. He brings insights derived from Michel Foucault and Jurgen Habermas to his renowned treatment of environmental discourses. Dryzek is a strong advocate of ‘deliberative democracy’.

  4. Jackson, Tim 2009, Prosperity Without Growth: Economics for a Finite Planet, Abingdon: Earthscan

    Ecological economist Tim Jackson has been both an academic and government adviser in the UK. In this book he argues that decoupling economics from ‘growth’ is no longer revolutionary but undeniably necessary.

  5. Graham, Carol, 2011, The Pursuit of Happiness: An Economy of Well-being, Washington: Brookings Institution Press.

    Senior Brookings Institution researcher and former advisor within the International Monetary Fund, Graham has sought to bring the pursuit of happiness into the mainstream of economic theory and practice. She argues that economic theory needs to be more consciously framed by broader social goals such as the pursuit of happiness.

  6.  Washington, Haydn 2015, Demystifying Sustainability: Towards real solutions, Abingdon: Earthscan/Routledge

    A well-researched and well-constructed argument for deep cultural and social changes in order to act on sustainability imperatives. It includes a chapter (6) on ‘social sustainability’ and another chapter (11) ‘Solutions for Sustainability’ which includes many tips on ‘What you can do’.

  7. Hawkes, Jon, 2004, The Fourth Pillar of Sustainability: Culture’s Essential Role in Public Planning, Melbourne: Cultural Development Network.

    Vastly experienced Australian community arts practitioner Jon Hawkes was commissioned by the Australian Cultural Development Network to write about the importance of culture for the sustainability of local communities. He described ‘cultural vitality’ as the ‘fourth pillar’ of sustainability and this idea has attracted interest in Europe, Canada and New Zealand as well as in Australia.

  8. McDonough, William and Michael Braungart, 2002, Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, New York: North Point Press.

    US architect William McDonough teamed up with German chemist and foundation member of the German Greens Michael Braungart to write this highly influential book calling for another ‘industrial revolution’ aimed at closing the circle between production and waste disposal.

  9. Majone, Giandomenico, 1989, Evidence, Argument and Persuasion in Policy Processes, Yale: Yale University Press.

    Best known for his work on ‘the democratic deficit’ in the functioning of the European Union, Italian political economist and public policy expert Giandomenico Majone wrote this book to argue that value judgements always underpin policy formulations, However, ‘argumentation’ about the values that should underpin public policy needs to be made much more transparent, he wrote.

  10. Massey, Doreen, 2005, For Space, London: Sage.

    Highly regarded UK human geographer Doreen Massey has been writing about the impacts of globalisation on local social life since the early 1980s. Increased mobility and migration makes it more, rather than less, important to pay attention to the challenges of coexistence within shared spaces, she has argued, and this book pulls together her key insights on the ‘throwntogetherness’ of contemporary social life.

  11. Pearce, David, 1998, Economics and Environment: Essays on Ecological Economics and Sustainable Development, London: Edward Elgar.

    Born in 1941, David Pearce was schooled in conventional economic theory, yet in the 1980s he became a pioneer in the new field of environmental economics. In 1989, he led a team of authors to produce the first of several editions of Blueprint for a Green Economy, with the most recent edition being produced by his colleagues in 2012. Pearce’s 1998 paper provides a good introduction to the central concerns of environmental economics.

Annotated Links to Further Web Resources

  1. Association of Environmental and Resource Economics

    www.aere.org

    This is the website of the international association for economists working in the area of environment and natural resources. The association was established in 1979, before environmental economics became a distinct field of economic thought.

  2. International Society for Ecological Economics

    www.isecoeco.org

    ISEE is a member-driven association with no particular affiliations. It supports an active network of national and regional associations, and produces the Ecological Economics journal.

  3. Local Futures: International Society for Ecology and Culture

    www.localfutures.org

    Founded by Helena Norberg-Hodge, ISEC has campaigned for the ‘localisation’ of social and economic life. Its biggest project of late has been the production of the film The Economics of Happiness.

  4. The Fourth Pillar

    www.fourthpillar.biz/about/fourth-pillar/

    Following unexpected international interest in his 2001 proposal that cultural vitality should be seen as the ‘fourth pillar’ of sustainability, Australian author Jon Hawkes has established this website to further promote the idea and share relevant news.

  5. Evergreen Cooperatives, Cleveland, Ohio

    http://evergreencooperatives.com/

    Formed in 2008 to promote new employment opportunities for people made jobless by the closure of large industries in the city, Evergreen Cooperatives have been responsible for a range of interesting green economy initiatives.

  6. Community Wealth

    http://community-wealth.org

    A US-based network aimed at promoting research and sharing information on practice in community-based economic development.

  7. Mondragon Cooperative Corporation

    http://www.mondragon-corporation.com

    A rather small town in the Basque country of Spain is the surprising home of the world’s largest worker co-operative, first formed in 1956.

Annotated Links to Video Clips

  1. What the Economic Crisis Really Means; and what we can do about it

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euhkIesmW7E

    Duration: 12:25

    This video provides a great introduction to arguments around ‘limits to growth’ and the resultant criticisms of endless economic growth. While it looks at the causes of the 2008‒09 Global Financial Crisis, it goes on to examine the link between economic growth and cheap energy, discussed in Chapter 5. It is also featured on the Doing It Ourselves website (http://www.doingitourselves.org).

  2. Tim Jackson: An economic reality check

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZsp_EdO2Xk

    Duration: 24:31

    A well-presented TED talk by the leading international ecological economist Tim Jackson explaining why the world cannot continue with existing trends in economic growth and development. An accessible account of the blind spots in global economic systems.

  3. The Policy Implications of Happiness

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3dXMeLooyQ

    Duration: 7:01

    A television interview with Carol Graham about her book The Pursuit of Happiness.

  4. A Guide to Happiness, Part 2: Epicurus on Happiness

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irornIAQzQY\

    Duration: 28:59

    This YouTube video is the second chapter of the documentary version of Alain de Botton’s book Philosophy: A Guide to Happiness. It provides a good introduction to Epicurean ideas on the examined life, consumerism/materialism and how to achieve real happiness.

  5. The Economics of Happiness: Official trailer

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkdnFYDbiBE

    Duration 3:24

    The trailer produced by the makers of the 2011 documentary film. Details about how to access the full 66-minute film can be found at the official film website, http://www.theeconomicsofhappiness.org/.

  6. Helena Norberg-Hodge on the Thom Hatmann Show

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uetxoLSk6zE

    Duration: 6:54

    Helena Norberg-Hodge talks about her documentary film The Economics of Happiness on a US television show in 2012.

  7. The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjCDjmIpGoU

    Duration: 14:55

    A short US documentary on how local communities in Cuba responded when Cuba suddenly lost its oil supplies following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

  8. Alain de Botton: Status Anxiety

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1MqJPHxy6g

    Duration: 2:23:06

    A documentary film made in 2014.

  9. Jon Hawkes at the UNESCO Hangahou Congress, 2013

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fi30KbzsT2o

    Australian cultural development worker Jon Hawkes speaks at a UNESCO conference on the rather surprising success of his 2004 monograph arguing that cultural vitality should be seen as the ‘fourth pillar’ of sustainability.