Reflections on the popularity of the circular bioeconomy concept: the ontological crisis of sustainability science
AbstractI argue that the popularity of the circular bioeconomy concept in policy-making is symptomatic of a profound crisis in sustainability science, which is generated by the adoption of an obsolete scientific paradigm, i.e., obsolete ontologies used to describe our interaction with the external world. The result is a systemic lack of quality control on the science –policy interface. The growing awareness of a pending collapse of our life support systems and the rapidly changing world order would require society to rediscuss its identity. However, current mechanisms of control of the quality of the scientific input use...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 10, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
Unpacking dynamics of diverse nested resource systems through a diagnostic approach
AbstractThe social –ecological systems (SES) framework (Ostrom 2009, Science. 325(5939):419–22) typologically decomposes SES characteristics into nested, tiered constituent variables. Yet, aligning the framework’s concepts of resource system (RS) and resource unit (RU) with realities of individual case studies p oses challenges if the underlying SES is not a single RS, but a mid to large-scale nested RS (NRS). Using a diagnostic approach, we describe NRSs—and the activities and networks of adjacent action situations (NAAS) containing them. An NRS includes the larger RS and multiple interlinked semi-auton omous sub...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 10, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
Integrated modeling to achieve global goals: lessons from the Food, Agriculture, Biodiversity, Land-use, and Energy (FABLE) initiative
AbstractHumanity is challenged with making progress toward global biodiversity, freshwater, and climate goals, while providing food and nutritional security for everyone. Our current food and land-use systems are incompatible with this ambition making them unsustainable. Papers in this special feature introduce a participatory, integrated modeling approach applied to provide insights on how to transform food and land-use systems to sustainable trajectories in 12 countries: Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Finland, India, Mexico, Rwanda, Sweden, the UK, and USA. Papers are based on work completed by members of ...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 7, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
The green growth narrative, bioeconomy and the foreclosure of nature
This article proposes an explanation for the paradox arising from the blatant inconsistency of the green growth narrative and its unrestrained progress, under new terms and policy debates, including that of bioeconomy. Decoupling, the economic strategy supposed to make green growth possible, has already been analysed by other authors using the Lacanian notion of neurotic fantasy, meaning a mechanism for upholding an ideology while systematically concealing its inner contradictions. However, based on Lacan ’s theory, it can be shown that the discursive construction of decoupling ultimately does not meet the criteria of fa...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 6, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
Understanding the bioeconomy through its instruments: standardizing sustainability, neoliberalizing bioeconomies?
AbstractSustainability standards have been one of the hopefuls for decades when it comes to ensuring the sustainability of biomass for the bioeconomy, especially in the wake of their evolvement from voluntary, non-governmental to hybrid, public –private governance instruments in recent years. In addition to doubts regarding their legitimacy and effectiveness, however, they have also been associated with a neoliberalization of nature that integrates natural resources into a free market logic. Drawing on a conceptual framework that builds on political ecology and the political sociology of policy instruments, this paper ch...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 6, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
The governance of forest carbon in a subnational climate mitigation system: insights from a network of action situations approach
AbstractAs one of the leading programs and largest subnational carbon-crediting mechanism in the world, California ’s Offset Program and carbon market reflect key aspects of polycentric governance, including public and private actors interacting in rule-governed relationships, multifaceted strategies for carbon reductions, multiple jurisdictions, and standards of accountability, legitimacy, and environmental i ntegrity. Participation in California’s program, however, remains low particularly among private forest owners who own the majority (56%) of forests in the United States (Butler et al. Family forest ownerships of...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 3, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
Organic agriculture in a low-emission world: exploring combined measures to deliver a sustainable food system in Sweden
In this study, we developed two scenarios to evaluate the role of organic farming in the broader context of Swedish food systems: (i) baseline trend scenario (Base), and (ii) sustainable food system scenario (Sust).Base describes a future where organic farming is implemented alongside the current consumption, production and waste patterns, whileSust describes a future where organic farming is implemented alongside a range of sustainable food system initiatives. These scenarios are coupled with several variants of organic area: (i) current 20% organic area, (ii) the national target of 30% organic area by 2030, and (iii) 50%...
Source: Sustainability Science - January 1, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: research
Sustainability implications of Rwanda ’s Vision 2050 long-term development strategy
AbstractImproving livelihoods in Rwanda requires overcoming food insecurity and malnutrition. Vision 2050 is Rwanda ’s long-term development strategy, yet little is known about its potential trade-offs for the country’s biodiversity, forest cover, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Scenario analysis can provide insights into how to achieve such goals more sustainably. Here, we use the Food, Agriculture, Biod iversity, Land-Use, and Energy (FABLE) Calculator, a simple integrated assessment tool, to explore potential sustainability implications by 2050 through two scenarios: (1) Current Trends and (2) Vision 2050. The V...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 24, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
From sectoral to integrative action situations: an institutional perspective on the energy transition implementation in the Netherlands
AbstractThe interlinked nature of today ’s societal challenges asks for integrative approaches. The energy transition is an especially impactful challenge and presents a compelling opportunity to pursue integration, as it requires changes to space, landscape, infrastructure and organizations at different scales. While the added value of integrative approaches that address the energy transition alongside other societal challenges is widely acknowledged, it is not the status quo. The aim of this study is to uncover the institutional barriers to integration and suggest possibilities for redesign. The paper sheds light on a ...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 24, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
The making of sustainability: ideological strategies, the materiality of nature, and biomass use in the bioeconomy
AbstractThe bioeconomy, a recent addition to the political project of ecological modernization, is largely premised on the widespread use of biomass. Biomass is presented by bioeconomy proponents as renewable and, therefore, sustainable. However, a large body of academic and non-academic literature questions this sustainability, citing the negative socio-ecological aspects of biomass use. Given this contradiction, we ask how the key institutions of the innovation system (government, science, and industry), construct and uphold the image of sustainability of biomass use in the bioeconomy. Through an analysis based on ideolo...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 20, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
Energizing a transformation to a circular bioeconomy: mechanisms to spread, deepen and broaden initiatives
AbstractTransformative change is necessary to reach a circular bioeconomy. In this context, a variety of societal and business initiatives have emerged, which in their everyday practices aim to increase their circular impact. These emerging circular initiatives, so-called small wins, continuously spread, deepen and broaden and as such contribute to transformative change. A small win spreads by becoming larger and more numerous, deepens by becoming more radical and circular, and broadens by connecting with other themes and domains. This paper explores how mechanisms drive these processes and, more in particular, how circula...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 19, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
Understanding the governance of sustainability pathways: hydraulic megaprojects, social –ecological traps, and power in networks of action situations
AbstractTo enable sustainability pathways, we need to understand how social –ecological systems (SES) respond to different governance configurations, considering their historical, institutional, political, and power conditions. We advance a robust methodological approach for the integrated analysis of those conditions in SES traps. Our advancement consists of a novel comb ination of the networks of action situations approach with an agency-based polycentric power typology and the concept of discursive power. We test the approach by building on previous research on the Doñana estuary–delta SES (Guadalquivir estuary), w...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 17, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
Arts, place, and sacrifice zones: restoration of damaged relational values in a Chilean sacrifice zone
AbstractThis paper aims to unpack the relational dimension of place and placemaking by analysing how creative actions underpin relational values towards socio-spatial restoration in the sacrifice zone affecting the communities of Quintero and Puchuncav í (QPSZ) in Chile. Sacrifice zones are places permanently subject to environmental damage and lack of environmental regulation. For affected populations in environmentally degraded areas, creative actions such as murals, music, and street performances have become a way to re-establish connections b oth among humans, and between humans and the environment. To date, little ha...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 15, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
Correction: Sustainable water tariffs and inequality in post-drought Cape Town: exploring perceptions of fairness
(Source: Sustainability Science)
Source: Sustainability Science - December 5, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
A multi-model approach to explore sustainable food and land use pathways for Argentina
AbstractIn Argentina, current food and land-use systems are drivers of greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, nutrient outflows, chemical pollution and water stress, while they fail to produce sustainable livelihoods for farmers and herders. Argentina must transition toward more sustainable food and land-use systems to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Here, we present mid-century food and land-use system pathways to achieve biodiversity, freshwater use, food production and greenhouse gas emission targets, co-developed with the government, research and civil s...
Source: Sustainability Science - December 1, 2022 Category: Science Source Type: research
