Pragmatic sustainability

"In the short time since the turn of the millennium, the notion of "sustainable development" has been distilled to the specific battle against climate change. The tools for waging this battle are largely technoscientific and linked to market-based strategies. Such grand plans suggest a simple technological fix is not only possible, but profitable." "The authors gathered here, leading thinkers from architecture, business, economics, engineering, history, philosophy, planning, science and technology studies, welcome action toward solving this clear and present threat. However, they are skeptical of the assumption that a single approach, model, or list of best practices can be universally applied in a diverse world. Instead, they advocate a pragmatic and pluralist approach to environmental and social change, demanding constant adaptation to changing conditions." "The pragmatic attitude and tools investigated in this collection contribute to the development of a much needed transdisciplinary conversation to emphasize the long-term consequences of our actions, not their ideological or disciplinary purity. Despite the often failed attempts to incorporate the insights of others, here we step beyond narrow disciplinary incentives to offer a new understanding of how we all might live sustainably."--Jacket.