It is generally accepted that our environmental protection problems are real and getting worse. While it is certainly true they are real, whether they are getting worse has become a point of contention. Many of the assumptions about the environment (e.g., natural resources are running out, species extinction is accelerating) have been challenged as incorrect or overstated. Population growth is slowing and pollution in much of the world is decreasing, but many problems remain and the most threatening are significant changes in global weather. These and other challenges raise questions about what we should do. Is it possible to construct, for example, ways of thinking about the future that are neither “doom and gloom” or “head in the sand”? A possible alternative is industrial ecology and a perspective that sees economic systems in concert with surrounding natural systems. Can the natural environment, and a better understanding of how it works, help us to rethink the relationship between the industrial and ecological? And might this offer a means to construct new practices that avoid gridlock and the status quo and instead lead to slow, but steady, movement forward?

Objectives

After completion of the assignments, readings, and participation in discussions you will have a better understanding of what the future may hold and the nature of our environmental challenges and whether industrial ecology may provide a middle-way to a healthier environment.