Change and Stability: a discourse on sustainability (5op)

Osaamistavoitteet

The object of this course is to probe the concept of "sustainability" in its variable meanings as well as its perceived relations to other concepts such as resilience and rationalization (in its sense of "efficiency"). In so doing, the course will introduce the ideas of Gregory Bateson to understand the ways in which his systems approach, rooted in cybernetics and the theory of logical typing, elicits "patterns that connect" across both the natural and social sciences.
Bateson is probably most known to the anthropological world for his early book Naven and for his filmic study of Balinese Character; yet it was only after confronting the breakthroughs of cybernetics and communications theory developed toward the end of WW2 that he was able to recognize the similarities of communicative processes guiding developments as seemingly disparate as evolution and mental illness. It was only later in life that he was able to bring it all together, first with the publication of his famous collection of essays, Steps to an Ecology of Mind, and later with the more pedagogical presentation of his basic epistemology in Mind and Nature, a Necessary Unity.Much of his work can be seen as foundational to Political Ecology and Resilience Theory, and yet these two approaches often feud with each other. What are the main points of contention?

Sisältö

While this doctoral course in all humility will not pretend to reflect only the true Batesonian perspective, it is designed to provide the basics of his critical methodology, challenging students to form their own opinions and to pose further questions. Given the breadth of his vision, there should be no research project left unmoved by confronting his thought.
Hugh Beach was a student of Bateson for the academic year 1970-71 and has been heavily influenced by him for his work with the analysis of transformations of reindeer herding as well as studies related to ethnicity.
This course is designed to induce critical thinking about terms such as "sustainability", "ecology", and "resilience". In Ecological systems, we are dealing with hierarchically embedded relations. As Bateson so succinctly put it: "Change on one level is to maintain, unchanged, more primary relationships". Realization of the meaning of this statement forces us to confront the purposive, political nature of ecology (What is primary? And for whom?). All too often we hide behind the banner of pure science in the service of an abstract sustainability without realization of the narrow human purposiveness it entails, what has become known as "ecolonialism".
Basing on such a review of Bateson’s seminal work and its importance for sustainability studies, this course will also consider the main debates that Bateson’s work instigated in his legacy.

Esitietovaatimukset

The course is intended for PhD students any of the social sciences interested in social theory. Knowledge of some basic social theory is therefore desirable, and acquaintance with any of the works of Bateson an advantage. Those without any acquaintance are strongly recommended to do the preparatory reading most thoroughly.

Arviointikriteerit, tyydyttävä (1)

pass/fail

Oppimateriaalit

More literature information and extra material
Preparatory reading
(Book)—Bateson, G. Mind and Nature: a necessary unity. (1979). Bantam Books. New York. ISBN 0553-13724-7.
Bateson, G. (1972), Conscious Purpose versus Nature. in Steps to an Ecology of Mind. Chandler Publishing Company, Ballantine Books. New York. (or Jason Aronson Inc., London.)
Hardin, G. (1968), The Tragedy of the Commons. Science, December 13
Robbins, Paul. (2004) Political Ecology: A Critical Introduction, Blackwell, OxfordISBN 1405102667. Introduction, selection 2 pages.
Optional reading
Bateson, G. (1972) The role of somatic change in evolution, in Steps to an Ecology of Mind (San Francisco, CA: Chandler).
Beach, H. (1990), Perceptions of Risk, Dilemmas of Policy: Nuclear Fallout in Swedish Lapland. in Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 30, No. 6, pp. 729-738.
Beach, H. (1997) Negotiating Nature in Swedish Lapland: Ecology and Economics of Saami Reindeer Management. in Contested Arctic: Indigenous Peoples, Industrial States, and the Circumpolar Environment, ed. Eric A. Smith, University of Washington Press.Beach, H. (2004), Political Ecology in Swedish Saamiland. in Cultivating Arctic Landscapes: Knowing and Managing Animals in the Circumpolar North. eds. David Anderson and Mark Nuttall. Berghahn Press, Oxford. ISBN 1-57181-754-0.Beach, H. with F. Stammler (2006), Human-Animal Relations in Pastoralism, in Humans and Reindeer on the Move, special edition of Nomadic Peoples, eds. Stammler, F. and Beach, H. Volume 10, Issue 2/2006
Nuckolls, C. W. 1995. The misplaced legacy of Gregory Bateson: Toward a cultural dialectic of knowledge and desire. Cultural Anthropology 10, 367–394.
Borden, R. J. 2017. Gregory Bateson’s Search for "Patterns Which Connect" Ecology and Mind. Human Ecology Review 23, pp. 87-96.

Lisätiedot

Additional information
Participants are required to attend lectures in the Arctic Arc Final Seminar from 11 to 14 December. In case of overlaps, please contact the responsible professor.

Toteutustavat

Preparatory reading, lecture participation.

Suoritustavat

Written assignment, to be handed in 4 weeks after the last lecture. Topics individually to be agreed with teacher / professor during the lectures.