Rethinking nature and culture
ISE board member Eleanor Finley recommends this interview with philosopher and Rice University literature professor, Timothy Morton. In his new book, The Ecological Thought, Morton examines prevailing assumptions about nature and culture in mainstream society and ecological activism. Using metaphysics and object-relations theory, he concludes that nature is “no more” than a social construction. The […]
Rediscovering Kropotkin
At the recent social ecology colloquium, Peter Prontzos drew our attention to the renewed interest among scientists in understanding the potential evolutionary basis for human cooperation. Among other developments, this has encouraged some evolutionary biologists to reconsider the work of Peter Kropotkin. Kropotkin’s best known book, Mutual Aid, pioneered the study of cooperation in animal […]
Imboden: In search of a broad, coherent social ecology
This short essay, by Arizona-based social ecologist Charles Imboden, raises some provocative questions about the evolution of social ecology and proposes a reconciliation of some currents that have often been in conflict. Comments, as always, are strongly encouraged. This originally appeared on the author’s blog at http://socecology.wordpress.com/2012/04/15/in-search-of-a-broad-coherent-social-ecology. Recently, someone immersed in Murray Bookchin‘s late-period works […]
Carmelo Ruiz on Vavilov’s Legacy
Vavilov’s legacy by Carmelo Ruiz-Marrero Every modern society needs a substantial public investment in agricultural research. And such research requires the acquisition of useful plant and seed specimens from all over the world. It is no different in the case of socialist societies. During the first half of the twentieth century the Soviet Union was […]
The Occupy movement in North America and Europe
From social ecologist Raf Grinfeld in Belgium: Many people in Europe were surprised to see the Occupy Together movement become so big in North America, even those of the Left who had seen more and more interesting popular protests in the Middle East and the south of Europe in 2011, and had hopes that a […]
From the streets of Montreal: Le printemps érable
The phrase ‘printemps érable‘ translates as “Maple Spring,” but it also sounds like the French for Arab Spring. A new website, http://translatingtheprintempserable.tumblr.com/ (also available at quebecprotest.com), offers a diverse mix of messages, commentaries and news stories from the Quebecois French press and activist blogs, e.g. this excerpt from a story by one of the site administrators. […]
“The Meaning and Necessity of Revolution in the 21st Century”
An exceptional work of analysis and vision from one of the most astute observers of the present worldwide revolt. Jerome E. Roos is the founder of ROARmag.org (Reflections on a Revolution), and has traveled extensively in southern Europe over the past year. This is from a talk he gave in Barcelona on the eve of […]
“Failure of the Green Economy”
The German group, Bundeskoordination Internationalismus (buko.info), has just published a new critical paper titled After the Failure of the Green Economy. This comes at an important time, as delegates from around the world are readying to meet in Rio de Janeiro for the 20th anniversary of the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development. Unfortunately, […]
New book on participatory evolution
Counterpunch this week features an interview with molecular biologist James Shapiro, whose new book, Evolution: A View from the 21st Century, seeks to offer a comprehensive view of current work in evolutionary biology and concludes that concepts of innovation, self-organization, and self-directed evolution have now overtaken traditional Darwinian views of evolution driven by random mutations. […]
Beverly Naidus installation at Seattle’s “Bread and Roses Exhibition”
“AND NOW BEHIND CURTAIN #2” is an interactive installation in the form of a large colorful fabric spiral with apertures, images and messages that viewers walk around and through. Created by artist/author/teacher/activist and social ecologist Beverly Naidus, the installation premiered at the Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum in Duisberg, Germany in 2005. This viewing will be a […]
