“Mastering” the Global Commons

Abstract

The question of “mastering” the global commons will increasingly become a central socio-political issue, if it has not already attained this status. For example, the dilemmas brought about by anthropogenic climate change are in many ways unprecedented. They call for massive efforts to plan global climate change. In this context, knowledge about the physical nature of global climate changes is adequate in order to move from a comprehension to a solution of the problem. The record shows that past generations, too, have been fascinated with and concerned about the impact of climate on society, as well as, anthropogenic climate change. But these efforts have, for the most part, been informed by the doctrine of climate determinism. In much the same vein, the concept of climate policies as an “optimal control problem” is inadequate. Impact research has to be cognizant of the social construct of climate, as well as, fundamental secular societal changes that profoundly alter modern societies and the value orientations of its citizens. Climate policies as a form of large-scale and deliberate climate change, therefore, have to draw extensively on social science expertise.