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Introduction: The Anthropology of Sustainability: Beyond Development and Progress

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The Anthropology of Sustainability

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Anthropology of Sustainability ((PSAS))

Abstract

There are many competing definitions of sustainability, but most of them stem from the long Euro-American tradition of managing natural resources. Anthropology can offer an alternative view of sustainability, starting from the recognition that a view of sustainability based on the objectification of nature is grounded in the very same ontology that has allowed the global ecological crisis that crowns the new epoch in which we now live: the Anthropocene. This chapter introduces the book with a call to arms: anthropologists have a responsibility to demonstrate the importance of social, cultural, ontological diversity for resilience, adaptation and sustainable innovation.

‘Sustainability’ is the dream of passing a livable earth to future generations, human and nonhuman. The term is also used to cover up destructive practices, and this use has become so prevalent that the word most often makes me laugh and cry.

Anna Tsing (Chap. 3)

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK

    Marc Brightman & Jerome Lewis

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  1. Marc Brightman
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  2. Jerome Lewis
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Correspondence to Marc Brightman .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, United Kingdom

    Marc Brightman

  2. Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, United Kingdom

    Jerome Lewis

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Brightman, M., Lewis, J. (2017). Introduction: The Anthropology of Sustainability: Beyond Development and Progress. In: Brightman, M., Lewis, J. (eds) The Anthropology of Sustainability. Palgrave Studies in Anthropology of Sustainability. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56636-2_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56636-2_1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-137-56635-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-56636-2

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