Reframing Tacit Human–Nature Relations: An Inquiry into Process Philosophy and the Philosophy of Michael Polanyi

Abstract

Sivumäärä/ Sidoantal -Number of pages 50 Tiivistelmä/Referat -Abstract This thesis consists of two parts. Part 2, the main part of this thesis, consists of a research article titled 'Reframing Tacit Human-Nature Relations: An Inquiry into Process Philosophy and the Philosophy of Michael Polanyi'. Part 1, respectively, serves the role of a 'Preface' for the article in Part 2, consisting of introductory and commentary sections as well as proposals for further research.The research question of Part 2 follows: how can the theoretical frameworks set by process philosophy and the works of Michael Polanyi be implemented in the fields of environmental policy and philosophy, particularly in drawing a philosophical bridge between the two often bifurcated entities of 'society' and 'environment'? The question relates to ongoing discussion regarding the relation of mental models (or belief systems) to environmental behaviour. Process philosophy, a metaphysical school of thought emphasizing the ontological and epistemological primacy of process (change, dynamics or flux) over substance (things), is shown to have the potential of being a more sustainable metaphysical basis for the interpretation of reality than predominant substance-biased mental models. Potential sustainability benefits of process philosophy can be found in its emphasis of fundamental interconnection between humans and nature, its emphasis of processes over products, its reification of change (such as climate change) and its accentuation of the reciprocal relation between individuals and socio-ecological systems. Moreover, process philosophy is shown to provide a coherent alternative for the divisive constructionist-realist debate, which has resulted in the so-called science wars and subsequent discrepancies between the social and natural sciences. The central arguments are reinforced with a variety of examples, most notably by allegorical use of the coastline paradox.The discussion on process philosophy is then supplemented with the epistemological framework of polymath Michael Polanyi. Polanyi's theory of tacit knowledge suggests as its central notion that we know more than we can tell, and that all knowledge, intellectual knowledge included, is rooted in embodied functions. Polanyi's theoretical framework is then presented to suggest the following question: if all intellectual knowledge is rooted in embodied knowledge, can these tacit frameworks be deliberately changed (nudged) in order to promote more sustainable behaviour? Particularly it is suggested that if both the public and experts tacitly carry embodied substance-biased belief systems, the reframing of these embodied metaphysical frameworks with process-philosophical alternatives could induce more sustainable dwelling. Finally, the theoretical frameworks of process philosophy and Michael Polanyi's epistemology are shown to provide together an interesting prospect in the design of sustainable mental models and thus contribute to the design of both educational and political instruments.Part 1 serves ...

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