Worldviews and Their Significance for the Global Sustainable Development Debate

Witt, Annick Hedlund-de

doi:10.5840/enviroethics201335215

Cited by 56 publications

(33 citation statements)

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“…Worldviews have been defined as “inescapable, overarching systems of meaning and meaning‐making that to a substantial extent inform how humans interpret, enact, and co‐create reality” (Hedlund‐de Witt , 156) . They consist of foundational assumptions and perceptions “regarding the underlying nature of reality, ‘proper' social relations or guidelines for living, or the existence or non existence of important entities” (Koltko‐Rivera , 5).…”

Section: Research On Worldviews In the Contemporary West: The Integramentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They consist of foundational assumptions and perceptions “regarding the underlying nature of reality, ‘proper' social relations or guidelines for living, or the existence or non existence of important entities” (Koltko‐Rivera , 5). As several authors have argued, worldviews profoundly inform how environmental issues, such as climate change, are perceived, what are considered useful pathways toward solutions, and what is seen as the role and responsibility of the individual (Gifford ; Hedlund‐de Witt ; Hulme ; Nisbet ; O'Brien, St. Clair, and Kristoffersen ).…”

Section: Research On Worldviews In the Contemporary West: The Integramentioning

confidence: 99%

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Climate Change and the Clash of Worldviews: An Exploration of How to Move Forward in a Polarized Debate

Witt¹

2015

Zygon

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The current gridlock around climate change and how to address our global sustainability issues can be understood as resulting from clashes in worldviews. This article summarizes some of the research on worldviews in the contemporary West, showing that these (ideal-typical) worldviews have different, and frequently complementary, potentials, as well as different pitfalls, with respect to addressing climate change. Simultaneously, the overview shows that, because of their innate reflexivity and their capacity to appreciate and synthesize multiple perspectives, individuals inhabiting integrative worldviews may have particular potentials with respect to addressing climate change. In the conclusion I argue that the policy challenge is to develop strategies that inspire the different worldview groups to actualize their potentials while mitigating their pitfalls, as well as to unite and mobilize them around a single vision that speaks to them all.

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Section: Research On Worldviews In the Contemporary West: The Integramentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research On Worldviews In the Contemporary West: The Integramentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate Change and the Clash of Worldviews: An Exploration of How to Move Forward in a Polarized Debate

Witt¹

2015

Zygon

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“…While science is crucial for sustainable development, it cannot resolve the basic question of what is sustainable and what is not [8]. Rather than understanding these debates as resulting from mere disagreements over the facts, they can be better understood as resulting from clashes in values and worldviews [6,9,10]. That is, from fundamentally different philosophies of life in conflict about what is real (ontology), how one can know (epistemology), what is of value (axiology), what is the nature and role of human beings (anthropology), and how society should be organized (societal vision/social imaginary) [11,12].…”

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They consist of foundational assumptions and perceptions "regarding the underlying nature of reality, "proper" social relations or guidelines for living, or the existence or non-existence of important entities" [36]. As several authors have argued, worldviews profoundly inform how environmental issues are perceived, what are considered useful pathways towards solutions, and what is seen as role and responsibility of the individual [9,10,[37][38][39].…”

Section: Considering How Different Worldviews Envision "Development" mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Worldviews have been defined as "inescapable, overarching systems of meaning and meaning-making that to a substantial extent inform how humans interpret, enact, and co-create reality" [10] (p. 156). Worldviews are complex constellations of ontological presuppositions, epistemic capacities, and ethical and aesthetic values that converge to dynamically organize a synthetic apprehension of the exterior world and one's interior experience.…”

Section: Considering How Different Worldviews Envision "Development" mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rethinking Sustainable Development: Considering How Different Worldviews Envision “Development” and “Quality of Life”

Witt

2014

Sustainability

Self Cite

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Abstract:The concept of sustainable development does not articulate what needs to be sustained, developed, or how, and is consequently intersubjective and intercultural. I therefore argue that it is essential to consider different worldviews when discussing sustainable development, and I offer broad, provisional suggestions as to how we can begin doing this. I first discuss how the notion of sustainable development at its heart is an attempt to unite conservation with growth. I then consider how different worldviews relate to this unitary ideal, by articulating how they envision "development" and "quality of life". I do this by drawing on the Integrative Worldview Framework, which distinguishes between multiple, ideal-typical worldviews. However, I argue that more important than any typology of worldviews is the reflexive attitude a worldview-perspective supports. I conclude with implications for more reflexive and inclusive forms of policy-making, also in light of the to-be-formulated Sustainable Development Goals.

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Setting the design space of biorefineries through sustainability values, a practical approach

Parada

Asveld

Osseweijer

et al. 2017

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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Sustainable development has become an outstanding aspiration in our society. However, the meaning of sustainability and how it should be operationalized is a complex issue that depends on subjective beliefs and values. To advance toward sustainable biobased production, we present an approach to delimit the design space of biorefi neries by considering stakeholders' values. Concepts from Design for Values were taken as the starting point for this approach, which was further developed with a biojet fuel production case in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais and São Paulo. Design propositions that considered the interaction between stakeholders' values, sustainability, and the production system were derived and used to suggest design space boundaries. These design boundaries are indicative, allowing for deliberation during future design activities. Through them, designers are prompted to actively refl ect on the interaction between biorefi nery systems and the socioeconomic and environmental context around them. By opening the design process to stakeholders' values, we have developed a constructivist approach to incorporate sustainability in an inclusive and contextspecifi c manner during the early stages of biorefi nery design.

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Worldviews and Their Significance for the Global Sustainable Development Debate

Cited by 56 publications

References 0 publications

Climate Change and the Clash of Worldviews: An Exploration of How to Move Forward in a Polarized Debate

Climate Change and the Clash of Worldviews: An Exploration of How to Move Forward in a Polarized Debate

Rethinking Sustainable Development: Considering How Different Worldviews Envision “Development” and “Quality of Life”

Setting the design space of biorefineries through sustainability values, a practical approach

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