Themes for sustainability studies on a way toward ecowwelfare state
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30663/ay.111066Keywords:
ekohyvinvointivaltio, kestävyyssiirtymä, talous, hyvinvointi, hallintaAbstract
Sustainability research plays an important role on our way toward eco-welfare state where citizens’ wellbeing realizes within the ecological carrying capacity. To produce information relevant for these types of transitions, sustainability research needs to be capable of constantly renewing itself both in terms of methods and focus areas. Thus, sustainability research and eco-welfare state should be developed in a dialogical relationship so that research questions remain in line with the best understanding of ecological, social and economic preconditions of a good life. This way we can sufficiently understand societal changes required by a transition toward eco-welfare state. In this review article, I focus on topical themes of sustainability research which seem to require attention in the development of eco-welfare state. Themes in focus include economy, wellbeing and transition management, which I approach both as societal and academic challenges and opportunities. I highlight the meaning of time perspective on our way to eco-welfare state: to gain sustainable foundation for our wellbeing, we must be able to simultaneously carry out both rapid changes and commitments that are based on longer-term deliberation. These will include difficult choices for both individuals and societies. In some situations, required changes may even seem mutually contradictive.
References
Bithas, K. & Kalimeris, P. (2018) Unmasking decoupling: Redefining the Resource Intensity of the Economy. Science of The Total Environment 619–620 338–351. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.11.061
Bocken, N.M.P. & Short, S.W. (2021) Unsustainable business models – Recognising and resolving institutionalized social and environmental harm. Journal of Cleaner Production 312 127828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.127828
Bouman, T., Verschoor, M., Albers, C.J., Böhm, G., Fisher, S.D., Poortinga, W., Whitmarsh, L. & Steg, L. (2020) When worry about climate change leads to climate action: How values, worry and personal responsibility relate to various climate actions. Global Environmental Change 62 102061. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2020.102061
Caniglia, G., Luederitz, C., von Wirth, T., Fazey, I., Martin-Lopez, B., Hondrila, K, König, A., von Wehrden, H., Schäpke, A, Laubichler, M.D. & Lang, D.J. (2021) A pluralistic and integrated approach to action-oriented knowledge for sustainability. Nature sustainability 4 93–100. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-020-00616-z
Chatzidakis, A. & Shaw, D. (2018) Sustainability: Issues of Scale, Care and Consumption. British Journal of Management 29(2) 299–315. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12292
Clark, W.C. (2007) Sustainability Science: A room of its own. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 104(6) 1737–1738. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0611291104
D’Alessandro, S., Cieplinski, A., Distefano, T. & Dittmer, K. (2020) Feasible alternatives to green growth. Nature Sustainability 3 329–335. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-020-0484-y
Ghisellini, P., Cialani, C. Ulgiati, S., (2016) A review on circular economy: The expected transition to a balanced interplay of environmental and economic systems. Journal of Cleaner Production 114 11–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.09.007
Gough, I. (2015) Welfare states and environmental states: a comparative analysis. Environmental Politics 1 24–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2015.1074382
Haapala, A. (2020) Esteettiset arvot muuttuvassa ympäristössä. Teoksessa Kyllönen, S. & Oksanen, M. (toim.) Ilmastonmuutos ja filosofia. Gaudeamus, Helsinki.
Haberl, H., Wiedenhofer, D., Virag, D., Kalt, G., Plank, B., Brockway, P., Fishman, T., Hausknost, D., Krausmann, F., Bartholomaus, L.-G., Mayer, A., Pichler, M., Schaffartzik, A., Sousa, T., Streeck, J. & Creutzig, F. (2020) A systematic review of the evidence on decoupling of GDP, resource use and GHG emissions, part II: synthesizing the insights. Environmental Research Letters 15: 065003. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab842a
Haila, Y. (2004) Retkeilyn rikkaus: luonto ympäristöhuolen aikakaudella. Kustannusosakeyhtiö Taide, Helsinki.
Heikkurinen, P., Young, W. & Morgan, E. (2019) Business for sustainable change: Extending eco-efficiency and eco-sufficiency strategies to consumers. Journal of Cleaner Production 218 656–664. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.02.053
Hickel, J. & Kallis, G. (2019) Is Green Growth Possible? New Political Economy 25(4) 469–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/13563467.2019.1598964
Hirvilammi, T. & Koch, M. 2020. Sustainable Welfare beyond Growth. Sustainability 12(5) 1824. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12051824
Hormio, S. (2020) Yksilön vastuu yhteisöjen jäsenenä. Teoksessa Kyllönen, S. & Oksanen, M. (toim.) Ilmastonmuutos ja filosofia 104–125. Gaudeamus, Helsinki.
Hossain, M., Levänen, J. & Wierenga, M. (2021) Pursuing frugal innovation for sustainability at the grassroots level. Management and Organization Review 17(2) 374–381. https://doi.org/10.1017/mor.2020.53
Hughes, S. & Hoffmann, M. (2020) Just urban transitions: Toward a research agenda. WIREs Climate Change 11(3) e640. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.640
Höysniemi, S. & Salonen, A.O (2019) Towards Carbon-Neutral Mobility in Finland: Mobility and Life Satisfaction in Day-to-Day Life. Sustainability 11(19) 5374. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11195374
Järvensivu, P., Hakala, E., Lummaa, K., Lähde, V., Majava, A., Toivanen, T., Vadén, T. & Eronen, J. (2019) Ilmastokriisiin sopeutuminen on kansanterveydellinen kysymys. Sosiaalilääketieteellinen aikakauslehti 56 341–345.
Koch, M. &Fritz, M. (2014) Building the Eco-social State: Do Welfare Regimes Matter?. Journal of Social Policy 4 679–703. https://doi.org/10.1017/s004727941400035x
Lang, D.J., Wiek, A., Bergmann, M. Stauffacher, M., Materns, P., Moll, P., Swilling, M. & Thomas, C.J. (2012) Transdisciplinary research in sustainability science: practice, principles, and challenges. Sustainability Science 7 25–43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-011-0149-x
Levänen, J., Uusitalo, V., Härri, A., Kareinen, E. & Linnanen, L. (2021) Innovative recycling or extended use? Comparing the global warming potential of different ownership and end-of-life scenarios for textiles. Environmental Research Letters 16 054069. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abfac3
Levänen, J., Lyytinen, T., Gatica, S., (2018) Modelling the Interplay Between Institutions and Circular Economy Business Models: A Case Study of Battery Recycling in Finland and Chile. Ecological Economics 154 373–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.08.018
Levänen, J. (2014) Policy deliberation and the trading zone metaphor: Evaluating expert participation in the reform of Finnish waste policy. Environmental Policy and Governance 24(5) 364–376. https://doi.org/10.1002/eet.1651
Lähde, V. (2013) Niukkuuden maailmassa. Niin & näin -kirjat, Tampere.
McCauley, D. & Heffron, R. (2018) Just transition: Integrating climate, energy and environmental justice. Energy Policy 119 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2018.04.014
Myrdal, G. (1960) Beyond the Welfare State. Yale University Press, New Haven.
Nagatsu, M., Davis, T., DesRoches, C.T., Koskinen, I., MacLeod, M., Stojanovic, M. & Thóren H. (2020) Philosophy of science for sustainability science. Sustainability Science 15 1807–1817. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-020-00832-8
O’Neill, D.W., Fanning, A.L., Lamb, W.F. & Steinberger, J. K. (2018) A good life for all within planetary boundaries. Nature Sustainability 2 88–95. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0021-4
Oxfam (2021) The inequality virus: Bringing together a world torn apart by coronavirus through a fair, just and sustainable economy. Oxfam, Oxford.
Parrique, T., Barth, J., Briens, F., Kerschner, C., Kraus-Polk, A., Kuokkanen, A. & Spangenberg, J.H. (2019) Decoupling Debunked: Evidence and arguments against green growth as a sole strategy for sustainability. European Environmental Bureau.
Petersen, K. (2011) National, Nordic and trans-Nordic: transnational perspectives on the history of the Nordic welfare states. Teoksessa Kettunen, P & Petersen, K. (toim.) Beyond Welfare State Models 41–64. Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781849809603
Pichler, M., Brand, U. & Görg, C. (2018) The double materiality of democracy in capitalist societies: challenges for social-ecological transformations. Environmental Politics 29(2) 193–213. https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2018.1547260
Purdy, J.M. & Gray, B. (2009) Conflicting logics, mechanisms of diffusion, and multilevel dynamics in emerging institutional fields. Academy of Management Journal 52(2) 355–380. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2009.37308255
Raworth, K. (2017) Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st Century Economist. Chelsea Green Publishing, Vermont.
Ropke, I. (2004) The early history of modern ecological economics. Ecological Economics 50 293–314. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2004.02.012
Sanyé-Mengual, E., Secchi, M., Corrado, S, Beylot, A. & Sala, S. (2019) Assessing the decoupling of economic growth from environmental impacts in the European Union: A consumption-based approach. Journal of Cleaner Production 236 117535. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.07.010
Sitra (2021) Growth-positive zero-emission pathways to 2050. Sitra studies, Helsinki. <https://media.sitra.fi/2021/03/01103029/sitra-growth-positive-zero-emission-pathways-to-2050.pdf>.
Time (2021) Your Morning Cup of Coffee Is in Danger. Can the Industry Adapt in Time? Time magazine, 21.6.2021.
Vaarama, M., Moisio, P. & Karvonen, S. (2010) Johdanto. Teoksessa Vaarama, M., Moisio, P. & Karvonen, S. (toim.) Suomalaisten hyvinvointi 2010. Yliopistopaino, Helsinki.
Vadén, T., Lähde, V., Majava, A., Järvensivu, P., Toivanen, T. & Eronen, J.T. (2021) Raising the bar: on the type, size and timeline of a ‘successful’ decoupling. Environmental Politics 30(3) 462–476. https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2020.1783951
Vadén, T., Lähde, V., Majava, A., Järvensivu, P., Toivanen, T., Hakala, E. & Eronen, J.T. (2020) Decoupling for ecological sustainability: A categorisation and review of research literature. Environmental Science & Policy 112 236–244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2020.06.016
Valve, H., Lazarevica, D. & Humalisto, N. (2021) When the circular economy diverges: The evolution of biogas business models and material circuits in Finland. Ecological Economics 185 107025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107025
Wierenga, M. (2020) Innovative entrepreneurial processes in the low-income context. Doctoral dissertation, Department of Management Studies ,Aalto University. <https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/bitstream/handle/123456789/44167/isbn9789526038810.pdf?sequence=4>.
Toth, G. & Szigeti, C. (2016) The historical ecological footprint: From over-population to over-consumption. Ecological Indicators 60 283–291. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.06.040
Turunen, L.L.M. & Halme, M. (2021) Communicating actionable sustainability information to consumers: The Shades of Green instrument for fashion. Journal of Cleaner Production 126605. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126605
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Jarkko Levänen
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
When sending a manuscript the author(s) accept the digital publishing contract sähköisen kustannussopimuksen (please open the link and read it!). The publishing contract covers the publication of the manuscript on the paper and digital versions of the Alue ja ympäristö journal according to the Open Access principles and the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/]. The conditions allow anyone to copy and distribute the work for free in any medium and form, changed or unchanged provided that appropriate credit to author(s) is given, a link provided to the license, and any changes are indicated. Information on copyright issues in Finland are given by Kopiosto.
Alue ja ympäristö is a scientific journal that doesn't pursue economical gain. Instead the purpose of the publishing contract is to acknowledge the moral rights of the author(s) to their work and make possible the distribution of results of scientific research in Alue ja ympäristö journal in print as well as in digital form.
The licence concerning the metadata of published articles is Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0).
More information about open science in Finland:
