Introduction to Ecological Economics
The pre-analytic vision of ecological economics.
Module Topic: The history and evolution of ecological economics
Course Learning Outcome(s):
1.
Construct the pre-analytic vision of ecological economics
Module Outcome(s):
1.
Examine the history and evolution of ecological economics
Activities:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Reading: Introduction and Chapter 1 Daly and Farley (2004) Ecological Economics: Principles
and Applications. HEREAFTER REFERRED TO AS ‘DF’
Reading: Chapter 2 of Costanza et al.’s “Introduction to Ecological Economics: Chapter 2”
(HTTP://WWW.EOEARTH.ORG/ARTICLE/AN_INTRODUCTION_TO_ECOLOGICAL_ECONOMICS:_CHAPTE
R_2)
Discussion board (Pre-analytic vision: Pareto efficiency and the future): Why might excessive
resource use have greater impacts on future generations than the current one? Consider the
definition of Pareto efficient allocation. If the current generation is the de facto owner of all
resources, could it be Pareto efficient for this generation to consume fewer resources so that future
generations are better off?
Reading: Costanza, 2008, “Stewardship for a ‘Full’ World”
(HTTP://WWW.UVM.EDU/GIEE/PUBLICATIONS/COSTANZA_STEWARDSHIP_2008.PDF)
Project reading: Introduction: What does an Ecological Economist do? In Farley, Erickson and
Daly (2005) Ecological Economics: A Workbook for Problem-based Learning. HEREAFTER
REFERRED TO AS ‘FED’ OR ‘WORKBOOK’.
Video: Watch Costanza’s talk on "Reintegrating the Study of Humans and the Rest of Nature" (link
is posted here)
Discussion board (Pre-analytic vision: The desirable ends of economic activity): Write a one page
description of your vision of a sustainable and desirable future, i.e. what you believe are the
desirable ends towards which society should allocate its resources. Use your imaginations without
ignoring the laws of physics and ecology. Post your vision on the discussion board. Read and
comment on the other students’ visions. You will be asked to return to this in the module on
societal challenges and paradigm shifts.
Suggested reading: Røpke, I. 2005. Trends in the development of ecological economics from the
late 1980s to the early 2000s. Ecological Economics 55(2):262-290. AND
Røpke, I. (2004) The early history of modern ecological economics Ecological Economics 50:
293– 314 (links are posted here)
Self Check:
Make sure you can answer the questions on the right, and understand the ‘big ideas to
remember’ from DF chapter 1.
Submit as Proof(s) of Learning:
Module activities 3,7. You will not meet the modules objectives however without
completing all activities. In addition, activities 2,6 and 7 in the module on ‘the history
and evolution of ecological economics’ will also serve as proofs of learning.
For more information about this module and its contents, contact your instructor.
At the end of this
section you should be
able to answer the
following questions:




What does
‘transdisciplinary
’ mean, and how
is it different
from multidisciplinary and
interdisciplinary?
What is the
different between
growth and
development?
What are “The
Lisbon
Principles”?
What is general
systems theory?