1. CEMUS Course: The Global Economy – Environment, Development and Globalization, September 27, 2010 BASICS OF ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS The International Society for Ecological Economics (ISEE) was formed in 1989 and its journal Ecological Economics has appeared since 1990. Later regional associations have been formed ISEE can be seen as a social movement within the scientific communnity characterized by: -A commitment in relation to environment and development issues -Transdisciplinary approach -Pluralism Pluralism suggests that ecological economists is not a homogenous category. Personally, I prefer a kind of institutional economics

2. Pluralism refers to: Theories of science Paradigms in economics Ideology in a broad sense Institutions Many ecological economists (not all) are against monism in the above senses: - One theory of science (”The Scientific Method” in Mankiw’s textbook) - Exclusive reliance on neoclassical economics - Exclusive reliance on market ideology of the neoclassical and neoliberal kind - Alternatives to the present political economic system need not be considered

3. Ecological economics principles also concern: The individual in the economy and in society Business and other organizations Perspectives on the economy with all kinds of actors Markets Ideas about progress, welfare and poverty Decision-making, efficiency and rationality Democratic, social and institutional change processes; and Institutional arrangements compatible with specific interpretations of sustainable development

4. In my case I tend to emphasize the political aspect of ecological economics:  Individuals as actors and Political Economic Persons (PEPs) guided by an ideological orientation  Organizations as actors and Political Economic Organizations (PEOs) guided by an ideological orientation or mission ’Ideology’ as ’means-ends relationships’ is often discussed at the collective level. I argue that we may also refer to an ’ideological orientation’ at the level of inndividuals

5. All this suggests that democracy has to enter into economics (implying a movement away from ’technocracy’ (extreme forms of expertize): Literature: Söderbaum, Peter and Judy Brown, 2010. Democratizing economics. Pluralism as a path toward sustainability. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, Vol.1185, Ecological Economics Reviews, pp. 179-195 Söderbaum, Peter, 2000. Ecological Economics. A Political Economics approach to Environment and Development. Earthscan, London. Söderbaum, Peter, 2008. Understanding Sustainability Economics. Towards Pluralism in Economics. Earthscan, London. New book in Swedish: Nationalekonomi och företagsekonomi för hållbar utveckling. Demokratiska spelregler ger en ny infallsvinkel för ekonomiska vetenskaper (to be published early 2011)