1. Non-standard lessons from the 'tragedy of the commons’: From systems to intersecting processes Peter Taylor Univ. Massachusetts Boston Critical & Creative Thinking Science, Technology & Values Education for Sustainability peter.taylor@umb.edu www.faculty.umb.edu/pjt

2. Classroom activity

11. From Systems to Intersecting Processes

12. Social and environmental change are analyzed as something produced by intersecting economic, social and ecological processes operating across different scales. These processes transgress boundaries and restructure "internal" dynamics, thus ensuring that socio-environmental situations do not have clearly defined boundaries and are not simply governed by coherent, internally-driven dynamics.

13. SystemIntersecting processes Clearly defined boundariesBoundaries & categories problematic Coherent internal dynamics governing development, structure & stability, & adaptation to external environment Levels & scale not clearly separable Structures subject to restructuring External observer positionNo privileged standpoint Natural reduction of complexityControl & generalization difficult

14. SystemIntersecting processes Clearly defined boundariesBoundaries & categories problematic IPs involve heterogeneous components incl. unequal agents Coherent internal dynamics governing development, structure & stability, & adaptation to external environment Levels & scale not clearly separable IPs cut across scales Structures subject to restructuring IPs develop over time, e.g. differentiation among unequal agents + historical contingency External observer positionNo privileged standpoint Natural reduction of complexityControl & generalization difficult structuredness in IPs not reducible to micro- or macro-determinations

17. 1. Intersecting processes involve inseparable dynamics 2. The account represents agency as distributed across different kinds of agents and scale. 3. The account has an intermediate complexity. 4. Intermediate complexity accounts favor the idea of multiple, smaller engagements linked together within the intersecting processes. 5. Intersecting processes accounts highlight the need for trans-disciplinary work grounded in particular locations. 6. Intermediate complexity preserves a role for some kind of social scientific generalization.

18. Syllabus topics: systems -> intersecting processes Constructions of nature Conservation and early C20 colonialism, patriarchy, and eugenics Post-WW II ecology: systems and selfishness Human ecology: adapted or ambiguous? Nomadic pastoralism: a key subject of research and of development Local knowledge: adapted, flexible, or vulnerable? Political ecology: economics intersects with ecology Insights from understanding peasantries Construction of commodities and the gendered politics of production in agroecology Euro-centric environmentalism and coercive conservation The politics of participation in eco-development The collaborative generation of environmental knowledge and inquiry Theory and discourse: difficulties and ironies