Ecological Wisdom: Theory and Practice

Description

This book offers an introduction to the theory and practice of ecological wisdom (EW). EW is the integration of robust contemporary science with proven cultural and historical practices to identify long-term, sustainable solutions to problems of environmental management and urban design. The book combines theoretical concepts with specific case studies, illustrating the opportunities for interdisciplinary approaches combining historical experience, cultural context, and contemporary science as effective strategies for addressing complex problems confronting metropolitan and rural environmental and resource management in areas such as land use, water management, materials and building engineering, urban planning, and architecture and design. EW transcends the limitations in these fields of the normative approaches of modernity or traditional wisdom by offering a new, synthetic strategy to address socio-ecological issues. By presenting these ideas both theoretically and through existing case studies, the book provides researchers, practitioners and students with a powerful new perspective in developing long-term, resilient solutions to existing socio-environmental challenges. It is intended mainly for those working or interested in the fields of sustainable environmental and resource management, city and regional planning, architecture and design, civil engineering, landscape architecture, and the philosophy of science, particularly those with an ecological or sustainability focus. Front Matter ....Pages i-xxii Introduction: Ecological Wisdom as Discourse (Robert Young)....Pages 1-9 Front Matter ....Pages 11-11 Ecophronesis: The Ecological Practical Wisdom for and from Ecological Practice (Wei-Ning Xiang)....Pages 13-32 Where Does Ecological Wisdom Come from? Historical and Contemporary Perspectives (Bo Yang, Shujuan Li, Wei-Ning Xiang, Ian Bishop, Kuei-Hsien Liao, Jun Liu)....Pages 33-56 Front Matter ....Pages 57-57 Creating with Nature: Ecosophy C as an Ecological Rationality for Healing the Earth Community (Xiangzhan Cheng)....Pages 59-68 Classifying Human Interventions in Nature as a Framework for Ecological Wisdom Development (Ian Bishop)....Pages 69-86 Front Matter ....Pages 87-87 Nature-Inspired Stormwater Management Practice: The Ecological Wisdom Underlying the Tuanchen Drainage System in Beijing, China, and Its Contemporary Relevance (Lixiao Zhang, Zhifeng Yang, Alexey Voinov, Sulan Gao)....Pages 89-109 Ecowisdom and Water in Human Settlements (Katherine Lieberknecht)....Pages 111-123 Traditional Ecological Wisdom in Modern Society: Perspectives from Terraced Fields in Honghe and Chongqing, Southwest China (Zhifang Wang, Qianzi Jiang, Yuanmei Jiao)....Pages 125-148 Front Matter ....Pages 149-149 The Wisdom of Looking Forward Through Ecological Design and Planning (Frederick Steiner)....Pages 151-173 Front Matter ....Pages 175-175 Sustainable Building Materials Guided by Ecological Wisdom to Combat Environmental Issues (Mengmeng Li, Varenyam Achal)....Pages 177-192 Front Matter ....Pages 193-193 Living with Floods: Ecological Wisdom in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (Kuei-Hsien Liao)....Pages 195-215 Multifunctioning Urban Waterfront: Inspirations from the Ecological Wisdom of Working with Reservoir Flooding in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (Chundi Chen, Colin D. Meurk, Hui Cheng)....Pages 217-245 Front Matter ....Pages 247-247 EcoWisdom for Climate Justice Planning: Social-Ecological Vulnerability Assessment in Boston’s Charles River Watershed (Chingwen Cheng)....Pages 249-265 Front Matter ....Pages 267-267 Synergetic Evolution of Social and Natural Systems: Ecological Wisdom of Human Settlements in “The Land of Abundance” (Wentao Yan)....Pages 269-289 Watershed Ecosystem Goods and Services Sustaining Urban Socioecological Systems: Planning and Management Through Ecological Wisdom (Duncan T. Patten)....Pages 291-304 Back Matter ....Pages 305-312