Valuing Nature? : Ethics, Economics and the Environment

The state of the environment is now widely acknowledged as a serious cause for concern. Valuing Nature? argues that responding to this concern by economic valuation of the environment as a consumer good only makes matters worse. The book brings together philosophers, economists and sociologists to put the case for a new and more creative approach to environmental policy. The discussion covers: • the structure of environmental policy-making • the current orthodoxy in environmental economics and its deficiencies • the deeper problems with contingent valuation surveys and cost-benefit analysis for environmental decisions • alternative valuation methods Embracing three disciplines, this book is nevertheless written in a clear, accessible style. It includes chapters by Geoff Hodgson, Clive Spash, Michael Jacobs, Brian Wynne and John O’Neill. Its ground-breaking critique and suggestions will be of great interest both to specialists in the field and to students of the disciplines concerned; it has important messages for anyone concerned with how decisions about the environment are made.

John Foster has worked in teaching, public sector management and green politics as well as academic research. He is a research fellow at the Centre for the Study of Environmental Change, Lancaster University.