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130-649: Ecological engineering emerged as a new idea in the early 1960s, but its definition has taken several decades to refine. Its implementation is still undergoing adjustment, and its broader recognition as a new paradigm is relatively recent. Ecological engineering was introduced by Howard Odum and others as utilizing natural energy sources as the predominant input to manipulate and control environmental systems. The origins of ecological engineering are in Odum's work with ecological modeling and ecosystem simulation to capture holistic macro-patterns of energy and material flows affecting

260-487: A fiduciary responsibility to the greater ecological world, and that sustainable development must therefore take a different approach to valuing natural resources and ecological functions. Recently, Stanislav Shmelev developed a new methodology for the assessment of progress at the macro scale based on multi-criteria methods, which allows consideration of different perspectives, including strong and weak sustainability or conservationists vs industrialists and aims to search for

390-627: A market system failed to take into account the needs of future generations, and that a socialist economy required calculation in kind , the tracking of all the different materials, rather than synthesising them into money as a general equivalent . In this he was criticised by neo-liberal economists such as Ludwig von Mises and Freidrich Hayek in what became known as the socialist calculation debate . The debate on energy in economic systems can also be traced back to Nobel prize -winning radiochemist Frederick Soddy (1877–1956). In his book Wealth, Virtual Wealth and Debt (1926), Soddy criticized

520-475: A 'middle way' by providing a strong neo-Keynesian economic push without putting excessive pressure on the natural resources, including water or producing emissions, both directly and indirectly. A key concept of energy economics is net energy gain , which recognizes that all energy sources require an initial energy investment in order to produce energy. To be useful the energy return on energy invested ( EROEI ) has to be greater than one. The net energy gain from

650-492: A blended family was to be sure to keep talking ; Elisabeth's was to hold back on discipline and new rules. In 1950, Odum earned his Ph.D. in zoology at Yale University , under the guidance of G. Evelyn Hutchinson . His dissertation was titled The Biogeochemistry of Strontium: With Discussion on the Ecological Integration of Elements , which brought him into the emerging field of systems ecology . He made

780-717: A commitment to eradicate global inequality through sustainable development (See Green Economics). Examples of heterodox ecological economic experiments include the Catalan Integral Cooperative and the Solidarity Economy Networks in Italy. Both of these grassroots movements use communitarian based economies and consciously reduce their ecological footprint by limiting material growth and adapting to regenerative agriculture . Cultural and heterodox applications of economic interaction around

910-472: A constant temperature and chemical composition. The study Odum conducted here was the first complete analysis of a natural ecosystem . Odum started with an overall model and in his early work used a diagramming methodology very similar to the Sankey diagrams used in chemical process engineering. Starting from that overall model, Odum "mapped in detail all the flow routes to and from the stream. He measured

1040-416: A decline, with valuable habitat such as estuaries in critical condition. The aquaculture or farming of piscivorous fish, like salmon , does not help solve the problem because they need to be fed products from other fish. Studies have shown that salmon farming has major negative impacts on wild salmon, as well as the forage fish that need to be caught to feed them. Since animals are higher on

1170-557: A green economy, competent institutions and governance systems are vital in guaranteeing the efficient execution of strategies, guidelines, campaigns, and programmes. Shifting to a Green Economy demands a fresh mindset and an innovative outlook of doing business. It likewise necessitates new capacities, skills set from labor and professionals who can competently function across sectors, and able to work as effective components within multi-disciplinary teams. To achieve this goal, vocational training packages must be developed with focus on greening

1300-425: A guiding value system. Barrett (1999) offers a more literal definition of the term: "the design, construction, operation and management (that is, engineering) of landscape/aquatic structures and associated plant and animal communities (that is, ecosystems) to benefit humanity and, often, nature." Barrett continues: "other terms with equivalent or similar meanings include ecotechnology and two terms most often used in

1430-458: A key role in producing well-being. At the same time, there is intense debate about how and when to place values on these benefits. A study was carried out by Costanza and colleagues to determine the 'value' of the services provided by the environment. This was determined by averaging values obtained from a range of studies conducted in very specific context and then transferring these without regard to that context. Dollar figures were averaged to

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1560-497: A meteorological "analysis of the global circulation of strontium, [and] anticipated in the late 1940s the view of the earth as one great ecosystem ". While at Yale, Howard began his lifelong collaborations with his brother Eugene. In 1953, they published the first English-language textbook on systems ecology, Fundamentals of Ecology . Howard wrote the chapter on energetics , which introduced his energy circuit language . They continued to collaborate in research as well as writing for

1690-579: A modern conceptual framework based on the material and energy flows of economic production and consumption . His magnum opus , The Entropy Law and the Economic Process (1971), is credited by Daly as a fundamental text of the field, alongside Soddy's Wealth, Virtual Wealth and Debt . Some key concepts of what is now ecological economics are evident in the writings of Kenneth Boulding and E. F. Schumacher , whose book Small Is Beautiful – A Study of Economics as if People Mattered (1973)

1820-494: A novel perspective on the management of surplus energy within economies. This concept encourages a shift from growth-centric models to approaches that prioritise sustainable and meaningful expenditures of excess resources . Thermoeconomics is based on the proposition that the role of energy in biological evolution should be defined and understood through the second law of thermodynamics , but also in terms of such economic criteria as productivity , efficiency , and especially

1950-662: A per hectare number for different types of ecosystem e.g. wetlands, oceans. A total was then produced which came out at 33 trillion US dollars (1997 values), more than twice the total GDP of the world at the time of the study. This study was criticized by pre-ecological and even some environmental economists – for being inconsistent with assumptions of financial capital valuation – and ecological economists – for being inconsistent with an ecological economics focus on biological and physical indicators. The whole idea of treating ecosystems as goods and services to be valued in monetary terms remains controversial. A common objection

2080-419: A significant role in the development of his approach to systems and have been recognized as one of the earliest instances of systems ecology. Electron flow in the electrical network represented the flow of material (e.g. carbon) in the ecosystem, charge in a capacitor was analogous to storage of a material, and the model was scaled to the ecosystem of interest by adjusting the size of electrical component. In

2210-437: A special case of a more general flux law, where the flux ( J {\displaystyle J} ) "is proportional to the driving thermodynamic force ( X {\displaystyle X} ) with conductivity ( C {\displaystyle C} )", or J = C X {\displaystyle J=CX} . Kangas states that Odum concluded that as thermodynamic systems, ecosystems should also obey

2340-459: A subjective, willingness to pay basis. Ecological engineering is an emerging field of study between ecology and engineering concerned with the designing, monitoring and constructing of ecosystems . The term ecological engineering was first coined by Odum in 1962, before he worked at the University of Florida. Ecological engineering, he wrote, is "those cases where the energy supplied by man

2470-432: Is also controversial in ecological economics. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization achieved near-universal agreement in 2008 that such payments directly valuing ecosystem preservation and encouraging permaculture were the only practical way out of a food crisis. The holdouts were all English-speaking countries that export GMOs and promote " free trade " agreements that facilitate their own control of

2600-516: Is an important debate in ecological economics and the economics of sustainability. There is a continuum of views among economists between the strongly neoclassical positions of Robert Solow and Martin Weitzman , at one extreme and the 'entropy pessimists' , notably Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen and Herman Daly , at the other. Neoclassical economists tend to maintain that man-made capital can, in principle, replace all types of natural capital. This

2730-432: Is both a transdisciplinary and an interdisciplinary field of academic research addressing the interdependence and coevolution of human economies and natural ecosystems , both intertemporally and spatially. By treating the economy as a subsystem of Earth's larger ecosystem, and by emphasizing the preservation of natural capital , the field of ecological economics is differentiated from environmental economics , which

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2860-405: Is building a model of energy flow then certainly the Odum system should be given serious consideration... " In the 1990s in the latter part of his career, Odum and David M. Scienceman developed the idea of emergy as a specific use of the term embodied energy . Some consider the concept of "emergy", sometimes briefly defined as "energy memory", as one of Odum's more significant contributions, but

2990-508: Is degrowth economics. Degrowth addresses both biophysical limits and global inequality while rejecting neoliberal economics. Degrowth prioritizes grassroots initiatives in progressive socio-ecological goals, adhering to ecological limits by shrinking the human ecological footprint (See Differences from Mainstream Economics Below). It involves an equitable downscale in both production and consumption of resources in order to adhere to biophysical limits. Degrowth draws from Marxian economics , citing

3120-460: Is distinguishable from neoclassical economics primarily by its assertion that the economy is embedded within an environmental system. Ecology deals with the energy and matter transactions of life and the Earth, and the human economy is by definition contained within this system. Ecological economists argue that neoclassical economics has ignored the environment, at best considering it to be a subset of

3250-468: Is in nature is still uncertain, as it is a new concept. Such a consideration led Odum to ask two important methodological questions: For example, what is a diode in nature? One needs a diode to allow biomass to accumulate after the voltage of the sun has gone down, or else the circuit reverses. Higher organisms like fish are diodes. Silver Springs is a common type of spring-fed stream in Florida with

3380-417: Is known as the weak sustainability view, essentially that every technology can be improved upon or replaced by innovation, and that there is a substitute for any and all scarce materials. At the other extreme, the strong sustainability view argues that the stock of natural resources and ecological functions are irreplaceable. From the premises of strong sustainability, it follows that economic policy has

3510-444: Is not analyzable from a strictly economic standpoint and suggests an interdisciplinary approach combining social and natural sciences as a means to address this. When considering surplus energy, ecological economists state this could be used for activities that do not directly contribute to economic productivity but instead enhance societal and environmental well-being. This concept of dépense , as developed by Georges Bataille , offers

3640-577: Is not contained – the Stern report is an example. The disagreement has sparked a vigorous debate on issue of discounting and intergenerational equity. Mainstream economics has attempted to become a value-free ' hard science ', but ecological economists argue that value-free economics is generally not realistic. Ecological economics is more willing to entertain alternative conceptions of utility , efficiency , and cost-benefits such as positional analysis or multi-criteria analysis. Ecological economics

3770-466: Is not made. Food production may become a problem, as erosion , an impending water crisis , and soil salinity (from irrigation ) reduce the productivity of agriculture. Ecological economists argue that industrial agriculture , which exacerbates these problems, is not sustainable agriculture , and are generally inclined favorably to organic farming , which also reduces the output of carbon. Global wild fisheries are believed to have peaked and begun

3900-526: Is now known as ecosocialism . The antecedents of ecological economics can be traced back to the Romantics of the 19th century as well as some Enlightenment political economists of that era. Concerns over population were expressed by Thomas Malthus , while John Stuart Mill predicted the desirability of the stationary state of an economy . Mill thereby anticipated later insights of modern ecological economists, but without having had their experience of

4030-631: Is one illustration of this systems ecology approach. This holistic model development and simulation defines the system of interest, identifies the system's boundary, and diagrams how energy and material moves into, within, and out of, a system in order to identify how to use renewable resources through ecosystem processes and increase sustainability. The system it describes is a collection (i.e., group) of components (i.e., parts), connected by some type of interaction or interrelationship, that collectively responds to some stimulus or demand and fulfills some specific purpose or function. By understanding systems ecology

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4160-431: Is primarily focused on the natural environment and natural infrastructure, emphasizing the mediation of the relationship between people and planet. In complementary disciplines, civil engineering is primarily focused on built infrastructure and public works while environmental engineering focuses on the protection of public and environmental health through the treatment and management of waste streams. An academic curriculum

4290-425: Is related directly to well-being, focusing instead on biodiversity and creativity – or natural capital and individual capital , in the terminology sometimes adopted to describe these economically. In practice, ecological economics focuses primarily on the key issues of uneconomic growth and quality of life . Ecological economists are inclined to acknowledge that much of what is important in human well-being

4420-421: Is small relative to the natural sources but sufficient to produce large effects in the resulting patterns and processes." Ecological engineering as a practical field was developed by his former graduate student Bill Mitsch , who started and continues to edit the standard journal in the field and helped to start both international and U.S. societies devoted to ecological engineering, and has written two textbooks on

4550-439: Is that life is precious or priceless, but this demonstrably degrades to it being worthless within cost-benefit analysis and other standard economic methods. Reducing human bodies to financial values is a necessary part of mainstream economics and not always in the direct terms of insurance or wages . One example of this in practice is the value of a statistical life , which is a dollar value assigned to one life used to evaluate

4680-438: Is the mainstream economic analysis of the environment. One survey of German economists found that ecological and environmental economics are different schools of economic thought , with ecological economists emphasizing strong sustainability and rejecting the proposition that physical (human-made) capital can substitute for natural capital (see the section on weak versus strong sustainability below). Ecological economics

4810-404: Is then a concern that ecological economics has failed to learn from the extensive literature in environmental ethics about how to structure a plural value system. Resource and neoclassical economics focus primarily on the efficient allocation of resources and less on the two other problems of importance to ecological economics: distribution ( equity ), and the scale of the economy relative to

4940-538: Is to ground economic thinking and practice in physical reality, especially in the laws of physics (particularly the laws of thermodynamics ) and in knowledge of biological systems. It accepts as a goal the improvement of human well-being through development, and seeks to ensure achievement of this through planning for the sustainable development of ecosystems and societies. Of course the terms development and sustainable development are far from lacking controversy. Richard B. Norgaard argues traditional economics has hi-jacked

5070-429: Is typically viewed as economics for sustainable development , and may have goals similar to green politics . In international, regional, and national policy circles, the concept of the green economy grew in popularity as a response to the financial predicament at first then became a vehicle for growth and development. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) defines a 'green economy' as one that focuses on

5200-495: The Green Economy adherents robustly promote good governance. To boost local investments and foreign ventures, it is crucial to have a constant and foreseeable macroeconomic atmosphere. Likewise, such an environment will also need to be transparent and accountable. In the absence of a substantial and solid governance structure, the prospect of shifting towards a sustainable development route would be insignificant. In achieving

5330-904: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , where he published his first paper while still an undergraduate. His education was interrupted for three years by his World War II service with the Army Air Force in Puerto Rico and the Panama Canal Zone , where he worked as a tropical meteorologist . After the war, he returned to the University of North Carolina and completed his B.S. in zoology ( Phi Beta Kappa ) in 1947. In 1947, Odum married Virginia Wood, and they later had two children. After Wood's death in 1973, he married Elisabeth C. Odum (who had four children from her previous marriage) in 1974. Odum's advice on how to manage

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5460-513: The erosion control field: soil bioengineering and biotechnical engineering. However, ecological engineering should not be confused with ' biotechnology ' when describing genetic engineering at the cellular level, or ' bioengineering ' meaning construction of artificial body parts." The applications in ecological engineering can be classified into 3 spatial scales: 1) mesocosms (~0.1 to hundreds of meters); 2) ecosystems (~one to tens of km); and 3) regional systems (>tens of km). The complexity of

5590-411: The force-flux law , and that Ohm's law and passive electrical analog circuits can be used to simulate ecosystems. In this simulation, Odum attempted to derive an ecological analog for electrical voltage. Voltage, or driving force, is related to the biomass in pounds per acre. The analogous concept required is the biomass activity, that is, the thermodynamic thrust, which may be linear. Exactly what this

5720-557: The precautionary principle . As ecological economists try to minimize these potential disasters, calculating the fallout of environmental destruction becomes a humanitarian issue as well. Already, the Global South has seen trends of mass migration due to environmental changes. Climate refugees from the Global South are adversely affected by changes in the environment, and some scholars point to global wealth inequality within

5850-472: The trophic level , they are less efficient sources of food energy. Reduced consumption of meat would reduce the demand for food, but as nations develop, they tend to adopt high-meat diets similar to that of the United States. Genetically modified food (GMF) a conventional solution to the problem, presents numerous problems – Bt corn produces its own Bacillus thuringiensis toxin/protein, but

5980-412: The universal scientific language projects which have appeared throughout the history of natural philosophy. Kitching claimed that the language was a direct result of working with analogue computers, and reflected an electrical engineer's approach to the problem of system representation: "Because of its electrical analogy, the Odum system is relatively easy to turn into mathematical equations ... If one

6110-500: The 1950s Odum introduced his electrical circuit diagrams of ecosystems to the Ecological Society of America . He claimed that energy was driven through ecological systems by an "ecoforce" analogous to the role of voltage in electrical circuits. Odum developed an analogue of Ohm's Law which aimed to be a representation of energy flows through ecosystems. In terms of steady state thermodynamics, Ohm's Law can be considered

6240-620: The 1960s and 1970s, Odum was also chairman of the International Biological Program 's Tropical Biome planning committee. He was supported by large contracts with the United States Atomic Energy Commission , resulting in participation by nearly 100 scientists, who conducted radiation studies of a tropical rainforest. His featured project at University of Florida in the 1970s was on recycling treated sewage into cypress swamps. This

6370-589: The First and Second laws of thermodynamics , to determine how much energy is needed at each point in a system, and in what form that energy is a cost in various environmental issues. The energy accounting system keeps track of energy in, energy out, and non-useful energy versus work done , and transformations within the system. Scientists have written and speculated on different aspects of energy accounting. Ecological economists agree that ecosystems produce enormous flows of goods and services to human beings, playing

6500-519: The Odum's concept of emergy . His former students Bill Mitsch , Robert Costanza , and Karin Limburg are some former students who have been recognized internationally for their contributions to ecological engineering, ecological economics, ecosystem science, wetland ecology, estuarine ecology, ecological modeling, and related fields. Odum left a large legacy in many fields associated with ecology, systems, and energetics. He studied ecosystems all over

6630-501: The UN Sustainable Development Goals , with holistic projects such as stormwater management . Applications of ecological engineering in rural landscapes have included wetland treatment and community reforestation through traditional ecological knowledge . Permaculture is an example of broader applications that have emerged as distinct disciplines from ecological engineering, where David Holmgren cites

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6760-653: The US Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) published criteria for accreditation of Ecological Engineering program for the first time. To be accredited, B.S. Ecological Engineering programs must include: Howard T. Odum Howard Thomas Odum (September 1, 1924 – September 11, 2002), usually cited as H. T. Odum , was an American ecologist . He is known for his pioneering work on ecosystem ecology , and for his provocative proposals for additional laws of thermodynamics, informed by his work on general systems theory . Odum

6890-429: The above-mentioned factors easily benefits at least one other. For instance, photo voltaic (or solar) panels have a 15% efficiency when absorbing the sun's energy, but its construction demand has increased 120% within both commercial and residential properties. Additionally, this construction has led to a roughly 30% increase in work demands (Chen). The potential for the substitution of man-made capital for natural capital

7020-406: The concept is neither free from controversy nor without its critics. Odum looked at natural systems as being formed by the use of various forms of energy in the past: "emergy is a measure of energy used in the past and thus is different from a measure of energy now. The unit of emergy (past available energy use) is the emjoule, as distinguished from joules used for available energy remaining now." This

7150-583: The coral reefs and ocean ecology at Eniwetok atoll. The Odum brothers were approached by the Atomic Energy Commission to undertake a detailed study of the atoll after nuclear testing; the atoll was sufficiently radioactive that upon their arrival the Odums were able to produce an autoradiographic image of a coral head by placing it on photographic paper. These studies were early applications of energy concepts to ecological systems, and explored

7280-437: The costs and benefits (or profitability) of the various mechanisms for capturing and utilizing available energy to build biomass and do work. As a result, thermoeconomics is often discussed in the field of ecological economics, which itself is related to the fields of sustainability and sustainable development. Exergy analysis is performed in the field of industrial ecology to use energy more efficiently. The term exergy ,

7410-698: The costs of small changes in risk to life–such as exposure to one pollutant. Economics, in principle, assumes that conflict is reduced by agreeing on voluntary contractual relations and prices instead of simply fighting or coercing or tricking others into providing goods or services. In doing so, a provider agrees to surrender time and take bodily risks and other (reputation, financial) risks. Ecosystems are no different from other bodies economically except insofar as they are far less replaceable than typical labour or commodities. Despite these issues, many ecologists and conservation biologists are pursuing ecosystem valuation . Biodiversity measures in particular appear to be

7540-530: The current neoliberal economic system as a source of this issue. The most cogent example of how the different theories treat similar assets is tropical rainforest ecosystems, most obviously the Yasuni region of Ecuador . While this area has substantial deposits of bitumen it is also one of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth and some estimates establish it has over 200 undiscovered medical substances in its genomes – most of which would be destroyed by logging

7670-798: The design likely increases with the spatial scale. Applications are increasing in breadth and depth, and likely impacting the field's definition, as more opportunities to design and use ecosystems as interfaces between society and nature are explored. Implementation of ecological engineering has focused on the creation or restoration of ecosystems, from degraded wetlands to multi-celled tubs and greenhouses that integrate microbial, fish, and plant services to process human wastewater into products such as fertilizers, flowers, and drinking water . Applications of ecological engineering in cities have emerged from collaboration with other fields such as landscape architecture , urban planning , and urban horticulture , to address human health and biodiversity, as targeted by

7800-480: The design of Biosphere 2 . Ecological economics is an active field between economics and ecology with annual conferences, international societies, and an international journal. From 1956 to 1963, Odum worked as Director of the Marine Institute of the University of Texas. During this time Odum became aware of the interplay of ecological-energetic and economic forces. He therefore funded the research into

7930-435: The design should identify constraints, characterize solutions in ecological time, and incorporate ecological economics in design evaluation. Economics of ecological engineering has been demonstrated using energy principles for a wetland., and using nutrient valuation for a dairy farm. With these principals in mind, the world's first B.S. Ecological Engineering program was formalized in 2009 at Oregon State University . In 2024,

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8060-554: The design solutions are considered in ecological time. In selecting between alternatives, the design should incorporate ecological economics in design evaluation and acknowledge a guiding value system which promotes biological conservation, benefiting society and nature. Ecological engineering utilizes systems ecology with engineering design to obtain a holistic view of the interactions within and between society and nature. Ecosystem simulation with Energy Systems Language (also known as energy circuit language or energese) by Howard Odum

8190-462: The development and modern history of ecological economics and explain its differentiation from resource and environmental economics, as well as some of the controversy between American and European schools of thought. An article by Robert Costanza , David Stern, Lining He, and Chunbo Ma responded to a call by Mick Common to determine the foundational literature of ecological economics by using citation analysis to examine which books and articles have had

8320-516: The development terminology in his book Development Betrayed . Well-being in ecological economics is also differentiated from welfare as found in mainstream economics and the 'new welfare economics' from the 1930s which informs resource and environmental economics. This entails a limited preference utilitarian conception of value i.e., Nature is valuable to our economies, that is because people will pay for its services such as clean air, clean water, encounters with wilderness, etc. Ecological economics

8450-451: The ecological engineer can more efficiently design with ecosystem components and processes within the design, utilize renewable energy and resources, and increase sustainability. Mitsch and Jorgensen identified five Functional Classes for ecological engineering designs: Mitsch and Jorgensen identified 19 Design Principles for ecological engineering, yet not all are expected to contribute to any single design: Mitsch and Jorgensen identified

8580-418: The ecological footprint of human interactions in the economy. This footprint is measured by the impact of human activities on natural resources and the waste generated in the process. Ecological economists aim to minimize the ecological footprint, taking into account the scarcity of global and regional resources and their accessibility to an economy. Some ecological economists prioritise adding natural capital to

8710-666: The economy as pollution and waste. The potential of an environment to provide services and materials is referred to as an "environment's source function", and this function is depleted as resources are consumed or pollution contaminates the resources. The "sink function" describes an environment's ability to absorb and render harmless waste and pollution: when waste output exceeds the limit of the sink function, long-term damage occurs. Some persistent pollutants, such as some organic pollutants and nuclear waste are absorbed very slowly or not at all; ecological economists emphasize minimizing "cumulative pollutants". Pollutants affect human health and

8840-634: The ecosystem. This train of thought respects physical bio-limits and non-human species, pursuing equity and social justice through direct democracy and grassroots leadership. Social well-being is paired with spiritual, physical, and material well-being. These movements are unique to their region, but the values can be seen across the globe in indigenous traditions, such as the Ubuntu Philosophy in South Africa. Ecological economics differs from mainstream economics in that it heavily reflects on

8970-507: The ecosystems upon which it relies. Ecological economics makes a clear distinction between growth (quantitative increase in economic output) and development (qualitative improvement of the quality of life ), while arguing that neoclassical economics confuses the two. Ecological economists point out that beyond modest levels, increased per-capita consumption (the typical economic measure of "standard of living") may not always lead to improvement in human well-being, but may have harmful effects on

9100-499: The efficient use of resources. Mitsch and Jorgensen summarized five basic concepts that differentiate ecological engineering from other approaches to addressing problems to benefit society and nature: 1) it is based on the self-designing capacity of ecosystems ; 2) it can be the field (or acid) test of ecological theories; 3) it relies on system approaches; 4) it conserves non-renewable energy sources; and 5) it supports ecosystem and biological conservation . Mitsch and Jorgensen were

9230-505: The end of the 1960s, Odum's electronic circuit ecological simulation models were replaced by a more general set of energy symbols. When combined to form systems diagrams, these symbols were considered by Odum and others to be the language of the macroscope which could portray generalized patterns of energy flow: "Describing such patterns and reducing ecosystem complexities to flows of energy, Odum believed, would permit discovery of general ecosystem principles." Some have attempted to link it with

9360-486: The energy input of sun and rain, and of all organic matter - even those of the bread the tourists threw to the ducks and fish - and then measured the energy that gradually left the spring. In this way he was able to establish the stream's energy budget." Around 1955 Odum directed studies into radioecology , which included the effects of radiation on the tropical rainforest in El Verde, Puerto Rico (Odum and Pidgeon), and

9490-634: The environment and broader societal well-being. This situation is sometimes referred to as uneconomic growth (see diagram above). Ecological economics challenges the conventional approach towards natural resources, claiming that it undervalues natural capital by considering it as interchangeable with human-made capital—labor and technology. The impending depletion of natural resources and increase of climate-changing greenhouse gasses should motivate us to examine how political, economic and social policies can benefit from alternative energy. Shifting dependence on fossil fuels with specific interest within just one of

9620-420: The environment, into three main categories. These are the mainstream new resource economists, the new environmental pragmatists, and the more radical social ecological economists. International survey work comparing the relevance of the categories for mainstream and heterodox economists shows some clear divisions between environmental and ecological economists. A growing field of radical social-ecological theory

9750-556: The exception of Daly. In 1987, Daly and Costanza edited an issue of Ecological Modeling to test the waters. A book entitled Ecological Economics , by Joan Martinez Alier , was published later that year. Alier renewed interest in the approach developed by Otto Neurath during the interwar period . The year 1989 saw the foundation of the International Society for Ecological Economics and publication of its journal, Ecological Economics , by Elsevier . Robert Costanza

9880-432: The feedback loops in ecosystems were, for Odum, analogous to the kinds of feedback loops diagrammed in electronic circuits and cybernetic systems. This approach represented the migration of cybernetic ideas into ecology and led to the formulation of systems ecology. In Odum's work these concepts form part of what Hagen called an, "ambitious and idiosyncratic attempt to create a universal science of systems". Hagen identified

10010-594: The field. Some are close to resource and environmental economics while others are far more heterodox in outlook. An example of the latter is the European Society for Ecological Economics . An example of the former is the Swedish Beijer International Institute of Ecological Economics. Clive Spash has argued for the classification of the ecological economics movement, and more generally work by different economic schools on

10140-406: The first serious disagreement in systems energetics. In a controversial move, Odum and Richard Pinkerton (at the time physicist at the University of Florida) were motivated by Alfred J. Lotka 's articles on the energetics of evolution, and subsequently proposed the theory that natural systems tend to operate at an efficiency that produces the maximum power output, not the maximum efficiency. By

10270-429: The first to define ecological engineering as designing societal services such that they benefit society and nature, and later noted the design should be systems based, sustainable, and integrate society with its natural environment. Bergen et al. defined ecological engineering as: 1) utilizing ecological science and theory; 2) applying to all types of ecosystems; 3) adapting engineering design methods; and 4) acknowledging

10400-443: The first to discuss the use of ecosystems for life-support function in space travel. Some have suggested that Odum was technocratic in orientation, while others believe that he sided with those calling for "new values". In his 1950 Ph.D. thesis, Odum gave a novel definition of ecology as the study of large entities (ecosystems) at the "natural level of integration". In the traditional role of an ecologist, one of Odum's doctoral aims

10530-516: The following considerations prior implementing an ecological engineering design: The field of Ecological Engineering is closely related to the fields of environmental engineering and civil engineering . The three broadly overlap in the area of water resources engineering, particularly the treatment and management of stormwater and wastewater . While the three disciplines of engineering are closely related to one another, there are distinct areas of expertise within each field. Ecological engineering

10660-494: The forest or mining the bitumen. Effectively, the instructional capital of the genomes is undervalued by analyses that view the rainforest primarily as a source of wood, oil/tar and perhaps food. Increasingly the carbon credit for leaving the extremely carbon-intensive ("dirty") bitumen in the ground is also valued – the government of Ecuador set a price of US$ 350M for an oil lease with the intent of selling it to someone committed to never exercising it at all and instead preserving

10790-483: The global ecosystem in 1997. Initially published in Nature , the article concluded on $ 33 trillion with a range from $ 16 trillion to $ 54 trillion (in 1997, total global GDP was $ 27 trillion). Half of the value went to nutrient cycling . The open oceans, continental shelves, and estuaries had the highest total value, and the highest per-hectare values went to estuaries, swamps/floodplains, and seagrass/algae beds. The work

10920-412: The green economy denote a fundamental shift for more effective, resourceful, environment-friendly and resource‐saving technologies that could lessen emissions and alleviate the adverse consequences of climate change , at the same time confront issues about resource exhaustion and grave environmental dilapidation. As an indispensable requirement and vital precondition to realizing sustainable development,

11050-447: The growth of efficient systems as the alienation of nature and man. Economic movements like degrowth reject the idea of growth itself. Some degrowth theorists call for an "exit of the economy". Critics of the degrowth movement include new resource economists, who point to the gaining momentum of sustainable development. These economists highlight the positive aspects of a green economy, which include equitable access to renewable energy and

11180-408: The health of the ecosystem. The economic value of natural capital and ecosystem services is accepted by mainstream environmental economics, but is emphasized as especially important in ecological economics. Ecological economists may begin by estimating how to maintain a stable environment before assessing the cost in dollar terms. Ecological economist Robert Costanza led an attempted valuation of

11310-409: The human aspects and natural influences and an economic order that can generate high-salary jobs. In 2011, its definition was further developed as the word 'green' is made to refer to an economy that is not only resourceful and well-organized but also impartial, guaranteeing an objective shift to an economy that is low-carbon, resource-efficient, and socially-inclusive . The ideas and studies regarding

11440-555: The human economy. The neoclassical view ignores much of what the natural sciences have taught us about the contributions of nature to the creation of wealth e.g., the planetary endowment of scarce matter and energy, along with the complex and biologically diverse ecosystems that provide goods and ecosystem services directly to human communities: micro- and macro-climate regulation, water recycling, water purification, storm water regulation, waste absorption, food and medicine production, pollination, protection from solar and cosmic radiation,

11570-489: The implications of the laws of thermodynamics when used in these new settings. From this view, biogeochemical cycles are driven by radiant energy . Odum expressed the balance between energy input and output as the ratio of production ( P ) to respiration ( R ): P-R . He classified water bodies based on their P-R ratios, which separated autotrophic from heterotrophic ecosystems: "[Odum's] measurements of flowing water metabolism were measurements of whole systems. Odum

11700-435: The influence of Howard Odum in development of permaculture. Ecological engineering design will combine systems ecology with the process of engineering design . Engineering design typically involves problem formulation (goal), problem analysis (constraints), alternative solutions search, decision among alternatives, and specification of a complete solution. A temporal design framework is provided by Matlock et al., stating

11830-432: The instrumentalism of shallow ecology and the environmental economists commodification of everything external to the market system. A simple circular flow of income diagram is replaced in ecological economics by a more complex flow diagram reflecting the input of solar energy, which sustains natural inputs and environmental services which are then used as units of production . Once consumed, natural inputs pass out of

11960-416: The last published General Systems Yearbook. The second, revised edition of his major lifework was retitled Ecological and General Systems: An Introduction to Systems Ecology (1994). Some of his energy models and simulations contained general systems components. Odum has been described as a "technocratic optimist", and his approach was significantly influenced by his father, who was also an advocate of viewing

12090-473: The most influence on the development of the field. However, citations analysis has itself proven controversial and similar work has been criticized by Clive Spash for attempting to pre-determine what is regarded as influential in ecological economics through study design and data manipulation. In addition, the journal Ecological Economics has itself been criticized for swamping the field with mainstream economics. Various competing schools of thought exist in

12220-556: The most promising way to reconcile financial and ecological values, and there are many active efforts in this regard. The growing field of biodiversity finance began to emerge in 2008 in response to many specific proposals such as the Ecuadoran Yasuni proposal or similar ones in the Congo . US news outlets treated the stories as a "threat" to "drill a park" reflecting a previously dominant view that NGOs and governments had

12350-403: The pest resistance is believed to be only a matter of time. Global warming is now widely acknowledged as a major issue, with all national scientific academies expressing agreement on the importance of the issue. As the population growth intensifies and energy demand increases, the world faces an energy crisis . Some economists and scientists forecast a global ecological crisis if energy use

12480-497: The prevailing belief of the economy as a perpetual motion machine, capable of generating infinite wealth—a criticism expanded upon by later ecological economists such as Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen and Herman Daly. European predecessors of ecological economics include K. William Kapp (1950) Karl Polanyi (1944), and Romanian economist Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen (1971). Georgescu-Roegen, who would later mentor Herman Daly at Vanderbilt University , provided ecological economics with

12610-472: The primary responsibility to protect ecosystems. However Peter Barnes and other commentators have recently argued that a guardianship/trustee/commons model is far more effective and takes the decisions out of the political realm. Commodification of other ecological relations as in carbon credit and direct payments to farmers to preserve ecosystem services are likewise examples that enable private parties to play more direct roles protecting biodiversity, but

12740-401: The production of coal, oil and gas has declined over time as the easiest to produce sources have been most heavily depleted. In traditional energy economics, surplus energy is often seen as something to be capitalized on—either by storing for future use or by converting it into economic growth. Ecological economics generally rejects the view of energy economics that growth in the energy supply

12870-402: The rainforest. While this natural capital and ecosystems services approach has proven popular amongst many it has also been contested as failing to address the underlying problems with mainstream economics, growth, market capitalism and monetary valuation of the environment. Critiques concern the need to create a more meaningful relationship with Nature and the non-human world than evident in

13000-546: The rest of their lives. For Howard, his energy systems language (which he called "energese") was itself a collaborative tool. From 1956 to 1963, Odum worked as the director of the Marine Institute of the University of Texas . During this time, he became aware of the interplay of ecological-energetic and economic forces. He taught in the Department of Zoology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and

13130-431: The scope and generality of natural selection to include large entities such as the world. This extension relied on the definition of an entity as a combination of properties that have some stability with time. Odum's approach was motivated by Lotka 's idea's on the energetics of evolution. Odum used an analog of electrical energy networks to model the energy flow pathways of ecosystems. His analog electrical models had

13260-468: The sectors. Simultaneously, the educational system needs to be assessed as well in order to fit in the environmental and social considerations of various disciplines. Among the topics addressed by ecological economics are methodology, allocation of resources, weak versus strong sustainability, energy economics, energy accounting and balance, environmental services, cost shifting, modeling, and monetary policy. A primary objective of ecological economics (EE)

13390-516: The separability of economic values from scientific research, contending that economics is unavoidably normative , i.e. prescriptive, rather than positive or descriptive. Positional analysis, which attempts to incorporate time and justice issues, is proposed as an alternative. Ecological economics shares several of its perspectives with feminist economics , including the focus on sustainability, nature, justice and care values. Karl Marx also commented on relationship between capital and ecology, what

13520-546: The social and ecological costs of the Post–World War II economic expansion . In 1880, Marxian economist Sergei Podolinsky attempted to theorize a labor theory of value based on embodied energy ; his work was read and critiqued by Marx and Engels . Otto Neurath developed an ecological approach based on a natural economy whilst employed by the Bavarian Soviet Republic in 1919. He argued that

13650-401: The social world through the various lenses of physical science. Within the processes on earth, Odum (1989) believed humans play a central role: he said that the "human is the biosphere's programmatic and pragmatic information processor for maximum performance". Odum wrote around 15 books and 300 papers, and a Festschrift volume ( Maximum Power: The Ideas and Applications of H. T. Odum , 1995)

13780-651: The station. Odum's students have furthered his work at institutions around the world, most notably Mark Brown at the University of Florida , David Tilley and Patrick Kangas at the University of Maryland , Daniel Campbell at the United States Environmental Protection Agency , Enrique Ortega at the UNICAMP in Brazil , and Sergio Ulgiati at the University of Siena . Work done at these institutions continues to evolve and propagate

13910-773: The study of the coral reef on Eniwetok Atoll . Odum also received the French Prix de Vie, and the Crafoord Prize of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, considered the Nobel equivalent for bioscience. Charles A. S. Hall described Odum as one of the most innovative and important thinkers of the time. Hall noted that Odum, either alone or with his brother Eugene, received essentially all international prizes awarded to ecologists. The only higher education institute to award honorary degrees to both Odum brothers

14040-582: The subject One of Odum's last papers was his assessment of ecological engineering that was published in the journal Ecological Engineering in 2003, a year after Odum died. In 1991, Odum was elected the 30th president of the International Society for the Systems Sciences, formerly named the International Society for General Systems Research. He presented many papers on the general systems theory at its annual conferences, and edited

14170-522: The systems, thinking of Odum as a form of holistic thinking, who contrasted the holistic thinking of systems science with reductionistic microscopic thinking, and used the term macroscope to refer to the holistic view, which was a kind of "detail eliminator" allowing a simple diagram to be created. Odum was a pioneer in his use of small closed and open ecosystems in classroom teaching, which were often constructed from fish tanks or bottles and have been called microcosms . His microcosm studies influenced

14300-644: The typical capital asset analysis of land, labor, and financial capital. These ecological economists use tools from mathematical economics , as in mainstream economics, but may apply them more closely to the natural world. Whereas mainstream economists tend to be technological optimists, ecological economists are inclined to be technological sceptics. They reason that the natural world has a limited carrying capacity and that its resources may run out. Since destruction of important environmental resources could be practically irreversible and catastrophic, ecological economists are inclined to justify cautionary measures based on

14430-453: The use of conventional economic approaches to quantify dollar values of ecological resources for recreational, treatment and other uses. This research calculated the potential value of primary production per bay surface area. For Hall the importance of Odum's work came through his integration of systems, ecology, and energy with economics, together with Odum's view that economics can be evaluated on objective terms such as energy rather than on

14560-458: The view of a starry night sky, etc. There has then been a move to regard such things as natural capital and ecosystems functions as goods and services. However, this is far from uncontroversial within ecology or ecological economics due to the potential for narrowing down values to those found in mainstream economics and the danger of merely regarding Nature as a commodity. This has been referred to as ecologists 'selling out on Nature'. There

14690-431: The western development model of economics. Meaning G ood Life , Buen Vivir emphasizes harmony with nature, diverse pluralculturism, coexistence, and inseparability of nature and material. Value is not attributed to material accumulation, and it instead takes a more spiritual and communitarian approach to economic activity. Ecological Swaraj originated out of India, and is an evolving world view of human interactions within

14820-584: The world have begun to be included as ecological economic practices. E.F. Schumacher introduced examples of non-western economic ideas to mainstream thought in his book, Small is Beautiful , where he addresses neoliberal economics through the lens of natural harmony in Buddhist economics . This emphasis on natural harmony is witnessed in diverse cultures across the globe. Buen Vivir is a traditional socio-economic movement in South America that rejects

14950-399: The world, and pioneered the study of several areas, some of which are now distinct fields of research. According to Hall (1995, p.ix), Odum published one of the first significant papers in each of the following areas: Odum's contributions to these and other areas are summarized below. Odum also wrote on radiation ecology, systems ecology , unified science, and the microcosm . He was one of

15080-453: Was proposed for ecological engineering in 2001. Key elements of the suggested curriculum are: environmental engineering ; systems ecology ; restoration ecology ; ecological modeling ; quantitative ecology; economics of ecological engineering, and technical electives . Complementing this set of courses were prerequisites courses in physical, biological, and chemical subject areas, and integrated design experiences. According to Matlock et al.,

15210-467: Was Ohio State University, which honored Howard in 1995 and Euene in 1999. Odum's contributions to ecosystems ecology have been recognized by the Mars Society , who named their experimental station the "H. T. Odum Greenhouse" at the suggestion of his former student Patrick Kangas. Kangas and his student, David Blersch, made significant contributions to the design of the waste water recycling system on

15340-425: Was coined by Zoran Rant in 1956, but the concept was developed by J. Willard Gibbs . In recent decades, utilization of exergy has spread outside of physics and engineering to the fields of industrial ecology, ecological economics, systems ecology , and energetics . An energy balance can be used to track energy through a system, and is a very useful tool for determining resource use and environmental impacts, using

15470-432: Was conceived as a principle of maximum empower , which might explain the evolution of self-organising open systems. However, the principle has only been demonstrated in a few experiments and is not widely recognized in the scientific community. For J. B. Hagen, the maximum power principle, and the stability principle could be easily translated into the language of homeostasis and cybernetics systems. Hagen claims that

15600-640: Was criticized by articles in Ecological Economics Volume 25, Issue 1, but the critics acknowledged the positive potential for economic valuation of the global ecosystem. The Earth's carrying capacity is a central issue in ecological economics. Early economists such as Thomas Malthus pointed out the finite carrying capacity of the earth, which was also central to the MIT study Limits to Growth . Diminishing returns suggest that productivity increases will slow if major technological progress

15730-758: Was founded in the 1980s as a modern discipline on the works of and interactions between various European and American academics (see the section on History and development below). The related field of green economics is in general a more politically applied form of the subject. According to ecological economist Malte Michael Faber  [ de ] , ecological economics is defined by its focus on nature, justice, and time. Issues of intergenerational equity , irreversibility of environmental change, uncertainty of long-term outcomes, and sustainable development guide ecological economic analysis and valuation. Ecological economists have questioned fundamental mainstream economic approaches such as cost-benefit analysis , and

15860-421: Was measuring the community as a system, not adding up the metabolism of the components as Lindeman and many others had done". This reasoning appears to have followed that of Odum's doctoral supervisor, G. E. Hutchinson, who thought that if a community were an organism then it must have a form of metabolism. However, Golley notes that Odum attempted to go beyond the reporting of mere ratios, a move which resulted in

15990-569: Was one of the first projects to explore the now widespread approach of using wetlands as water quality improvement ecosystems. This is one of his most important contributions to the beginnings of the field of ecological engineering. In his last years, Odum was Graduate Research Professor Emeritus and Director of the Center for Environmental Policy. He was an avid birdwatcher in both his professional and personal life. The Ecological Society awarded Odum its Mercer Award to recognize his contributions to

16120-576: Was one of the professors in the new curriculum of Marine Sciences until 1970. That year he moved to the University of Florida, where he taught in the Environmental Engineering Sciences Department, founded and directed the Center for Environmental Policy, and founded the university's Center for Wetlands in 1973; it was the first center of its kind in the world that is still in operation today. Odum continued this work for 26 years until his retirement in 1996. In

16250-856: Was published in honor of his work. Odum was also honored by the journal Ecological Engineering for his contributions to the field of ecological engineering and general ecology in recognition of his 70th birthday. The publication included over 25 letters from distinguished scientists from all over the world including Mitsch (lead editorial), John Allen, Robert Ulanowitcz, Robert Beyers, Ariel Lugo, Marth Gilliland, Sandra Brown, Ramon Margalef, Paul Risser , Eugene Odum, Kathy Ewel, Kenneth Watt, Pat Kangas, Sven Jørgensen, Bob Knight, Rusong Wang, John Teal, Frank Golley, AnnMari and Bengt-Owe Jansson, Joan Browder, Carl Folke, Richard Wiegert, Scott Nixon , Gene Turner, John Todd, and James Zuchetto. Ecological economics Organizations: Ecological economics , bioeconomics , ecolonomy , eco-economics , or ecol-econ

16380-545: Was published just a few years before the first edition of Herman Daly 's comprehensive and persuasive Steady-State Economics (1977). The first organized meetings of ecological economists occurred in the 1980s. These began in 1982, at the instigation of Lois Banner, with a meeting held in Sweden (including Robert Costanza , Herman Daly , Charles Hall , Bruce Hannon, H.T. Odum , and David Pimentel). Most were ecosystem ecologists or mainstream environmental economists, with

16510-531: Was the first president of the society and first editor of the journal, which is currently edited by Richard Howarth. Other figures include ecologists C.S. Holling and H.T. Odum , biologist Gretchen Daily, and physicist Robert Ayres . In the Marxian tradition, sociologist John Bellamy Foster and CUNY geography professor David Harvey explicitly center ecological concerns in political economy . Articles by Inge Ropke (2004, 2005) and Clive Spash (1999) cover

16640-598: Was the third child of Howard W. Odum , an American sociologist , and his wife, Anna Louise (née Kranz) Odum (1888–1965). He was the younger brother of Eugene Odum . Their father "encouraged his sons to go into science and to develop new techniques to contribute to social progress ". Howard learned his early scientific lessons about (a) birds from his brother, (b) fish and the philosophy of biology while working after school for marine zoologist Robert Coker, and (c) electrical circuits from The Boy Electrician (1929) by Alfred Powell Morgan . Howard Thomas studied biology at

16770-408: Was to recognize and classify large cyclic entities (ecosystems). However, another one of his aims was to make predictive generalizations about ecosystems, such as the whole world for example. For Odum, as a large entity, the world constituted a revolving cycle with high stability . It was the presence of stability, which Odum believed enabled him to talk about the teleology of such systems . While he

16900-462: Was writing his thesis, Odum felt that the principle of natural selection was more than empirical , because it had a teleological, "stability over time" component. As an ecologist interested in the behavior and function of large entities over time, Odum sought to give a more general statement of natural selection so that it was equally applicable to large entities as it was to small entities traditionally studied in biology. Odum also wanted to extend

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