Modernism, environmental assessment and the sustainability argument : moving towards a new approach to project-based decision-making in South Africa

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Through my research I have developed an alternative conceptual approach to project-levelenvironmental assessment in South Africa, which begins to move beyond modernism in itsphilosophical, procedural and substantive aspects. This approach draws on the ideas of certainradical philosophers, and three innovative thinkers, namely: Bent Flyvbjerg, Amartya Sen and PaulCilliers.The overall purpose of project-level environmental assessment (i.e. Environmental ImpactAssessment (EIA)) is to predict the impacts on the environment of proposed development, and torecommend ways to mitigate its negative consequences and enhance its positive effects. However,there are a number of recurring problems in the practice of EIA which include: achieving interdisciplinarityin the assessment process; effectively undertaking stakeholder engagement; andaccurately predicting the impacts of proposed developments. Addressing uncertainty andadequately considering the implications of cumulative and social impacts are also often poorlyaddressed in environmental assessment procedures.In this thesis, I describe these problems as symptomatic of the modernist roots of environmentalassessment, an argument, or similar, which has been made by others in related domains (e.g.philosophy), as well as in the international field of environmental assessment itself. I identify thefollowing three main problematic assumptions of the modern worldview that are currentlyconstraining the effectiveness of this field:A system can be understood by observing the behaviour of its parts;All processes flow along linear, deterministic, predictable and orderly paths; and Technical, objective, natural science-based information and processes are separatefrom, and superior to, non-technical, subjective, and value-based information andprocesses.Drawing on my investigation of the core ideas of radical ecologists and of the work of BentFlyvbjerg, Amartya Sen and Paul Cilliers, I challenge the modernist assumptions listed above andpropose an alternative conceptual approach to environmental assessment, which involves theformulation of a 'sustainability argument'. I explain the philosophical tenets (for example, humansand nature are seen as part of an interrelated social-ecological system) and general principles onwhich this approach rests (for example, the normative nature of all knowledge of social-ecologicalsystems should be recognised), as well as its key characteristics (for example, the team thatundertakes the study should comprise disciplinary specialists, key stakeholders and at least one'sustainability practitioner' who coordinates the development of the argument). These tenets,principles and characteristics are designed to guide the development of context-specific processes,for the formulation of a sustainability argument that informs project-level development decisionmaking.The 'sustainability argument' approach moves beyond the human-nature (or developmentenvironment)divide inherent in current environmental assessment, in which the impact of theformer on the latter is determined. The focus is shifted to understanding how the social-ecologicalsystem is likely to alter, under different conditions, as a result of the proposed development, whichis seen as a potential change in the system. In addition, the way in which the social-ecologicalsystem is likely to affect the implementation of this change is described. These effects areevaluated in relation to contextually defined sustainability values, which are identified by keystakeholders through a participatory process, and guided by the principles proposed as part of thesustainability argument approach. The principles include a view of humans and nature as part ofan interrelated social-ecological system in which diversity, both human and natural, is valued as apre-requisite to sustainability. Human needs are defined beyond the provision of basic goods andservices, to include the promotion and enhancement of the valuable functionings and capabilitiesof an individual, as described by Sen (1988b). Nature is valued, not only for its role in enabling theachievement of these functionings and capabilities, but also for the fact of its existence, as part ofthe overall social-ecological system.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University