New Ecological Paradigm

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In the article A New Ecological Paradigm for Post-Exuberant Sociology written by William Catton and Riley Dunlap (1980), three worldwide viewpoints presented are the dominant western worldview (DWW), human exemptionalism paradigm (HEP), and new ecological paradigm (NEP). Of these three distinctive models, the book Sensing changes by Joy Parr fits the description of the NEP. In the article, NEP explains the assumptions about the nature of human beings as one of many species interdependently involved in the global ecosystem. It is distinct from the other paradigms by examining relationships between social and environmental variables, which are relevant for understanding human behavior and social organization, examined by environmental sociologists. …show more content…

Each chapter in this book is an introduction to the new media project associated specifically with that chapter’s site of study. In her view, nature is top priority, history aims to foster work that improves technology, and society is an essential concern. The assumptions on social causation state that human affairs are influences not only by social and cultural factors, but also by cause and effect as well as feedback in the web of nature. Parr explains that every negative and traumatic situation a person experiences, they begin to loss sight of their who they are and where they are from. Parr goes into more detail, exemplifying Arrow Lakes and the damming of the Columbia as a method to prove her point. Unfortunately, in such an industrialized and colonized environment, many people described losing their sense of place and their sense of self (Parr, 132). The NEP believes humans live in and are dependent on a finite biophysical environment, which imposes potent restraints on human affairs. As outlined by the NEP, the issue of constraints on human society expressed as ecological laws cannot be repealed, even though inventiveness of humans continue to test carrying capacity limits. In this case, the NEP is focusing on the long-term perspective on human societies to hopefully reach a stable and sustainable future. Overall, the idea here is that human life is not measured only in years, but through senses and emotions gathered to form a unique identity on this planet. As a result, Parr challenges the reader to understand whether humanity is able to learn from the past, meet the needs of the present generation and avoid issues in the