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  • © 2016

Environmental Heresies

The Quest for Reasonable

Palgrave Macmillan
  • Motivates readers to shift environmental discourse from ideology and narrow disciplinary paradigms to a more direct focus on what to do
  • Makes the case for a broader approach to environmental issues, moving beyond economics and scientific reductionism
  • Treats action as the focal point of reason and knowledge and emphasizes giving reasons for actions

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Table of contents (12 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xi
  2. The Consequences of Pragmatism

    • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
    Pages 1-20
  3. The Landscape Ahead

    • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
    Pages 21-31
  4. Concepts and Concerns

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 33-33
    2. The Nature of Nature

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 35-54
    3. Environmental Governance

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 55-71
    4. Stakeholders

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 73-90
  5. Practices and Problems

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 91-91
    2. The Climate Problem

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 93-113
    3. Paying for Ecosystem Services

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 115-140
    4. The Biodiversity Problem

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 141-161
    5. The Problematic Wolf

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 163-188
    6. The Ocean Fisheries Problem

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 189-214
    7. The Deforestation Problem

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 215-228
    8. Toward the Reasonable

      • Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley
      Pages 229-245
  6. Back Matter

    Pages 247-255

About this book

This book systematically deconstructs the pervasive and counter-productive discourse surrounding environmental policy. The authors argue that environmental policy problems are always framed such that conflict is inevitable—a particular project or policy must be accepted versus a specific environmental asset that must be protected. Over the course of 12 chapters, the authors demonstrate that confident yet contradictory assertions by contending interests preclude necessary deliberation and reason giving. They argue that deliberation is an important social process of reflecting upon the reasons for doing something. Their innovative approach allows discourse and collaboration to continue, until—after honest and informed deliberation—the better way forward is arrived at. This approach to environmental policy illustrates just how very constructive and enabling the quest for the reasonable can be.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Natural Resources Institute Finland, Finland, Finland

    Juha Hiedanpää

  • University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, USA

    Daniel W. Bromley

About the authors

Juha Hiedanpää is Research Professor in Natural Resource Policy at the Natural Resources Institute Finland. He has published widely on biodiversity policy, institutional change, and policy design from the bottom up. 


Daniel W. Bromley is Anderson-Bascom Professor Emeritus of Applied Economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has published extensively on environmental economics, international development, and the institutional foundations of the economy. His recent books include Environment and Economy: Property Rights and Public Policy, and Sufficient Reason: Volitional Pragmatism and the Meaning of Economic Institutions.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Environmental Heresies

  • Book Subtitle: The Quest for Reasonable

  • Authors: Juha Hiedanpää, Daniel W. Bromley

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-60083-7

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan London

  • eBook Packages: Economics and Finance, Economics and Finance (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2016

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-137-60082-0Published: 21 November 2016

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-1-349-95614-2Published: 30 April 2018

  • eBook ISBN: 978-1-137-60083-7Published: 17 October 2016

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XI, 255

  • Number of Illustrations: 8 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Environmental Economics, Environmental Policy, Environmental Politics, Pragmatism

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 89.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access