Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology Volume 1
- The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Introduction
- Part I Theory in Environmental Sociology
- Part II The Economy and Environmental Sociology
- Part III Culture and Environmental Sociology
- Part IV Politics, Power, State
- 17 Conflicting Environmental Imaginaries in Post-Apartheid South Africa
- 18 The Growth in International Audit Culture: Achieving Agricultural Sustainability Inside a World of Measures?
- 19 Political Ecologies of State Land Management
- 20 Green Crime and the Treadmill of Production
- 21 Governing Science and Technology: From the Linear Model to Responsible Research and Innovation
- 22 The Paradox of Public Knowledge in Environmental Sociology
- 23 Relational Resilience and the Making of Diverse Worlds
- Part V Social Justice
- Index
- References
22 - The Paradox of Public Knowledge in Environmental Sociology
from Part IV - Politics, Power, State
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 November 2020
Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology Volume 1
- The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Introduction
- Part I Theory in Environmental Sociology
- Part II The Economy and Environmental Sociology
- Part III Culture and Environmental Sociology
- Part IV Politics, Power, State
- 17 Conflicting Environmental Imaginaries in Post-Apartheid South Africa
- 18 The Growth in International Audit Culture: Achieving Agricultural Sustainability Inside a World of Measures?
- 19 Political Ecologies of State Land Management
- 20 Green Crime and the Treadmill of Production
- 21 Governing Science and Technology: From the Linear Model to Responsible Research and Innovation
- 22 The Paradox of Public Knowledge in Environmental Sociology
- 23 Relational Resilience and the Making of Diverse Worlds
- Part V Social Justice
- Index
- References
Summary
The problem of public knowledge is rooted in the tension between technocracy and populism. Public knowledge is important to the proper functioning of democracy, but knowledge associated with the public is frequently dismissed and devalued in policy-making contexts. Because encounters between democracy and expertise are a common part of environmental politics and environmental discourse, the problem of public knowledge is endemic to environmental sociology. The first section of this chapter draws on political theory to explore how and why public knowledge is important for democracy. The second section draws on the philosophy of science as well as the broader field of science and technology studies (STS) to explore how and why public knowledge is devalued and dismissed. The last section briefly explores the flaws of participatory strategies that are commonly proposed as solutions to the problem of public knowledge, and concludes by suggesting that public knowledge is less contradictory if we treat “public” as a role rather than a group of people.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology , pp. 362 - 378Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020
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