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Palgrave Macmillan

Cultures of Environmentalism

Empirical Studies in Environmental Sociology

  • Book
  • © 2005

Overview

Authors:
  1. Steven Yearley

    1. University of York, UK

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Table of contents (11 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-vii
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  2. Introduction: Studying Environmental Issues Sociologically

    1. Introduction: Studying Environmental Issues Sociologically

      • Steven Yearley
      Pages 1-4

  5. Cultures of Knowing and Proving: Science, Evidence and the Environment

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 111-111
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    2. Green Ambivalence about Science

      • Steven Yearley
      Pages 113-143

    3. Mad about the Buoy: Trust and Method in the Brent Spar Controversy

      • Steven Yearley
      Pages 144-158

    4. Genetically Modified Organisms and the Unbearable Irresolution of Testing

      • Steven Yearley
      Pages 159-175

    5. The Value of Environmental Sociology: Towards a Sociology of the Sustainable Society

      • Steven Yearley
      Pages 176-184

  6. Back Matter

    Pages 185-205
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Keywords

About this book

As environmental issues increasingly impinge on society, sociologists have turned their attention to nature and the environment. However, unlike the majority of sociological work on environmental issues, which has too often been dominated by abstract theoretical disputes, this book concentrates on empirical studies in environmental sociology. It shows what sociologists can bring to current debates over environmental topics (including genetic modification) and - using the author's first-hand research - demonstrates how sociologists can best pursue practical work on environmental topics.

Reviews

'In combining insights from contemporary science studies and environmental sociology, Steve Yearley masterfully picks out the organizational structures most relevant to fostering different types and outcomes of environmentalist ideas in today's cultures of environmental campaigning and activism...The book's lack of sociological jargon and focus on concrete case studies makes it a great read for upper undergraduate and graduate courses in all the social sciences dealing with environmental topics.' - Matthias Gross, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, UFZ, Leipzig, Germany

'Yearley's book is wonderfully written, thoroughly documented and exhibits a remarkable conceptual elegance. Therefore, the book would likely appeal to both an academic and non-academic audience. Students and scholars interested in environmental sociology, social movements or sustainable development would benefit greatly from reading these very well crafted empirical studies. At the same time, the book could help individuals from NGOs or the mass media enrich their hands-on experience with a broader socio-cultural understanding of the nature-society nexus.'

- Filip Alexandrescu, University of Toronto, Canada; Candadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology

'The greatest value of the book lies in the specific empirical studies it contains.. These can be used in the classroom and also to illustrate general arguments about the relationship between scientific studies of environment and their social context.' - Arjun Agrawal, American Journal of Sociology

'...the absence of abstruse terminology and the fact that the interpretations remain close to the data make these case studies exceptionally well-suited for use as supplementary reading assignments for undergraduate or graduate courses in environmental sociology.' - Bill Markham, University of North Carolina-Greensboro, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  • University of York, UK

    Steven Yearley

About the author

STEVEN YEARLEY is Professor and Head of Sociology at the University of York and Senior Research Fellow of the Stockholm Environment Institute. In recent years he has also taught environmental sociology at Cornell University and the University of Melbourne. Recent books include Sociology, Environmentalism, Globalization and Making Sense of Science.

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