Books by Barbara Muraca
London: Zer0 Books, 2020. Edited with Corinna Burkhart and Nina Treu
Degrowth is an emerging soc... more London: Zer0 Books, 2020. Edited with Corinna Burkhart and Nina Treu
Degrowth is an emerging social movement that overlaps with proposals for systemic change such as anti-globalization and climate justice, commons and transition towns, basic income and Buen Vivir. Degrowth in Movement(s) reflects on the current situation of social movements aiming at overcoming capitalism, industrialism and domination. The essays ask: What is the key idea of the respective movement? Who is active? What is the relation with the degrowth movement? What can the degrowth movement learn from these other movements and the other way around? Which common proposals, but also which contradictions, oppositions and tensions exist? And what alliances could be possible for broader systemic transformations?
Aus der Buchpräsentation des Verlags:
"Das Mantra, dass die Wirtschaft immer weiter wachsen mus... more Aus der Buchpräsentation des Verlags:
"Das Mantra, dass die Wirtschaft immer weiter wachsen muss, formt unsere heutige Welt – auf Kosten von Lebensqualität,unter Ausbeutung der Natur und im immer schärferen Wettbewerb. Dass es so nicht weitergehen kann,wird überdeutlich. Kritiker des Wachstumskurses gibt es viele, aber nichtallen sollte man folgen . . .
Seit dem Club of Rome ist der Gedanke in der Welt. Mit der Forderung nach »Anti-Wachstum«, »Degrowth« oder »Decroissance« gehen seit etwa 15 Jahren die Menschen weltweit auf die Straße. Wissenschaftler und Aktivisten kämpfen für einen freiwilligen, gerechten und nachhaltigen Schrumpfungsprozess. Dabei schlägt manch einer aber auch gefährliche Irrwege ein, bis hin zu faschistoiden
Tendenzen reicht das Spektrum der fehlgeleiteten Kritik.
Richtig verstanden und umgesetzt ist dieses Projekt aber weit davon entfernt:
Eine solidarisch organisierte und gelebte Ökonomie unter gemeinschaftlichen Bedingungen ist mehr als eine schöne Utopie, Neben dem erfolgreichen Widerstand gegen allerlei unsinnige Großinvestitionen stehen unzählige Initiativen und Nischenprojekte mit Tauschbörsen, Gemeingütern, Selbstverwaltung, Reparaturwerkstätten und lokaler Lebensmittelproduktion. Sie leisten Pionierarbeit in der politischen Neuorientierung, vernetzen sich weltweit und sind in ihrer kreativen Vielfalt die Garantie dafür, dass ein gutes Leben für alle politisch wünschenswert und machbar ist."
JOURNAL ARTICLES by Barbara Muraca
Relations: Beyond Anthropocentrism, 2025
The paper presents the theoretical background and structure, as well as pedagogical activities, o... more The paper presents the theoretical background and structure, as well as pedagogical activities, of an Environmental Philosophy course – a large, general intro for third-year undergraduate students – dedicated to a critical analysis of the idea of nature and its meaning(s) for environmentalism. It centers around the consideration that the idea of nature seems at the same time unavoidable in environmental policy and untenable due to its colonial heritage and dualistic ontology. It is designed as an interdisciplinary, hands-on, critical analysis of the role of “nature” in environmental praxis, its coloniality, and alternative understandings of and relationships to “nature”. Conceptually, “nature” is framed as the “transcendental” of Western modernity: both a necessary condition of possibility for its self-understanding and an a priori unification of the manifold that seems so “obviously” subsumed under it. By drawing on interdisciplinary literature including eco-phenomenology, environmental hermeneutics, political ecology, anthropology, and decolonial thought, students are confronted with different approaches to the question of “nature” and invited to critically analyze assumptions, implications, and uses of the term. They are guided by the hermeneutical consideration that the question “what is nature?” reveals just as much about who asks the question as about what is asked.
People and Nature, 2025
Relational values feature prominently in recent international efforts to protect global biodivers... more Relational values feature prominently in recent international efforts to protect global biodiversity. In this article, we provide a conceptual approach for researchers, facilitators and policy-makers to adequately represent place-based relational values in assessments of nature's value that inform practice and policy.
We suggest employing horizontal portability as an alternative and complement to the dominant mode of assessing nature's value via vertical subsumption. Vertical subsumption is a process through which particular values are generalised into overarching categories to conform to more general value concepts and thereby stripped of their place-specific meanings. In contrast, horizontal portability is introduced here as a conceptual approach that maintains the contextual rootedness of place-based local expressions of value while also communicating them across places, knowledge systems, and communities. The movement (i.e. ‘porting’) is ‘horizontal’ because it allows relational values rooted in a particular biocultural context to speak to different contexts on equal terms.
We discuss how research on the value of nature and people –nature relationships can support horizontal portability.
Finally, we provide recommendations for the application of horizontal portability that promotes more plurality and greater inclusion of place-based relational values in research, policy and action.
BioScience, 2023
In this article, we present results from a literature review of intrinsic, instrumental, and rela... more In this article, we present results from a literature review of intrinsic, instrumental, and relational values of nature conducted for the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, as part of the Methodological Assessment of the Diverse Values and Valuations of Nature. We identify the most frequently recurring meanings in the heterogeneous use of different value types and their association with worldviews and other key concepts. From frequent uses, we determine a core meaning for each value type, which is sufficiently inclusive to serve as an umbrella over different understandings in the literature and specific enough to help highlight its difference from the other types of values. Finally, we discuss convergences, overlapping areas, and fuzzy boundaries between different value types to facilitate dialogue, reduce misunderstandings, and improve the methods for valuation of nature's contributions to people, including ecosystem services, to inform policy and direct future research.
BioScience, 2023
Conservation science often addresses highly complex issues; creative approaches can help develop ... more Conservation science often addresses highly complex issues; creative approaches can help develop new ways of doing so. We describe constraint-based brainstorming, a 10-minute creativity-inducing exercise inspired by design thinking. Although we applied the method with the goal of developing creative environmental valuation methods, it is applicable to almost any complex, interdisciplinary environmental research problem. We tried the approach at two academic workshops, in Japan and in Germany. We generated, in each short activity, scores of unique ideas for the target question. We present this engaging activity as a way to simultaneously achieve multiple outcomes that can support innovative conservation science: quickly generate many seeds of ideas to address a challenge or goal, offer insight into nuances of and shared convictions related to the topic at hand, set a tone of creativity and breaking outside of established thought structures, and build community around a willingness to take risks and freely share ideas.
Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2023
Aiming at just and sustainable futures for biodiversity conservation requires clarity concerning ... more Aiming at just and sustainable futures for biodiversity conservation requires clarity concerning how justice relates to the diverse values of nature. By drawing upon and expanding on the recent Values Assessment of Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, this article discusses the implications of the diverse values of nature for different dimensions of justice. It also addresses how achieving transformative change that protects biodiversity requires the inclusion of diverse values of nature into valuation and decision-making processes, and how this imperative is interconnected with different dimensions of justice.
Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2023
☆ Leveraging the multiple values of nature for transformative change: Insights from the IPBES Val... more ☆ Leveraging the multiple values of nature for transformative change: Insights from the IPBES Values Assessment.
Nature, 2023
For full list of co-authors see link. Twenty-five years since foundational publications on valuin... more For full list of co-authors see link. Twenty-five years since foundational publications on valuing ecosystem services for human well-being addressing the global biodiversity crisis still implies confronting barriers to incorporating nature’s diverse values into decision-making. These barriers include powerful interests supported by current norms and legal rules such as property rights, which determine whose values and which values of nature are acted on. A better understanding of how and why nature is (under)valued is more urgent than ever4. Notwithstanding agreements to incorporate nature’s values into actions, including the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, predominant environmental and development policies still prioritize a subset of values, particularly those linked to markets, and ignore other ways people relate to and benefit from nature. Arguably, a ‘values crisis’ underpins the intertwined crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, pandemic emergence and socio-environmental injustices. On the basis of more than 50,000 scientific publications, policy documents and Indigenous and local knowledge sources, the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) assessed knowledge on nature’s diverse values and valuation methods to gain insights into their role in policymaking and fuller integration into decisions. Applying this evidence, combinations of values-centred approaches are proposed to improve valuation and address barriers to uptake, ultimately leveraging transformative changes towards more just (that is, fair treatment of people and nature, including inter- and intragenerational equity) and sustainable futures.
From planetary to societal boundaries: an argument for collectively defined self-limitation, 2021
The planetary boundaries concept has profoundly changed the vocabulary and representation of glob... more The planetary boundaries concept has profoundly changed the vocabulary and representation of global environmental issues. We bring a critical social science perspective to this framework through the notion of societal boundaries and aim to provide a more nuanced understanding of the social nature of thresholds. We start by highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of planetary boundaries from a social science perspective. We then focus on capitalist societies as a heuristic for discussing the expansionary dynamics, power relations, and lock-ins of modern societies that impel highly unsustainable societal relations with nature. While formulating societal boundaries implies a controversial processbased on normative judgments, ethical concerns, and socio-political strugglesit has the potential to offer guidelines for a just, social-ecological transformation. Collective autonomy and the politics of self-limitation are key elements of societal boundaries and are linked to important proposals and pluriverse experiences to integrate well-being and boundaries. The role of the state and propositions for radical alternative approaches to well-being have particular importance. We conclude with reflections on social freedom, defined as the right not to live at others' expense. Toward the aim of defining boundaries through transdisciplinary and democratic processes, we seek to open a dialogue on these issues.
People and Nature, 2020
1. Humanity is on a deeply unsustainable trajectory. We are exceeding planetary boundaries and un... more 1. Humanity is on a deeply unsustainable trajectory. We are exceeding planetary boundaries and unlikely to meet many international sustainable development goals and global environmental targets. Until recently, there was no broadly accepted framework of interventions that could ignite the transformations needed to achieve these desired targets and goals.
2. As a component of the IPBES Global Assessment, we conducted an iterative expert deliberation process with an extensive review of scenarios and pathways to sustainability, including the broader literature on indirect drivers, social change and sustainability transformation. We asked, what are the most important elements of pathways to sustainability?
3. Applying a social–ecological systems lens, we identified eight priority points for intervention (leverage points) and five overarching strategic actions and priority interventions (levers), which appear to be key to societal transformation. The eight leverage points are: (1) Visions of a good life, (2) Total consumption and waste, (3) Latent values of responsibility, (4) Inequalities, (5) Justice and inclusion in conservation, (6) Externalities from trade and other telecouplings, (7) Responsible technology, innovation and investment, and (8) Education and knowledge generation and sharing. The five intertwined levers can be applied across the eight leverage points and more broadly. These include: (A) Incentives and capacity building, (B)
Coordination across sectors and jurisdictions, (C) Pre-emptive action, (D) Adaptive decision-making and (E) Environmental law and implementation. The levers and leverage points are all non-substitutable, and each enables others, likely leading to synergistic benefits.
4. Transformative change towards sustainable pathways requires more than a simple scaling-up of sustainability initiatives—it entails addressing these levers and leverage points to change the fabric of legal, political, economic and other social systems. These levers and leverage points build upon those approved within the Global Assessment's Summary for Policymakers, with the aim of enabling leaders in government, business, civil society and academia to spark transformative changes towards a more just and sustainable world.
Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 2018
Scholars and activists mobilize increasingly the term degrowth when producing knowledge critical ... more Scholars and activists mobilize increasingly the term degrowth when producing knowledge critical of the ideology and costs of growth-based development. Degrowth signals a radical political and economic reorganization leading to reduced resource and energy use. The degrowth hypothesis posits that such a trajectory of social transformation is necessary, desirable, and possible; the conditions of its realization require additional study. Research on degrowth has reinvigorated the limits to growth debate with critical examination of the historical, cultural, social, and political forces that have made economic growth a dominant objective. Here we review studies of economic stability in the absence of growth and of societies that have managed well without growth. We reflect on forms of technology and democracy compatible with degrowth and discuss plausible openings for a degrowth transition. This dynamic and productive research agenda asks inconvenient questions that sustainability sciences can no longer afford to ignore.
Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Environment and Resources Volume 43 is October 17, 2018. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
Relational values: the key to pluralistic valuation of ecosystem services. —- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2018.09.005
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2018.09.005 ... more https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2018.09.005
Multiple frameworks have recently been proposed adopting relational values as a new domain of value articulation distinct from the dichotomy of intrinsic and instrumental values that has dominated environmental ethics for decades. In this article, we distinguish between the innate relationality of all evaluative process and relational values as the content of valuation which is a new and fruitful category for expressing the importance of specific relationships people hold with non-human nature. We examine the concept of relational values used in recent frameworks and propose a simple conceptualization with clear distinctions between relational, instrumental, and intrinsic (inherent moral) values. We argue that as a new category of value articulation, relational values provide conceptual and empirical insights that the intrinsic/instrumental value dichotomy fails to deliver. Finally, we draw on theoretical and empirical research to show why a clear distinction between instrumental and non-instrumental relational values is important for environmental conservation, sustainability, and social justice.
Global Sustainability, 2020
Cite this article: Jacobs S et al. (2020). Use your power for good: plural valuation of nature-th... more Cite this article: Jacobs S et al. (2020). Use your power for good: plural valuation of nature-the Oaxaca statement. Global Sustainability 3, e8, 1-7. https://doi.
Non-technical abstractDecisions on the use of nature reflect the values and rights of individuals, communities andsociety at large. The values of nature are expressed through cultural norms, rules and legisla-tion, and they can be elicited using a wide range of tools, including those of economics. Noneof the approaches to elicit peoples’values are neutral. Unequal power relations influence valu-ation and decision-making and are at the core of most environmental conflicts. As actors insustainability thinking, environmental scientists and practitioners are becoming more aware oftheir own posture, normative stance, responsibility and relative power in society. Based on atransdisciplinary workshop, our perspective paper provides a normative basis for this newcommunity of scientists and practitioners engaged in the plural valuation of nature
Technical abstractDuring a workshop held in Oaxaca, Mexico, a shared vision, mission and strategies to foster amore plural valuation of nature were developed. The participants represent a wide range ofbackgrounds and are active in science, policy and practitioner networks and activities Their common ground is the recognition of the need to change the prevailing culture of hownature is valued and subsequently managed as an essential step towards a more just and sus-tainable world. After an open plenary session in which the goal of the workshop was deter-mined and the diverse perspectives and backgrounds of the participants were heard, breakoutgroups developed the components of a shared vision, mission and strategies for plural valu-ation of nature. Consequently, these components were discussed back in plenary and conso-lidated into a consensus text, which was further debated and its main building blocks agreedupon. The compilation of our shared views converged into a normative call and perspective toshare with our peers. The information generated throughout the workshop was collaborativelysynthesized, amended, reviewed and validated by all workshop participants/co-authors. Ourmessage aims to contribute to advancing plural valuation approaches as a science-policyfield, as well as to raise personal awareness among researchers and practitioners on implicitinequality and power issues.
Caring for nature matters: a relational approach for understanding nature’s contributions to human well-being
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2018.10.009 ... more https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2018.10.009
Ecosystem services frameworks effectively assume that nature’s contributions to human well-being derive from people receiving benefits from nature. At the same time, efforts (money, time, or energy) for conservation, restoration or stewardship are often considered costs to be minimized. But what if caring for nature is itself an essential component of human well-being? Taking up and developing the concept of relational values, we explore the idea that well-being cannot be reduced to the reception of benefits, and that instead much derives from positive agency including caring for nature. In this paper, we ask specifically, first, how can ‘care’ be conceptualized with respect to nature, second, how does caring for nature matter both to protecting nature and to people’s well-being, and third, what are the implications for research and practice?
We describe the theoretical background, drawing especially from (eco)feminist philosophy, and explore its (mostly) implicit uses in the conservation literature. Based on this analysis we propose a preliminary framework of caring for nature and discuss its potential to enrich the spectrum of moral relations to/with nature. We explore both its consequences for environmental research and for the practice of conservation.
Sustainability Science, 2019
The ideas of relational values and social values are gaining prominence in sustainability science... more The ideas of relational values and social values are gaining prominence in sustainability science. Here, we ask: how well do these value conceptions resonate with one Indigenous worldview? The relational values concept broadens conceptions of values beyond instrumental and intrinsic values to encompass preferences and principles about human relationships that involve more-than-humans. The social values concept, an umbrella idea, captures a plurality of values related to society and the common good. After a general description of these two concepts as expressed in the Western peer-reviewed literature, we adopt the lens of relational values to engage with decades of scholarly work and millennia of wisdom based on Indigenous Hawaiian worldviews. We describe five long-standing Hawaiian values that embody notions of appropriate relationships, including human–ecosystem relationships: pono (~ righteousness, balance); hoʻomana (~ creating spirituality); mālama (~ care); kuleana (~ right, responsibility); aloha (~ love, connection). We find that all five resonate deeply with, and help to enrich, relational value concepts. We then draw on these Hawaiian values to discuss differences between relational values and social values frameworks; though both concepts add useful elements to the discourse about values, the relational values concept may be particularly well positioned to represent elements often important to indigenous worldviews—elements such as reciprocity, balance, and extension of “society” beyond human beings. As global processes (e.g., IPBES) commit to better reflecting Indigenous and local knowledge and embrace diverse value concepts as (purported) avenues toward representing values held by diverse communities, our findings suggest that relational values offer special promise and a crucial contribution.
Feminisms and Degrowth – Alliance or Foundational Relation? - See URL for free access
Global Dialogue - Magazine of the International Sociological Association, 2019
Decroissance has established itself in Southern Europe as a significant and heterogeneous societa... more Decroissance has established itself in Southern Europe as a significant and heterogeneous societal movement, which fosters a renaissance of traditional streams of thought in social and political philosophy while opening a field for new actualisations. While the term Decroissance can be traced back to an authorised translation of Georgescu-Roegen's 'declining state', the idea of Decroissance - as it is widely employed by social movements - encompasses more than the critique of GDP as a measure for well-being. It embodies a radical questioning of the way social reproduction is intended and frames a multifaceted vision for a post-growth society. The aim of this paper is the reconstruction and critical examination - from the point of view of social and political philosophy - of the main conceptual roots of Decroissance and its visions for a radical transformation of society.
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Books by Barbara Muraca
Degrowth is an emerging social movement that overlaps with proposals for systemic change such as anti-globalization and climate justice, commons and transition towns, basic income and Buen Vivir. Degrowth in Movement(s) reflects on the current situation of social movements aiming at overcoming capitalism, industrialism and domination. The essays ask: What is the key idea of the respective movement? Who is active? What is the relation with the degrowth movement? What can the degrowth movement learn from these other movements and the other way around? Which common proposals, but also which contradictions, oppositions and tensions exist? And what alliances could be possible for broader systemic transformations?
"Das Mantra, dass die Wirtschaft immer weiter wachsen muss, formt unsere heutige Welt – auf Kosten von Lebensqualität,unter Ausbeutung der Natur und im immer schärferen Wettbewerb. Dass es so nicht weitergehen kann,wird überdeutlich. Kritiker des Wachstumskurses gibt es viele, aber nichtallen sollte man folgen . . .
Seit dem Club of Rome ist der Gedanke in der Welt. Mit der Forderung nach »Anti-Wachstum«, »Degrowth« oder »Decroissance« gehen seit etwa 15 Jahren die Menschen weltweit auf die Straße. Wissenschaftler und Aktivisten kämpfen für einen freiwilligen, gerechten und nachhaltigen Schrumpfungsprozess. Dabei schlägt manch einer aber auch gefährliche Irrwege ein, bis hin zu faschistoiden
Tendenzen reicht das Spektrum der fehlgeleiteten Kritik.
Richtig verstanden und umgesetzt ist dieses Projekt aber weit davon entfernt:
Eine solidarisch organisierte und gelebte Ökonomie unter gemeinschaftlichen Bedingungen ist mehr als eine schöne Utopie, Neben dem erfolgreichen Widerstand gegen allerlei unsinnige Großinvestitionen stehen unzählige Initiativen und Nischenprojekte mit Tauschbörsen, Gemeingütern, Selbstverwaltung, Reparaturwerkstätten und lokaler Lebensmittelproduktion. Sie leisten Pionierarbeit in der politischen Neuorientierung, vernetzen sich weltweit und sind in ihrer kreativen Vielfalt die Garantie dafür, dass ein gutes Leben für alle politisch wünschenswert und machbar ist."
JOURNAL ARTICLES by Barbara Muraca
We suggest employing horizontal portability as an alternative and complement to the dominant mode of assessing nature's value via vertical subsumption. Vertical subsumption is a process through which particular values are generalised into overarching categories to conform to more general value concepts and thereby stripped of their place-specific meanings. In contrast, horizontal portability is introduced here as a conceptual approach that maintains the contextual rootedness of place-based local expressions of value while also communicating them across places, knowledge systems, and communities. The movement (i.e. ‘porting’) is ‘horizontal’ because it allows relational values rooted in a particular biocultural context to speak to different contexts on equal terms.
We discuss how research on the value of nature and people –nature relationships can support horizontal portability.
Finally, we provide recommendations for the application of horizontal portability that promotes more plurality and greater inclusion of place-based relational values in research, policy and action.
2. As a component of the IPBES Global Assessment, we conducted an iterative expert deliberation process with an extensive review of scenarios and pathways to sustainability, including the broader literature on indirect drivers, social change and sustainability transformation. We asked, what are the most important elements of pathways to sustainability?
3. Applying a social–ecological systems lens, we identified eight priority points for intervention (leverage points) and five overarching strategic actions and priority interventions (levers), which appear to be key to societal transformation. The eight leverage points are: (1) Visions of a good life, (2) Total consumption and waste, (3) Latent values of responsibility, (4) Inequalities, (5) Justice and inclusion in conservation, (6) Externalities from trade and other telecouplings, (7) Responsible technology, innovation and investment, and (8) Education and knowledge generation and sharing. The five intertwined levers can be applied across the eight leverage points and more broadly. These include: (A) Incentives and capacity building, (B)
Coordination across sectors and jurisdictions, (C) Pre-emptive action, (D) Adaptive decision-making and (E) Environmental law and implementation. The levers and leverage points are all non-substitutable, and each enables others, likely leading to synergistic benefits.
4. Transformative change towards sustainable pathways requires more than a simple scaling-up of sustainability initiatives—it entails addressing these levers and leverage points to change the fabric of legal, political, economic and other social systems. These levers and leverage points build upon those approved within the Global Assessment's Summary for Policymakers, with the aim of enabling leaders in government, business, civil society and academia to spark transformative changes towards a more just and sustainable world.
Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Environment and Resources Volume 43 is October 17, 2018. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
Multiple frameworks have recently been proposed adopting relational values as a new domain of value articulation distinct from the dichotomy of intrinsic and instrumental values that has dominated environmental ethics for decades. In this article, we distinguish between the innate relationality of all evaluative process and relational values as the content of valuation which is a new and fruitful category for expressing the importance of specific relationships people hold with non-human nature. We examine the concept of relational values used in recent frameworks and propose a simple conceptualization with clear distinctions between relational, instrumental, and intrinsic (inherent moral) values. We argue that as a new category of value articulation, relational values provide conceptual and empirical insights that the intrinsic/instrumental value dichotomy fails to deliver. Finally, we draw on theoretical and empirical research to show why a clear distinction between instrumental and non-instrumental relational values is important for environmental conservation, sustainability, and social justice.
Non-technical abstractDecisions on the use of nature reflect the values and rights of individuals, communities andsociety at large. The values of nature are expressed through cultural norms, rules and legisla-tion, and they can be elicited using a wide range of tools, including those of economics. Noneof the approaches to elicit peoples’values are neutral. Unequal power relations influence valu-ation and decision-making and are at the core of most environmental conflicts. As actors insustainability thinking, environmental scientists and practitioners are becoming more aware oftheir own posture, normative stance, responsibility and relative power in society. Based on atransdisciplinary workshop, our perspective paper provides a normative basis for this newcommunity of scientists and practitioners engaged in the plural valuation of nature
Technical abstractDuring a workshop held in Oaxaca, Mexico, a shared vision, mission and strategies to foster amore plural valuation of nature were developed. The participants represent a wide range ofbackgrounds and are active in science, policy and practitioner networks and activities Their common ground is the recognition of the need to change the prevailing culture of hownature is valued and subsequently managed as an essential step towards a more just and sus-tainable world. After an open plenary session in which the goal of the workshop was deter-mined and the diverse perspectives and backgrounds of the participants were heard, breakoutgroups developed the components of a shared vision, mission and strategies for plural valu-ation of nature. Consequently, these components were discussed back in plenary and conso-lidated into a consensus text, which was further debated and its main building blocks agreedupon. The compilation of our shared views converged into a normative call and perspective toshare with our peers. The information generated throughout the workshop was collaborativelysynthesized, amended, reviewed and validated by all workshop participants/co-authors. Ourmessage aims to contribute to advancing plural valuation approaches as a science-policyfield, as well as to raise personal awareness among researchers and practitioners on implicitinequality and power issues.
Ecosystem services frameworks effectively assume that nature’s contributions to human well-being derive from people receiving benefits from nature. At the same time, efforts (money, time, or energy) for conservation, restoration or stewardship are often considered costs to be minimized. But what if caring for nature is itself an essential component of human well-being? Taking up and developing the concept of relational values, we explore the idea that well-being cannot be reduced to the reception of benefits, and that instead much derives from positive agency including caring for nature. In this paper, we ask specifically, first, how can ‘care’ be conceptualized with respect to nature, second, how does caring for nature matter both to protecting nature and to people’s well-being, and third, what are the implications for research and practice?
We describe the theoretical background, drawing especially from (eco)feminist philosophy, and explore its (mostly) implicit uses in the conservation literature. Based on this analysis we propose a preliminary framework of caring for nature and discuss its potential to enrich the spectrum of moral relations to/with nature. We explore both its consequences for environmental research and for the practice of conservation.