Deconstructing the development paradigm: a post-structural perspective

Science per se has always been advocating sustainability. The fundamentals of physical and biological sciences are based on the principles of thermodynamics and emphasize the need for efficiency and conservation. Thus, sustainability is a 'scientific' prerequisite, from the systems perspective of development. In studies of sustainable development, the terms 'science' and 'technology' are often used together - in tandem - as 'science & technology'. However, if one looks at the advancement of science & technology from a sustainability perspective, it may be said that it is becoming increasingly 'technological', but not duly 'scientific'. Instead of science-based technology, what we have developed today is a technology-based science, in our desperation to sustain the unsustainable. Corporate-funded research in industry as well as in academy is governed by profitability rather than ecological concern or disinterested scientific inquiry. In the guise of a 'knowledge-based economy', what we have constructed is an 'economy-based knowledge' indeed. Sustainability is not a goal but only a means and it is a science by itself, but, unlike conventional sciences, which are supposedly value free and amoral, the science of sustainability is inclusive not only of values and responsibilities but also of the institutions and instruments that stand for sustainability. In the present 'post-structural' or post-modern era, it is 'knowledge ecology' - which goes far beyond 'knowledge economy' - that is a prerequisite in striking a right balance between development and sustainability. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.