Bernd Klauer

Dealing with time is intimately linked to sustainability, because sustainability, at its core, involves long-term ethical claims. To live up to them, decision and policy-making has to consider long-term development of society, economy, and nature. However, dealing with time and such long-term development is a notoriously difficult subject, both in science and, in particular, in practical decision and policy making. Rooted in philosophical and scientific reasoning, this book explores how the concept of time can be incorporated into effective practical action. The book describes a system and uses case studies to help sustainability practitioners and researchers consider the long-term consequences of our actions in a methodical way. The system integrates scientific and practical knowledge about time and temporal developments to help break down the sometimes overwhelming complexity of sustainability issues. Combining theoretical conceptual thinking and practical applications, this book will be of great interest to students and researchers of sustainability science, environmental sciences, sustainable development, environmental economics, political sciences and practical philosophy.

Dealing with time is intimately linked to sustainability, because sustainability, at its core, involves long-term ethical claims. To live up to them, decision and policy-making has to consider long-term development of society, economy, and nature. However, dealing with time and such long-term development is a notoriously difficult subject, both in science and, in particular, in practical decision and policy making. Rooted in philosophical and scientific reasoning, this book explores how the concept of time can be incorporated into effective practical action. The book describes a system and uses case studies to help sustainability practitioners and researchers consider the long-term consequences of our actions in a methodical way. The system integrates scientific and practical knowledge about time and temporal developments to help break down the sometimes overwhelming complexity of sustainability issues. Combining theoretical conceptual thinking and practical applications, this book will be of great interest to students and researchers of sustainability science, environmental sciences, sustainable development, environmental economics, political sciences and practical philosophy.

The Institute for Infrastructure and Resources Management (IIRM) at the University of Leipzig pursues an integrative approach that addresses economic, environmental and social aspects of sustainable resources management in the relevant fields of energy, water, land-use and waste. The IIRM research activities focus on solving environmental and energy related infrastructure problems and are geared to provide scientific support for decision makers on corporate, municipal, national and global levels. The European Water Framework Directive aims at reaching good status of all European water bodies by 2015. With Article 4, the European Water Framework Directive recognises the need for an efficient use of financial resources in achieving its objectives. The presented guideline proposes a feasible methodology for assessing disproportional costs for potential measures through a non monetary cost-benefit assessment. The approach can be used to justify exemptions, if good status of a water body could not be achieved due to disproportional cost

Dieses Buch wendet sich explizit der zentralen Frage zu, die Wissenschaftler und Politiker sowie jedermann, der um die Probleme von Umweltverschmutzung und Schädigung der Natur Sorge trägt, beschäftigt: Wie kann eine Entwicklung unseres sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Systems gewährleistet werden, die dem Schutz von Umwelt und Natur nachhaltig Rechnung trägt? Auf dem Weg zur Beantwortung dieser Frage wird die Bewertung von Natur als Kernproblem identifiziert. Aus der interdisziplinären Analyse sowohl ökonomischer als auch alternativer Bewertungsverfahren werden Schlußfolgerungen für die Möglichkeiten und Grenzen einer Operationalisierung des Leitbildes einer nachhaltigen Entwicklung gezogen. Damit leistet das Buch einen wichtigen konzeptionellen Beitrag für die Ökologische Ökonomik.