Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 15
Hermeneutics and Field Environmental
Philosophy: Integrating Ecological Sciences
and Ethics into Earth Stewardship
Jorge F. Aguirre Sala
Abstract
Integrating Earth Stewardship with Field Environmental Philosophy
(FEP) addresses two major challenges. The fi rst is to ensure that the economic view
of land administration is self-limiting to make it compatible with Earth stewardship.
The second is to link Latin American conceptual and methodological approaches to
international initiatives. Toward these aims, this essay shows the contribution that
hermeneutics provides to FEP and its integration of ecological sciences and ethics.
The focus is the theoretical framework of the FEP methodological approach devel-
oped by Ricardo Rozzi and his students at the Chilean Network of Long Term
Socio-Ecological Research (LTSER-Chile), and the integration of FEP's methodol-
ogy to the International Long Term Ecological Research (ILTER) network. The
contributions of hermeneutics to FEP are shown by discussing the translations of
the meanings of key concepts such as “Earth” or “soil” and the holistic concepts of
“environment” or “biosphere.” The biophysical and symbolic-linguistic domains of
these concepts are linked through these translations. The route to achieve this is to:
(1) establish the need for a methodology that links contrasting economic, ecological,
and ethical views of the Earth; (2) identify the role that FEP plays in the theoretical
framework and the development of a methodological approach to integrate ecology
and ethics; (3) introduce the hermeneutical steps supportive of the FEP methodol-
ogy; and (4) illustrate the FEP and other Latin American transdisciplinary initiatives
that can contribute to the integration of ethics and ecology in the ILTER network
and the Earth Stewardship initiative.
Keywords
Earth stewardship • Field environmental philosophy • Fusion of horizons
• Hermeneutic • Latin America
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