Eco-Impacts and the Greening of Postmodernity: New Maps for Communication Studies, Cultural Studies, and Sociology

by Tom Jagtenberg, David C. McKie

Addressing a growing need to examine environmental issues from a cultural perspective, this innovative book adopts a cultural studies approach to reach a deeper understanding of the significance of ecological issues in our lives. Eco-Impacts and the Greening of Postmodernity explores such vital questions Can nature survive? How do academic disciplines engage with environmental crises? And, how do we map sustainable futures? The authors, Tom Jagtenberg and David McKie, bring a body of relevant literature into the debate - that stems from both cultural and environmental issues - as well as their own multidisciplinary perspectives on the subject.

328 pages, Hardcover

First published November 7, 1996

About the author

Tom has a longtime interest in the natural world and concern about its decline. His interests, whilst being inter-disciplinary, have always had a focus on nature and the environment.

He worked as a sociologist for thirty years at Wollongong University (where he was a Senior Lecturer) and Southern Cross University (where he was an adjunct research fellow). He is a published author of books and articles about the environment and related cultural fields. Tom has qualifications in science, engineering and sociology – a BE (Chemical and Fuel Engineering, Hons 1, UNSW), an MSc (Liberal Studies in Science, Manchester University) and a PhD (Sociology, University of Wollongong).

Since Tom’s student days he has been concerned with the representation of nature in disciplinary fields as diverse as science, sociology, cultural studies and communication studies, natural medicine and political life. He has been a strong critic of the exclusion of non-human interests from academic fields and political parties. As his latest book suggests even Green political parties are limited in the extent to which they can be advocates for other species, their habitats, and even human environments.

Tom retired from academic life to live in Northern New South Wales with his partner. They chose the Northern Rivers region because of its strong ecologically focused community and beautiful environment.

Reviews

[Alamgeer]

This ground breaking book I should say may be it's of a first attempt to understand more deeper impact of and significance of the ecological issues in our lives from communication and cultural perspective