Democratizing the Anthropocene: environmental politics and deliberation in J. Habermas and J. Dryzek

Abstract

[EN] This chapter provides a sophisticated yet accessible treatment of how human institutions, practices, and democratic principles need to be rethought in response to the challenges of the Anthropocene, the emerging epoch of human-induced instability in the Earth system (e.g. climate change, depletion of natural resources, loss of biodiversity). The consequences for democratic institutions, such as states, markets and global governance, are profound. A more ecological discourse must stress dependency, foresight, and changes in state of the Earth systems. This article envisages a world in which humans are no longer estranged from nature but engage in a more productive relationship with its biological and ecological factors. The arguments are developed in the context of issues such as climate change, loss of biodiversity, and global efforts to address sustainability in a particular model of democracy: deliberative democracy. Deliberative democracy responds efficiently to solve complex problems, such as ecological problems, in the tradition of Jürgen Habermas and John Dryzek. This analysis enables rethinking of political institutions in dynamic social-ecological terms, formulating a model of ecological democracy for the Anthropocene. This model of democracy may help us to "democratize the Anthropocene" and deal effectively with instabilities such as climate change and loss of biodiversity.