environmentssuch

Environmentssuch is a neologism used in some sustainability and environmental humanities writings to denote the idea that environmental conditions cannot be understood in isolation but only as the product of relational networks that include political, economic, and cultural factors. The term is typically presented as a synthesis of 'environment' and demonstratives such as 'such' to emphasize the particular environmental contexts or sets of conditions under discussion. There is no single official definition, and usage varies across authors.

Origins and usage: The term has appeared in late 2010s and 2020s online scholarly discussions and in a number of journals experimenting with new vocabularies to capture relational ontologies. In practice, environmentssuch is invoked to foreground locality, time, and social practice in analyses of ecosystems, climate policy, urban planning, and resource governance.

Conceptual role: Proponents argue that environmentssuch helps scholars avoid treating 'the environment' as a generic backdrop and instead treats it as contingent and co-produced with human activity. It aligns with relational or political-ecology approaches, and with phenomenology in noting lived experience of environments.

Critique: Critics say the term is vague and may add jargon without improving clarity. Some point to the risk of over-generalization or misinterpretation across disciplines.

See also: environment, environmental humanities, political ecology, relational ontology.