naturesocieties

Naturesocieties, often written as nature-societies, is a scholarly approach that treats the relationship between the natural world and human society as mutually constitutive. It emphasizes that nature and society do not exist on separate planes but continuously shape one another through economic, political, cultural, and ecological processes. The term is used to highlight the inseparability of ecological and social dynamics across scales, from local land-use practices to global environmental governance.

Origin and scope: The idea draws on nature-society studies, ecological anthropology, political ecology, and environmental sociology. It encompasses how social power, capital flows, technology, and culture influence ecological change, and how ecosystems, biogeochemical processes, and climate feedback in turn shape social outcomes.

Theoretical approaches: Key frameworks include socioecological systems, resilience theory, and political ecology. Analyses often challenge the nature-culture dualism by examining how concepts of nature are produced, contested, and mobilized in policy and everyday life. Researchers explore topics such as resource extraction, environmental justice, biodiversity governance, urban nature, and climate adaptation.

Methods and practice: Methods are interdisciplinary, combining ethnography, historical analysis, GIS mapping, ecological data, and participatory approaches. Case studies illustrate how governance arrangements, market forces, and local knowledge co-create ecological conditions and social vulnerabilities.

Critique and relevance: Critics caution against overly broad or essentialist readings of “nature” and call for clear theoretical grounding and contextual nuance. Nonetheless, naturesocieties informs policy debates, conservation strategies, and urban planning by foregrounding the entangled fates of humans and the environments they inhabit.