Towards Alternative Socio-Ecological Futures

Professor Alice Mah is Professor of Urban and Environmental Studies at the University of Glasgow. She is author of Petrochemical Planet: Multiscalar Battles of Industrial Transformation (2023), Toxic Truths: Environmental Justice and Citizen Science in a Post-Truth Age (with Thom Davies, 2020), Port Cities and Global Legacies (2014) and Industrial Ruination, Community, and Place (2012). Her research has been awarded the Leverhulme Prize in Sociology, the SAGE Prize for Innovation and/or Excellence, and the British Sociological Association Philip Abrams Memorial Prize.

In her talk ‘Towards Alternative Socio-Ecological Futures‘, Professor Alice Mah will be sharing her recent research:

In the context of ecological crisis, this lecture argues that social scientific research on alternative socio-ecological futures is important for addressing conflicts over the stakes of green transformations, particularly for moving beyond critique towards critical intervention. First, reflecting on findings from an in-depth, multi-sited sociological study of the global petrochemical industry, it examines a range of interdisciplinary debates that relate to alternative socio-ecological futures, including ideas of degrowth, just transition, socio-ecological systems, and anti-colonial and post-capitalist futures. Next, building on these, the lecture outlines new possible methodologies for researching alternatives and futures, which include considerations of deep time, qualitative complexity analysis, and intergenerational and multi-species justice. Taking these factors into account is crucial for ethical, socio-ecological thinking across long time scales, countering short-term business-as-usual assumptions about perpetual growth and expendability. This calls for socio-ecological alternatives that are based on values of equality, justice, and reciprocity, but that also recognize the need to battle systemic social inequalities.

If you are not already attending the CeMoRe T2M Conference Hub, please register for a ticket to the John Urry Memorial Lecture (in-person event).

This event will be held in-person at Lancaster University in Management School Lecture Theatre 04, there will be refreshments available beforehand at 4.30pm.

It will also be live streamed as part of T2Ms 2023 conference. If you are not registered for T2Ms livestream, the lecture will be recorded and be available to watch at a later date on our website.