Miracle or Mirage? Critical Contributions to the Theory of Ecological Modernization in Light of the Desertec Project

Datos Bibliográficos

ID3754697
AutoresLuiz Enrique Vieira De Souza (0000-0003-1523-2165, Universidade Federal da Bahia), Marcelo Fetz (0000-0001-7229-0295, Federal University of Espírto Santo, Brazil), Alina Mikhailovna Gilmanova Cavalcante (0000-0001-8666-7268, State University of Campinas, Brazil)
Año2020
Volumen23
Fecha de publicación2020-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAmbiente & sociedade (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1414-753X • E-ISSN: 1809-4422
EditorialFapUNIFESP (SciELO) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1590/1809-4422asoc20180043r1vu2020l1ao
OpenAlexW3025002026
SCIELO_PIDS1414-753X2020000100305
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas1
Referencias citadas21

This investigation analyzes the Desertec project, which envisioned a transition to "clean energy" through constructing solar thermal power plants in the Sahara Desert and linking Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East via high voltage cables. Despite great enthusiasm in the international media and some sectors of civil society, the project faced so many obstacles that even the consortium which initially fostered the initiative decided to withdraw. This article uses this case to critically assess the theoretical and epistemological assumptions of the theory of ecological modernization, pointing out an alternate research agenda which focuses on unsuccessful projects in this area (failure cases), emphasizing the limited scope of this theory and the teleological postulate which assumes convergence between economic and environmental rationalities

Ecological modernization · Enthusiasm · Miracle · Modernization theory · Political science · Sociology · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Computer Science · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Law · Philosophy · Water Governance and Infrastructure