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The Quest so Far—And Why It Has Failed

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Reengineering Capitalism

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Abstract

So far, the quest has been characterized by either high-profile summits where all the countries in the world, more or less, adjourn to discuss our challenge based on work from researchers, academics and to some extent industry, or by a whole range of less profiled initiatives that are normally more practically oriented.

The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance—it is the illusion of knowledge.

Daniel J. Boorstin

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Notes

  1. 1.

    According to Wood, J. C. (1998). Environmental Impacts on Life Cycle Costs. Handbook of Cost Management. J. A. Edwards. Boston, MA, Warren, Gorham & Lamont: pp. D6-1–D6-30.

  2. 2.

    For a thorough discussion, see Keoleian, G. A. and D. Menerey (1994). “Sustainable Development by Design: Review of Life Cycle Design and Related Approaches.” Air & Waste 44(May): pp. 644–668.

  3. 3.

    See;

    • Emblemsvåg, J. (1999). Activity-Based Life-Cycle Assessments in Design and Management. The George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering. Atlanta, GA, The Georgia Institute of Technology: pp. 600.

    • Emblemsvåg, J. and B. Bras (2000). Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management: A Different Approach to the ISO 14000 Compliance. Boston, Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 317.

    • Emblemsvåg, J. (2003). Life-Cycle Costing: Using Activity-Based Costing and Monte Carlo Methods to Manage Future Costs and Risks. Hoboken, NJ, John Wiley & Sons. p. 320.

  4. 4.

    Also see Bras, B. and J. Emblemsvåg (1996). Designing For The Life-Cycle: Activity-Based Costing and Uncertainty. Design for X. G. Q. Huang. London, Chapman & Hall: pp. 398–423.

  5. 5.

    See for example Liverman, D. M. (2009). “Conventions of climate change: constructions of danger and the dispossession of the atmosphere.” Journal of Historical Geography 35(2): pp. 279–296.

  6. 6.

    See Carson, R. (1962). The Silent Spring. Boston, MA, Houghton Mifflin. p. 368.

  7. 7.

    See EPA, U. S. (2007). Achievements in Stratospheric Ozone Protection; progress report. Washington, DC, US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air and Radiation. p. 37.

  8. 8.

    See The Economist (2014a). Curbing climate change. The Economist. 412: pp. 22–26.

  9. 9.

    According to analyses from The Economist (2014a). Curbing climate change. The Economist. 412: pp. 22–26.

  10. 10.

    See EPA, U. S. (2005). Acid Rain Program 2004 Progress Report. Washington, DC, US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air and Radiation. p. 27.

  11. 11.

    According to Anderson, R. C. (1998). Mid-Course Correction. Atlanta, GA, The Peregrinzilla Press. p. 204.

  12. 12.

    According to Jensen, A. A., J. Elkington, K. Christiansen, L. Hoffmann, B. T. Møller, A. Schmidt and F. van Dijk (1997). Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—A guide to approaches, experiences and information sources. Søborg, Denmark, dk-TEKNIK Energy & Environment. p.

  13. 13.

    See Boustead, I. (1996). “LCA—How it Came About, The Beginning in the UK.” International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 1(3).

  14. 14.

    This approach was developed by this author and first presented in the PhD dissertation at Georgia Institute of Technology and subsequently in this book; Emblemsvåg, J. and B. Bras (2000). Activity-Based Cost and Environmental Management: A Different Approach to the ISO 14000 Compliance. Boston, Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 317.

  15. 15.

    According to Consoli, F., D. Allen, I. Boustead and J. Fava (1993). Guidelines for Life-Cycle Assessment: A ‘Code of Practice’. The SETAC Workshop, Sesimbra, Portugal, 31 March–3 April, Society of Environmental Toxicology And Chemistry (SETAC), Jensen, A. A., J. Elkington, K. Christiansen, L. Hoffmann, B. T. Møller, A. Schmidt and F. van Dijk (1997). Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—A guide to approaches, experiences and information sources. Søborg, Denmark, dk-TEKNIK Energy & Environment. p.

  16. 16.

    See Jensen, A. A., J. Elkington, K. Christiansen, L. Hoffmann, B. T. Møller, A. Schmidt and F. van Dijk (1997). Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—A guide to approaches, experiences and information sources. Søborg, Denmark, dk-TEKNIK Energy & Environment. p.

  17. 17.

    See Emblemsvåg, J. and B. Bras (1998). ISO 14000 and Activity-Based Life-Cycle Assessment in Environmentally Conscious Design and Manufacturing: A Comparison. 1998 ASME Design Engineering Technical Conference, Atlanta, GA, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).

  18. 18.

    See for example Cooper, R. (1990). “Five Steps to ABC System Design.” Accountancy(November): pp. 78–81. and Kaplan, R. S. (1992). “In Defense of Activity-Based Cost Management.” Management Accounting(November): pp. 58–63.

  19. 19.

    According to ISO/TC 207/SC 5 (1996). Environmental Management—Life Cycle Assessment—Principles and Framework. International Organization for Standardization. p.

  20. 20.

    According to Jensen, A. A., J. Elkington, K. Christiansen, L. Hoffmann, B. T. Møller, A. Schmidt and F. van Dijk (1997). Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—A guide to approaches, experiences and information sources. Søborg, Denmark, dk-TEKNIK Energy & Environment. p.

  21. 21.

    See ISO (1997). Environmental management—Life cycle assessment—Life cycle impact assessment. International Standards Organization. p.

  22. 22.

    A fact acknowledged by ISO (1997). Environmental management—Life cycle assessment—Life cycle impact assessment. International Standards Organization. p.

  23. 23.

    According to Jensen, A. A., J. Elkington, K. Christiansen, L. Hoffmann, B. T. Møller, A. Schmidt and F. van Dijk (1997). Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—A guide to approaches, experiences and information sources. Søborg, Denmark, dk-TEKNIK Energy & Environment. p.

  24. 24.

    According to Meserve, J. (1998). Environmental Legislation Going Nowhere Fast. Washington. DC, AllPolitics. p.

  25. 25.

    See the critique by Ayres, R. U. (1995). “Life cycle analysis: A critique.” Resources, conservation and recycling(14): pp. 199–223.

  26. 26.

    See Hanssen, O. J. (1998). “Sustainable Product Systems—Experiences Based upon Case Projects in Sustainable Product Development.” Journal of Cleaner Production 7(1): pp. 27–41, which according to Christiansen, K., R. Heijungs, T. Rydberg, S.-O. Ryding, L. Sund, H. Wijnen, M. Vold and O. J. Hanssen (1995). Report from Expert Workshop at Hankø, Norway on LCA in Strategic Management, Product Development and Improvement, Marketing and Ecolabelling and Governmental Policies. Østfold Research Foundation. p. has developed ‘one of the most comprehensive methods for Environmentally Sound Product Development’.

  27. 27.

    Personal communication with Director of Process Development Stuart Jones at Interface Flooring Systems in LaGrange January 13 1999.

  28. 28.

    See Emblemsvåg, J. and B. Bras (1998). ISO 14000 and Activity-Based Life-Cycle Assessment in Environmentally Conscious Design and Manufacturing: A Comparison. 1998 ASME Design Engineering Technical Conference, Atlanta, GA, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).

  29. 29.

    See http://www.ipcc.ch/organization/organization.shtml.

  30. 30.

    According to Ian Castles of the National Centre for Development Studies at Australian National University, formerly the head of Australia’s national office of statistics; and David Henderson of the Westminster Business School, formerly the chief economist of the OECD. See The Economist (2003a). Hot potato. The Economist. 366: pp. 74.

  31. 31.

    See The Economist (2003b). “Hot potato revisited.” The Economist 369(8349): pp. 78.

  32. 32.

    See The Economist (2014b). Inside the sausage factory. The Economist. 411: pp. 69.

  33. 33.

    This system is also known as the Acid Rain Program and the SO2 cap-and-trade system.

  34. 34.

    According to Chan, G., R. Stavins, R. Stowe and R. Sweeney (2012). The SO2 Allowance Trading System and the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990: Reflections on Twenty Years of Policy Innovation. Cambridge, MA, Harvard Environmental Economics Program. p. 39.

  35. 35.

    See for example EPA, U. S. (2011). The benefits and Costs of the Clean Air Act from 1990 to 2020: Final Report. Washington, DC, US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air and Radiation. p. 238.

  36. 36.

    See Montgomery, W. D. (1972). “Markets in licenses and efficient pollution control programs.” Journal of Economic Theory 5(3): pp. 395–418.

  37. 37.

    See Chan, G., R. Stavins, R. Stowe and R. Sweeney (2012). The SO2 Allowance Trading System and the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990: Reflections on Twenty Years of Policy Innovation. Cambridge, MA, Harvard Environmental Economics Program. p. 39.

  38. 38.

    The location of Mauna Loa has made it an important location for atmospheric monitoring by the Global Atmosphere Watch and other scientific observations. The Mauna Loa Solar Observatory (MLSO), located at 3400 m, has long been used for observing the sun. The NOAA Mauna Loa Observatory (MLO) is located in the proximity. From its location high above local human-generated influences, the MLO monitors the global atmosphere, including the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Measurements are adjusted to account for local outgassing of CO2 from the volcano. For more information see page 95 in Rhodes, J. M. and J. P. Lockwood, Eds. (1995). Mauna Loa Revealed: Structure, Composition, History, and Hazards. Geophysical Monograph Series (Book 92). Washington DC., American Geophysical Union. p. 348.

  39. 39.

    See Liverman, D. M. (2009). “Conventions of climate change: constructions of danger and the dispossession of the atmosphere.” Journal of Historical Geography 35(2): pp. 279–296.

  40. 40.

    See Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

  41. 41.

    According to Liverman, D. M. (2009). “Conventions of climate change: constructions of danger and the dispossession of the atmosphere.” Journal of Historical Geography 35(2): pp. 279–296.

  42. 42.

    According to Liverman, D. M. (2009). “Conventions of climate change: constructions of danger and the dispossession of the atmosphere.” Journal of Historical Geography 35(2): pp. 279–296.

  43. 43.

    See Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

  44. 44.

    For an excellent review see Liverman, D. M. (2009). “Conventions of climate change: constructions of danger and the dispossession of the atmosphere.” Journal of Historical Geography 35(2): pp. 279–296.

  45. 45.

    See Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science." Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

  46. 46.

    See Schmittner, A., N. M. Urban, J. D. Shakun, N. M. Mahowald, P. Clark, U., P. J. Bartlein, A. C. Mix and A. Rosell-Melé (2011). “Climate Sensitivity Estimated from Temperature Reconstructions of the Last Glacial Maximum.” Science 334(9 December): pp. 1385–1388.

  47. 47.

    See the classic work of Merz, J. T. (1915). Religion and Science, A Philosophical Essay. London, William Blackwood and Sons. p. 192.

  48. 48.

    See Vygotsky, L. S. (1988). Thought and Language. Cambridge MA, The MIT Press. p. 285.

  49. 49.

    See Merz, J. T. (1915). Religion and Science, A Philosophical Essay. London, William Blackwood and Sons. p. 192.

  50. 50.

    According to Rorty, R. (1990). Objectivity, Relativism, and Truth: Philosophical Papers, Vol. 1. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. p. 236.

  51. 51.

    A highly interesting paper on this is Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

  52. 52.

    A highly interesting paper on this is Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

  53. 53.

    Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) is an organization that casts doubt on the science of climate change and campaign against greenhouse-gas reductions, see The Economist (2007). Cleaning up: A special report on business and climate change. London, The Economist. p. 32.

  54. 54.

    According to The Economist (2007). Cleaning up: A special report on business and climate change. London, The Economist. p. 32.

  55. 55.

    An iteration is the mathematical equivalent of a feedback loop.

  56. 56.

    Unfortunately, there are no universally accepted definitions for attractors, but an attractor can be defined as subset—due to a contraction—of an abstract mathematical space called phase space that describes a dissipative dynamical system by representing all possible states of the system with each possible state of the system corresponding to one unique point in the phase space. A dissipative dynamical system is characterized by the presence of some sort of internal ‘friction’ that tends to contract phase-space volume elements and hence induce attractors. Therefore, an attractor can be thought of as the long-term behavior of a complex system. There are three types of attractors; (1) fixed point attractors, (2) periodic attractors and (3) strange attractors—also known as fractal attractors, see Ilachinski, A. (1996). Land Warfare and Complexity, Part I: Mathematical Background and Source Book (U). Alexandria, VA, Center for Naval Analyses. p. 231.

  57. 57.

    See Prigogine, I. and I. Stengers (1989). Order Out of Chaos, Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group. p.

  58. 58.

    See Capra, F. (1996). The Web of Life. New York, Anchor Books, Doubleday. p. 347.

  59. 59.

    See Capra, F. (1996). The Web of Life. New York, Anchor Books, Doubleday. p. 347.

  60. 60.

    See Lohmann, L. (2010). “Uncertainty Markets and Carbon Markets: Variations on Polanyian Themes.” New Political Economy 15(2): pp. 225–254.

  61. 61.

    According to Lohmann, L. (2010). “Uncertainty Markets and Carbon Markets: Variations on Polanyian Themes.” New Political Economy 15(2): pp. 225–254.

  62. 62.

    According to Lohmann, L. (2010). “Uncertainty Markets and Carbon Markets: Variations on Polanyian Themes.” New Political Economy 15(2): pp. 225–254.

  63. 63.

    See Point Carbon Advisory Services (2008). EU ETS Phase II—The potential and scale of windfall profits in the power sector: A report for WWF. Oslo, Thomson Reuters Point Carbon. p. 29.

  64. 64.

    According to de Bruyn, S., A. Markowska, F. de Jong and M. Bles (2010). Does the energy intensive industry obtain windfall profits through the EU ETS? An econometric analysis for products from the refineries, iron and steel and chemical sectors. Delft, CE Delft. p. 73.

  65. 65.

    According to Chan, G., R. Stavins, R. Stowe and R. Sweeney (2012). The SO 2 Allowance Trading System and the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990: Reflections on Twenty Years of Policy Innovation. Cambridge, MA, Harvard Environmental Economics Program. p. 39.

  66. 66.

    As of 2007 it was concluded that “the carbon market is working, but not bringing forth as much innovation as had been hoped for” by The Economist (2007). Cleaning up: A special report on business and climate change. London, The Economist. p. 32.

  67. 67.

    See Financial Times (2007). Carbon markets create a muddle. London. April 27th: pp.

  68. 68.

    See The Economist (2014c). Special report: companies and the state. London, The Economist. p. 16.

  69. 69.

    For a thorough and compelling review, see Cartwright, N. (2002). How the Laws of Physics Lie. Oxford, Clarendon Press. p. 221.

  70. 70.

    See Corbishley, T. (1997). Christianity: The Catholic Church since the Reformation. Encyclopedia of the World’s Religions. R. C. Zaehner. New York, Barnes & Noble Books.

  71. 71.

    See Feyerabend, P. (2011). The Tyrrany of Science. Cambridge, Polity Press. p. 153.

  72. 72.

    See Pantin, I. (1999). “New Philosophy and Old Prejudices: Aspects of the Reception of Copernicanism in a Divided Europe.” Studies in history and philosophy of science 30: (2): pp. 237–262.

  73. 73.

    See Hilliam, R. (2004). Galileo Galilei: Father of Modern Science. New York, Rosen Publishing Group. p. 112.

  74. 74.

    See Feyerabend, P. (2011). The Tyrrany of Science. Cambridge, Polity Press. p. 153.

  75. 75.

    See Mercer, N. (2006). Words and Minds; How we use language to think together. London, Routledge. p. 206.

  76. 76.

    See the maxims in Grice, H. P. (1991). Studies in the Way of Words. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press. p. 394.

  77. 77.

    See Mercer, N. (2006). Words and Minds; How we use language to think together. London, Routledge. p. 206.

  78. 78.

    See Einstein, A. (1950). The Theory of Relativity & Other Essays. New York, MJF Books. p. 75.

  79. 79.

    See Demeritt, D. (2001). “The Construction of Global Warming and the Politics of Science.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 91(2): pp. 307–337.

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    Jan Emblemsvåg

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Emblemsvåg, J. (2016). The Quest so Far—And Why It Has Failed. In: Reengineering Capitalism. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-19689-3_2

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