Over the last few centuries, most academic disciplines have developed while taking nature for granted. For example, engineering has aimed to dominate and control nature, exemplified by the assumption of an “infinite sink” in thermodynamics, which implies that the surroundings are not affected by flows to or from it. Economics has kept nature external to the market, and its concept of a “public good” considers some goods to be unlimited despite their use. Such assumptions may have been acceptable when they were first made since the human footprint at that time was small. However, human activities have now changed the very composition of previously “infinite sinks” such as the atmosphere, oceans and biosphere. Consequently, in this era of human dominance or anthropocene, the paradigm of all disciplines needs to shift to include ecosystems within its system boundary, so that our activities can be sustained by respecting ecological limits. This talk presented a framework for including nature in engineering decisions, and establishing synergies between technological and ecological systems at multiple spatial scales. Application of this framework to case studies from manufacturing, building design, and product design will demonstrate that including nature can result in innovative solutions that can be economically and environmentally superior to traditional technological solutions. This framework encourages not just greater efficiency of technologies and their life cycles, but also restoration and protection of ecosystems. Such a paradigm shift presents many theoretical and practical challenges across disciplines, and some of these were discussed.

To learn more: https://www.mcgill.ca/tised/public-events/past-events/including-nature-human-decisions-innovation-sustainability-anthropocene

TISED mobilizes knowledge to educate and influence public policy around sustainability working with McGill University's engineers, architects, and planners. TISED promotes bold and green ideas through education, outreach, and research, where we aim to connect our institution with the public for a greater understanding of sustainability issues in our society.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trottier.institute.TISED/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mcgilltised
Website: http://www.mcgill.ca/tised/