[H-GG02] Dialogues on natural resources and environment between earth and social sciences

[HGG02-05] The triangular relationships take three: an earth-scientific consideration on the relationship between social science and the society

*Takahisa Furuichi^1,2, Gen Ueda³, Yoshinori OTSUKI⁴, Toru Sasaki⁵ (1.Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 2.University of the Sunshine Coast, 3.Graduate School of Social Sciences, Hitotsubashi University, 4.Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, 5.Faculty of Letters, Hosei University)

Keywords:Earth Science, Social science, Society, Natural resources, Environment

Ueda (2022) proposed a conceptual, triangular structure which consists of earth science, social science and the society and used it for setting up three perspectives for discussion, i.e. the triangular relationships. First, a perspective from earth science (a vertex) sees a relationship between social science and the society (a subtense). Through this perspective, it can be shown that earth-scientific consideration had insights on the relationships between social science and the society. For instance, in the discussion on epiphenomenal conservation and issues of local/indigenous knowledge, we learn how social scientific understanding of the "ecologically-noble" knowledge of a society utilising natural resources can simplistically romanticise their "sustainable" relationship. Second, the social-scientific vertex views the relationships between the society and earth science, when examining how the society employs environmental security arguments in depoliticising and justifying external/military intervention in "natural resource-based conflicts". In the third perspective, the society can look into the debate between natural and social sciences in seeking simple, deterministic, and essentialist understanding of the connection between the nature and the society (for instance, the former French President Hollande's statement at the COP21 Paris Conference, November-December 2015, that the fight against global warming and the fight against terrorism cannot be separated).

Ueda et al. (2023) continued to stimulate the discussion based on the triangular relationships, but attempted to insert another component, that was technology (or engineering). The authors claimed that dialogue between earth and social sciences was a way to check each other's attitudes toward the society, but it was also meaningful to have dialogue that focuses on the technologies that the society employs when using resources and the environment. For instance, appropriate technologies may vary from place to place but also may be understood differently by earth and social sciences because being appropriate can be evaluated from a viewpoint of the safety of a society as well as a viewpoint of cost effectiveness for a society.

We keep our incentive to encourage dialogues among earth science, social science, and the society through providing rational and, desirably, academic contexts in order to enhance responsible, deliberate and sustainable use and maintenance of natural resources and the environment. This commentary paper follows and expands the previous discussion made by Ueda (2022) and Ueda et al. (2023) and focuses on an earth-scientific consideration on the relationship between social science and the society.

Reference
Ueda G, (2022): A social scientific consideration on the triangular relationships among natural sciences, social sciences and the society. Abstract of presentation, JpGU 2022, HGG01-10.
Ueda G, Otsuki Y, Furuichi T, Sasaki T, (2023): The triangular relationships revisited: a social scientific consideration. Abstract of presentation, JpGU 2023, HGG01-09.