Biodiversity, including entire habitats and ecosystems, is recognized to be of great social and economic value. Conserving biodiversity has therefore become a task of international NGO’s as well as grass-roots organisations. The ‘classical’ model of conservation has been characterised by creation of …

In reflecting on Dutch Christmas shoppers, this article will discuss environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), postmaterialist values hypothesis, and ecological modernization theory. According to the EKC hypothesis, while at the initial stages of industrialization material resources are often used unsustainably, …

This article explores the perceptions of development through metaphor use by students of International Business Management Studies at The Hague University. Students’ reflections upon the concepts of nature and development before and after educational intervention are examined through discourse analysis …

This article reflects on implications of presenting nature as a social construction, and of commodification of nature. The social construction of nature tends to limit significance of nature to human perception of it. Commodification presents nature in strict instrumental terms as ‘natural resources’, …

With the construction of a hydroelectric dam, especially in a fragile region like the Amazon rainforest, many aspects of the environment are affected. (Santos, Barbosa, & Hernandez, 2009) People living in the Amazon, in the vicinity of these construction site, are often very dependent on natural resources, …

In recent years, numerous environmental psychology studies have demonstrated that contact with nature as opposed to urban settings can improve an individual’s mood, can lead to increased levels of vitality, and can offer an opportunity to recover from stress. According to Attention Restoration Theory …

The European Union is striving for a high penetration of renewable energy production in the future energy grid. Currently, the EU energy directive is aiming for 20% renewable energy production in the year 2020. In future plans the EU strives for approximately 80% renewable energy production by the year …

The Convention on Biodiversity has developed the concept of ‘ecosystem services’ and ‘natural resources’ in order to describe ways in which humans benefit from healthy ecosystems. Biodiversity, conceived through the economic approach, was recognized to be of great social and economic value to both present …

Within the Philippines Forest Conversion (Kaingin) and charcoal production are still two majors problems which threaten the last remaining patches of rainforest that have survived the destructive patterns of the last 50 years of intensive large-scale forestry management. In particular the island of Palawan …