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The International Society for Ecological Economics International Society for Ecological Economics July 2007 Topics of Importance > China > Howarth — New Journal Editor > Regional News > Feature Articles Visit us online at www.ecoeco.org > Jobs / Publications / Conferences of Interest “We are all in the same boat” – an ISEE leadership mission to China by Peter May ISEE President Elect The motto of Tongji University, whose strong ties with Germany. The forum was Inside this issue: name literally means “we are all in the organized by ISEE member and Tongji same boat, and must work together to Professor Zhu Dajian, who directs the A Message from The 2 reach common goals”, describes the University’s Research Center of President harvest of ISEE leaders’ mission to Sustainable Development and China in May 2007. ISEE President Joan Governance, with support from UNEP Yasuni in Equador 4 Martinez-Alier, President-Elect Peter and Bayer Corp. The Forum’s principal Living standards, economic 6 May and the society’s founder and first themes included institutional and growth and environmental President, Robert Costanza as well as technical innovation as means of pressure ISEE member Robert Ayres, participated achieving human development with in a series of events and meetings in minimal environmental damage, with a The Misguided European 11 Shanghai and Beijing with a view to build particular emphasis on China’s role in Policy on Biofuels institutional collaboration. meeting this challenge. Creating a Policy of Well- 12 being In Shanghai, at the invitation of Tongji On conclusion of the Forum, ISEE University President Wan Gang (recently leaders and Professor Zhu delineated a Member News 13 named Minister of Science and series of potential collaborative ventures, Regional News 14 Technology of China), they took part in including the following highlights: an “Innovation for Sustainable Jobs, Appointments, 17 Conferences Development Forum” – part of the • A joint publication series involving university’s centennial celebration (see translation of key texts in ecological Publications 19 http://www.cxykcxfz.com/index.htm for economics into Chinese (along the lines details). Tongji University – now a major of Herman Daly’s Beyond Growth, which technology center with over 50,000 has a Chinese edition); students – was founded in 1907 by Efforts to facilitate participation by German educators and maintains its • Chinese researchers in the upcoming (Continued on Page 3) Howarth named Editor of Ecological Economics The Board of ISEE (and also the Below, Howarth who is a former student presidents of Regional Societies) agreed of Richard Norgaard, and who has some time ago with Elsevier that the next contributed many articles to the Journal, Don’t miss an issue of Eco- editor of the journal Ecological expresses his own views in anticipation logical Economics. Sub- Economics would be Richard Howarth. of becoming the new editor in January scribe to this prestigious The editor must rotate after some years 2008. Journal when you according to our agreement with Elsevier. Cutler Cleveland has been a very good See his comments on Page 3 Join or Renew the ISEE editor, as Richard Howarth will be. Today! Page 2 A Message From the President Joan Martinez-Alier In the last six months, the Board of the is, in my view, our most important product. society, in consultation with the presidents Howarth has written a short statement for of the regional societies, has taken two this issue of the Newsletter. important decisions. r Ecological Economicsr Ecological Another important decision has been to First, to hold the 10th Biennial Conference announce the Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen of the ISEE in Nairobi, between the 7th and prize, to be given to a young scholar in 11th August 2008. This will be organized by ecological economics or a related field. ISEE together with the African Society for Applications must be submitted before Ecological Economics (whose president is January 1st, 2008. Kevin Urama), with help from UNEP, the United Nations Environmental Programme. Peter May has written a report on the trip to Peter May, who will be president of the Shanghai and Beijing by himself, Robert International Society fo ISEE in 2008 and 2009, will chair our 10th Ayres, Bob Costanza, and myself in May Biennial Conference , and has already 07, on our own capacity as speakers at begun work with Kevin and colleagues at different venues but also representing the UNEP to organize the event. The ISEE in our attempts to link up with composition of the scientific committee, the Chinese ecological economists. plenary speakers, the guidelines for paper submissions and the time table, the titles of In this Newsletter we have included some the workshops and the main symposia, will comments on current issues, such as the be made public some time in September or debate on biofuels in Europe, and the October 2007. In Nairobi we shall be able proposal from Ecuador to “sell” oil deposits to rely upon the most valuable practical and in the Yasuni National Park to prevent their scientific support of Achim Steiner, the exploitation, thus avoiding local and global executive director of UNEP, Anantha environmental costs. The Newsletter and Duraiappah, and other local experts, to our webpage must become a vehicle for whom we express our gratitude in advance. some current debates in ecological economics, not least on la décroissance Second, the publisher Elsevier thought that soutenable, i.e. how economic ungrowth or the time had come when, according to degrowth in the rich countries could ISEE President, previous agreements, the editorship of the become socially and politically sustainable. Joan Martinez-Alier journal Ecological Economics should rotate. This is the official journal of our society. Its We have also included reports by insiders founder and first editor was Bob Costanza. or outsiders on some of the meetings of Its editor for the last few years has been the regional societies. and still is Cutler Cleveland, who has also been the editor of the well known Meanwhile, the ISEE Electoral College has Enyclopedia of Energy. Cutler Cleveland now identified a slate of candidates for both has written many important articles and President Elect and the ISEE Board books on ecological economics since the according to the statutes. The nominees 1980s, and has directed a programme in are currently being approached to secure this field at Boston University. The journal their agreement to stand, along with has grown under his competent editorship. statements of their hopes for the society. The time has come for a change, and we The candidates will be announced by the suggested to Elsevier that the new editor in end of September 07, and members will be chief should be R. B. Howarth, from invited to vote by email in October. Dartmouth College, who twenty years ago was a student of R.B. Norgaard at Members who have forgotten to renew their Berkeley. Howarth is known to many of you membership for 2007, may still make it. because of his writings in the journal and There is also the possibility to join or renew elsewhere, and because of his active for three years at one go. presence at ecological economics conferences. He will take up the job at the beginning of 2008. We wish him great success. The journal Ecological Economics Page 3 From the desk of Richard Howarth — Editor of Ecological Economics 2008 Dear Fellow ISEE Members, Economics is a matter of great importance It will be an exciting challenge to succeed to ISEE members. Cutler Cleveland as the third Editor-in- Chief of Ecological Economics effective One critical factor that supports a January 1, 2008. The first issue of the journal's operations is the effectiveness of journal appeared in 1989 under Bob its Managing Editor. I am pleased to say Costanza, who served as editor until Cutler that Anne Carter, who has served took charge in the fall of 2002. My admirably under Cutler, plans to remain predecessors have created a forum that is on-the-job in this role. I have worked with both highly visible to and well-regarded by Anne as an author, a referee, and the researchers in ecological economics and editor of a forthcoming special issue. closely-related fields. Our professional Anne's service to the journal is truly community is deeply indebted to both Bob admirable, and I look forward to working and Cutler for their outstanding and lasting with her more closely. contributions. I am mindful of the fact that I have big shoes to fill and that the As a field, ecological economics is rich and continued success of Ecological diverse. Our subject is unified by a (Continued on Page 6) China (Continued from Page 1) ISEE biennial conference in Tongji University as a 4-year term; its most recent Nairobi, for which Zhu repository for innovation in conference was held in would be invited to proffer a ecological economics in October 2006. A 2008 keynote address, focused China. conference is planned to on scenarios for the take place in Nanjing. The Chinese economy; ISEE was represented at current President, • Strengthening of the 2007 Elsevier Professor Teng Teng, is ecological economics EcoSummit in Beijing by Director of the Sustainable training at Tongji University, Robert Costanza and Peter Development Research ISEE President Joan through development of an May, both of whom Center of the Chinese Martinez-Alier speaks intensive summer school participated in a symposium Academy of Social about societal metabolism program to be offered by on agriculture and Sciences and Professor of at the Tongji University faculty members affiliated biodiversity in the Tsinghwa University. CSEE Forum on Innovation for productive landscape. After is administered by its Sustainable with ISEE; and Continued joint participation the symposium, leaders of General Secretary Li Zhou, Development, Shanghai in symposia on special the Chinese Society for Deputy Director of the Rural topics such as the role of Ecological Economics Development Institute of the “BRICS” countries in (CSEE) joined the ISEE the Chinese Academy of surmounting the potential leadership in a frank Social Sciences.
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