Ultrasocial : the evolution of human nature and the quest for a sustainable future / John Gowdy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gowdy, John M., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Human ecology.

Sustainable development.

Economic policy--Environmental aspects.

Economic policy.

Globalization--Environmental aspects.

Globalization.

Agriculture--Environmental aspects.

Agriculture.

Social evolution.

Nature--Effect of human beings on.

Nature.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 269 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2021.

Summary:

Ultrasocial argues that rather than environmental destruction and extreme inequality being due to human nature, they are the result of the adoption of agriculture by our ancestors. Human economy has become an ultrasocial superorganism (similar to an ant or termite colony), with the requirements of superorganism taking precedence over the individuals within it. Human society is now an autonomous, highly integrated network of technologies, institutions, and belief systems dedicated to the expansion of economic production. Recognizing this allows a radically new interpretation of free market and neoliberal ideology which - far from advocating personal freedom - leads to sacrificing the well-being of individuals for the benefit of the global market. Ultrasocial is a fascinating exploration of what this means for the future direction of the humanity: can we forge a better, more egalitarian, and sustainable future by changing this socio-economic - and ultimately destructive - path? Gowdy explores how this might be achieved.

Contents:

The ultrasocial origin of our existential crisis

The evolution of ultrasociality in humans and social insects

Our hunter-gatherer heritage and the evolution of human nature

The agricultural transition and how it changed our species

The rise of state societies

The modern state/market superorganism

Neoliberalism : the ideology of the superorganism

Taming the market : a minimal bioeconomic program

Evolving a sustainable and equitable future : what can we learn from nonmarket cultures?

Reclaiming human nature : the future will be better (eventually).

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 11 Oct 2021).

ISBN:

1-108-97612-3

1-108-97635-2

1-108-97426-0

OCLC:

1264172788