国外环境社会系统研究进展

R&D of Environmental-Social System Abroad

开展环境社会系统研究,可为生态文明建设提供理论支持,更有助于可持续发展理论的建构。目前,环境社会系统研究面临的问题是多学科融合不足,正处于探索阶段。把握环境社会系统研究的现状和趋势,将会为今后的研究提供方向。本文从共同演化、方法论、多样性、模型、案例五个方面综述了当前国外环境社会系统的研究进展。环境系统和社会系统是共同演化的,前者影响了后者的文化、价值、科学技术以及社会组织,后者也对前者产生影响并体现了环境系统的特点。开展环境社会系统研究需要发展真正的整体主义方法,形成新的理论框架。环境社会系统具有复合的模式与过程。系统的多样性十分必要,不同地区的自然、社会差异很大,不存在适合任何情况的单一制度安排;文化多样性为解决环境社会问题提供了多种视角和选择空间。已有的定量模型与概念或定性模型并不相称,涉及演化的数学模型的所得的结果往往少于定性分析,需尽可能多地考虑环境社会系统中的影响因素以避免遗漏的可能性。案例研究也是热点之一。

Researching on the environmental-social system can not only supply theoretical support for the construction of ecological civilization, but also contribute to the building of sustainable development theory. Nowadays, the problem suffered by the environment- social system is the shortage of mnhi-disciplinary integration, which is on the exploration stage. Understanding the academic situation and tendency of environmet so cial system will provide the future study for divection. This paper reviews the development in the study of environmental-social systems from five aspects, i.e. co-evolution, methodology, diversity, models, and case studies. Environmental- system and social system are co-evolutional. The former affects the latter＇ s cultures, values, science and technology and social organizations, and the latter also has impacts on the former while bearing its characteristics. A new theoretical framework for environmental-social systems is needed to develop a genuine holistic methodology with the involvement of ecology, other natural sciences, social sciences, humanities and related technologies. Environmental-social systems have a new and complex mode or process. System diversity is necessary. Different regions have different natural and social features, and there is no ＂one size fits all＂ system. Cultural diversity provides multiple perspectives and options to deal with a variety of environmental and social problems. Existing quantitative models are not commensurate with existing concepts or qualitative models. Numerical models involving evolution often come up with results Which less than are the results from qualitative analyses. In this regard, more consideration should be taken on the impact factors in environmental-social systems so as to avoid the possibility of missing something important. Finally, the case study is one of the hotspots.