Bryan Norton
Professor Emeritus
- School of Public Policy
Overview
Dr. Bryan Norton is a Professor of Philosophy in the School of Public Policy. He received his PhD in philosophy from the University of Michigan in 1970, specializing in the philosophy of science and conceptual change in, and across, scientific disciplines. He writes on inter-generational equity, sustainability theory, bio-diversity policy and on valuation methods. His specialty is the integration of spatio-temporal scaling considerations into sustainability criteria. He is currently working to develop a flexible notion of sustainability that recognizes the challenges of rapidly changing climate.
- Ph.D., University of Michigan, Philosophy, 1970
- BA, University of Michigan, Political Science, 1966
Distinctions:
- Class of 1934 Distinguished Professor Award, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2006.
- Gilbert White Fellow, Resources for the Future, 1985-56 (one-year Research Fellowship in residence at Resources, for the Future, Washington, D.C.)
- Graduated with Distinction, and Honors in Political Science, U. of Mich.,1966
Interests
- Economic Development and Smart Cities
- Energy, Climate and Environmental Policy
- Environmental Ethics
- Ethics and Philosophy of Science and Technology
Focuses:
- North America
- United States
- Environment
- International Development
Courses
- PHIL-4176: Environmental Ethics
- PST-4110: Theories of Knowledge
- PUBP-3600: Sustain,Tech & Policy
- PUBP-6327: Sustainability & Env Pol
- PUBP-8540: Adv Environmental Policy
Publications
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
- A Situational Understanding of Environmental Values and Evaluation
In: Ecological Economics [Peer Reviewed]
Date: April 2017
- Why Protect Nature? Rethinking Values and the Environment
In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [Peer Reviewed]
Date: February 2016
- “Where Are ‘Cultural and ‘Social’ in Ecosystem Services? A Framework for Constructive Engagement”
Date: 2012
All Publications
Books
- Sustainable Values, Sustainable Change: A Guide to Environmental Decision Making
Date: December 2015
- Ecosystem Services and Ethics
In: Ecological Economics [Peer Reviewed]
Date: June 2013
- Searching for Sustainability: An Interdisciplinary Philosophy of Conservation Biology
Date: 2012
- Sustainability: A Philosophy of Adaptive Ecosystem Management
Date: 2005
- The Preservation of Species
- Toward Unity Among Environmentalists
- Why Preserve Natural Variety?
Journal Articles
- A Situational Understanding of Environmental Values and Evaluation
In: Ecological Economics [Peer Reviewed]
Date: April 2017
- Why Protect Nature? Rethinking Values and the Environment
In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [Peer Reviewed]
Date: February 2016
- Ecosystem Services and Beyond: Using Multiple Metaphors to Understand Human-Environment Relations
In: Bioscience [Peer Reviewed]
Date: July 2013
- Leopold, Hadley, and Darwin: Darwinian Epistemology, Truth and Right
In: Contemporary Pragmatism [Peer Reviewed]
Date: 2013
It has been argued in this journal (Callicott, et.al., 2009) that the evidence advanced that Aldo Leopold was influenced by American Pragmatism is “imaginary,†and that apparent textual evidence that Leopold learned key ideas from A.T. Hadley, President of Yale University and a self-avowed Pragmatist, can be explained away. It is shown that Callicott, et. al. misunderstand pragmatism, misunderstand what environmental pragmatists have attributed to Leopold, fail to understand either the context or the internal argument of Leopold’s “Conservation as a Moral Issue.†Consequently, they miss important contributions that Leopold made to the philosophy of conservation.
- “Where are Cultural and Social in Ecosystem Services? A Framework for Constructive Engagement.”
In: Bioscience [Peer Reviewed]
Date: 2012
- “Where Are ‘Cultural and ‘Social’ in Ecosystem Services? A Framework for Constructive Engagement”
Date: 2012
- Cross-Scale Value Trade-Offs in Managing Social-Ecological Systems: The Politics of Scale
In: Ecology and Society [Peer Reviewed]
Date: January 2011
- The Ways of Wickedness: Analyzing Messiness with Messy Tools
In: Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics [Peer Reviewed]