In this thesis the applicability of Bruno Latour’s political ecology (or: compositionism) is examined by connecting the theory to the practice of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD). Both in goal and in design, this theory and practice share similarities but also differences. The main part of this thesis consists of a recomposition of the relevant writings and lectures of Latour, in order to make his complex oeuvre accessible to a broader audience. After a first introduction, this thesis goes deeper into Latour’s evaluation of modernity and the false divide between science and politics. Subsequently, his plea for ecologizing instead of modernizing is discussed as well as his composition theory. Next, the difficulties and possibilities of applying Latour’s theory in practice are briefly explored to finally come to an answer to the question: under which circumstances can we compose the future we want?
| Date of Award | 1 Jan 2013 |
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| Original language | American English |
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| Supervisor | F. Suárez Müller (Supervisor) & H. P. Kunneman (Supervisor) |
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