Social Sustainability in Unsustainable Society

This book offers a unique, critical exploration of concepts and practices of social sustainability through both a critical concept analysis as well as empirical studies of practices that undermine social sustainability. It addresses the questions: What is the main role of social relations and social practice in the transition from fundamentally unsustainable societies and local practices towards a sustainable future? And how does economical sustainability reduce or enhance social sustainability? The chapters in this work define and understand social sustainability in relation to principles such as solidarity, community, welfare, reciprocity, and regenerative co-existence. These principles are analyzed through the lens of emotions, respect, carefulness, sensitivity, and art, to establish counter-principles and narratives to principles like growth, efficiency, capitalism, and mastery of nature. Such counter-narratives to mainstream understandings and histories of economy aid in shedding light on a variety of different aspects of sustainability. The book presents a methodological plurality including conceptual and empirical approaches, praxis-oriented and inductive approaches. The chapters present interdisciplinary approaches concerning welfare, ecology, sociology, organization and economy, social psychology and aesthetics and therefore appeal to a broad audience of scholars and academics.

Jo Krøjer Ph.D. and Associate Professor of Gender and Work Life at Dept. of People and Technology, Roskilde University. Head of the research group Organisation, Ethics, and Social Sustainability. With a background in social science, Krøjer specializes in feminist and interventionist research. Her interests are emotional aspects of gendered inequality and social change in welfare state institutions. Krøjer specializes in methodological innovation of socially sustainable research. She has co-edited three volumes on Social Intervention and Sustainability and published more than 50 articles, book chapters and special issues on work life, gender, inequality, and social change.  Luise Li Langergaard Ph.D. and Associate Professor in Social Entrepreneurship at Dept. of People and Technology, Roskilde University. Has a background in political philosophy and business administration and works in the intersection between political philosophy and economy and social science. Her research centers on social entrepreneurship, innovation and sustainability in relation to changes in the welfare state, organization of production and economy, as well as citizenship and democracy. Her particular interest is on critical and normative perspectives on the democratic and political dimensions of social innovation, social change and citizen-engagement.