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Framed against Timothy Clark's comments on the potency of ecocriticism, in this contribution I first zoom in on how cultural critique according to Rosemarie Buikema can contribute to discussions on matters of common concern. I then sketch two lines of argument that emerge from her work: firstly, the way in which art and culture can break through societal silences and, secondly, the importance of history and the past for cultural production in the present. Both issues are important where it concerns climate change and the Anthropocene. They lead to the essential question when thinking about ecocriticism: not 'where goes cultural critique' (the 'quo vadis' question), but what kind of critique is necessary?

Modern societies cannot exist without roads, dams, drinking water, telephone networks and electricity. The recent decades of privatization and globalization have put infrastructural providers at a distance from the influence of government. A lot of the actors in this field no longer act on a regional or national level alone, but are simultaneously active on multiple levels. The essays in this timely book consider the various intersections of public interest, strategic activity and private equity from economic, legal, administrative and technical perspectives. The contributors outline the challenges which future governments will need to meet nationally and globally, such as climate change, reduction of CO2 emissions and global capital flows, to name but a few

In het kader van duurzame ontwikkeling is het tegengaan van de opwarming van de aarde één van de grootste uitdagingen die we onder ogen moeten zien. Het Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stelde in de periode 1996-2005 een gemiddelde temperatuurstijging van 0,74°C vast. Deze temperatuurstijging is met grote waarschijnlijkheid te wijten aan menselijke activiteiten en zal wereldwijd gevolgen hebben, gaande van extreme weersomstandigheden tot snelle verspreiding van ziekten. Teneinde deze opwarming tegen te gaan, zullen de emissies van broeikasgassen drastisch gereduceerd moeten worden. Gezien het Kyoto-protocol in 2012 afloopt, werd in december 2009 een nieuwe klimaatconferentie gehouden in Kopenhagen. Het resultaat van deze klimaattop was echter teleurstellend. Er werden geen concrete doelstellingen per land overeengekomen. Enkele maanden later bevestigde België dat ze de politieke verbintenissen die de Europese Unie aangaat, zal naleven. Dit houdt een CO2-reductie van 20% in

In this essay, I argue that the alleged failure of the Copenhagen climate summit in December 2009, rather than labelling it as the collapse of climate politics, should be embraced as an essential political fact. Admittedly, Copenhagen was a failure, albeit of a populist consensual policy practice that invokes an apocalyptic doomsday scenario to make everybody toe the neo-liberal line. In my view, consensus-driven UN policy is running into its own limits as was clearly illustrated at the climate summit in Cancun (December 2010) where the blame was pinned on Bolivia for its fierce resistance against a weak agreement. The time has come to revive the climate and, by extension, the environment as a matter of genuine political concern, open to struggle and contestation, in this way constituting an essential component of social change. Adapted from the source document.

New technologies, climate change, infectious diseases and major crises like the BSE-affair make us realize that our knowledge of risks threatening our society is very limited. The shaping of the responsibilities of our physical safety has to be rethought. The WRR makes a strong case that government, companies and citizens alike should learn to cope pro-actively with uncertainties. This way they can be more aware of the vulnerability of nature, society and the people in it. The council gives suggestions how the government can stimulate this process. - De zorg voor fysieke veiligheid is met steeds meer onzekerheden omgeven. Nieuwe technologieën, maar ook de klimaatproblematiek, nieuwe infectieziekten en grote incidenten zoals de BSE-crisis, doen ons beseffen dat kennis over risico's voor de samenleving beperkt is. De vormgeving van verantwoordelijkheid voor fysieke veiligheid moet daarom op een nieuwe leest worden geschoeid. De Wetenschappelijke Raad voor het Regeringsbeleid bepleit dat overheid, bedrijven en burgers proactief leren omgaan met onzekerheid, om zodoende bewuster te worden van de kwetsbaarheid van mensen, samenleving en natuurlijke omgeving. De raad doet in dit rapport suggesties voor de wijze waarop de overheid dit proces kan bevorderen.

Virtuous situations from the industrial past and some ideas for the ?climatic metropolis? to come (cases of Brussels and Paris)' compiles examples and projections that question the shape given to the city and territory at a moment of paradigm shift.00The rapid evolution of climate change is leading to a clear state of emergency that is going to redefine the values and forms of our society and its territories. Several signs of a gradual paradigm shift have appeared and citizen voices are being raised against a social model that is at odds with the environment. Looking towards the past, a fascinated reading of a city?s ability to transform itself radically when necessary, is proposed.00The change, generated by the race towards industrialization and social emancipation, forced metropolises such as Brussels and Paris to develop new urban functions and logics. This evolution took shape in territories that were not yet highly urbanized, but also within the city itself, in negotiation with the existing context. A series of 23 situations from the industrial age draws a panorama of virtuous examples, illustrating an assumed cohabitation between the urban fabric and the infrastructural, productive and energy needs at a precise moment of radical change in Paris and Brussels.00The development of the ?climatic metropolis? must imperatively be based on design values and principles capable of generating a common vision. In this perspective, we propose some ideas for reflection formalized by projects tied to the built stories from the past, outlining potential situations of a new state to come for the European city.0

Whoever tries to break a lance for the more intensive use of markets and market mechanisms in the context of Mi-Assessment Agency and climate policy can usually non-economic social scientists rely on a strong reception. Neoliberalism (term) markets, risk accumulation, virtual money, new inequality, bonuses, uncontrollable shadow effects and more similar woes ultimately arises in the market as the core of capitalist societies, runs simply summarized the reasoning. Who is an effective international climate policy stands for, believes in strong regulation by national and supranational authorities in (climate) taxes, government funding for research and innovation. Government is, market, despite all the talk in the literature on changes in control forms of 'government' to 'governance'. Adapted from the source document.

Policy making in the Netherlands during three post-WWII periods is examined, focusing on limits imposed by the structure of society & the intellectual climate of the time. Intellectual & political constraints in economic policy, welfare policy, physical planning, & foreign affairs are discussed. Political constraints are shifting because of changes in market assessment, planning, & coordination. An increase in consultation among government, employers organizations, & trade unions is advocated, with the government establishing macroeconomic & social guidelines. Modified HA