The Power of Narrative in Environmental Networks by Raul Lejano

The Power of Narrative in Environmental Networks by Raul Lejano

Theory and case studies demonstrate the analytic potential of mutually constitutive narrative networks in environmental governance.

For as long has humans have lived in communities, storytelling has bound people to each other and to their environments. In recent times, scholars have noted how social networks arise around issues of resource and ecological management. In this book, Raul Lejano, Mrill Ingram, and Helen Ingram argue that stories, or narratives, play a key role in these networks--that environmental communities narrate themselves into existence. The authors propose the notion of the narrative-network, and introduce innovative tools to analyze the plots, characters, and events that inform environmental action. Their analysis sheds light on how environmental networks can emerge in unlikely contexts and sustain themselves against great odds.

The authors present three case studies that demonstrate the power of narrative and narratology in the analysis of environmental networks: a conservation network in the Sonoran Desert, which achieved some success despite U.S.-Mexico border issues; a narrative that bridged differences between community and scientists in the Turtle Islands; and networks of researchers and farmers who collaborated to develop and sustain alternative agriculture practice in the face of government inaction. These cases demonstrate that by paying attention to language and storytelling, we can improve our understanding of environmental behavior and even change it in positive ways.

Helen Ingram is the director of the Udall Center at the University of Arizona and coauthor of Water and Poverty in the Southwest. Nancy K. Laney is the deputy director of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson. David M. Gillilan is a research associate in the Department o Earth Resources at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780262519571
ISBN 10	0262519577
Title	The Power of Narrative in Environmental Networks
Author	Raul Lejano
Series	American And Comparative Environmental Policy
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	MIT Press Ltd
Year published	2013-07-26
Number of pages	248
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.