Knowledge, power, and participation in the post-normal age

Silvio Funtowicz and Jerry Ravetz

Ecological Economics, 2025, vol. 237, issue C

Abstract: Post-Normal Science (PNS) emerged as a critical response to the limitations of traditional scientific approaches under conditions of complexity and conflict. Drawing on the intellectual history of risk assessment, statistical governance, and ecological economics, this article reconstructs the conceptual evolution of PNS as a framework for navigating high-stakes decisions under uncertainty. We argue that PNS offers not only a critique of technocratic rationality but also a model for pluralistic and participatory science. By emphasizing the role of extended peer communities, value diversity, and inclusive approaches to quality, PNS reimagines the role of science in fostering more accountable and socially responsive forms of knowledge and governance.

Keywords: Post-normal science; Complexity; Uncertainty; Quality; Extended peer communities; Ecological economics; Governance; Knowledge pluralism; Environmental justice (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:237:y:2025:i:c:s0921800925001995

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2025.108716

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