What historical concepts can help us negotiate the implications of the Anthropocene?
Environmental anthropologist Gísli Pálsson reflects on the ancient Greek concept of oikos (housekeeping / household economy), from which the modern concepts both of economy and ecology derive, as potentially holding a renewed relevance in the Anthropocene. With human beings searching for solutions to wicked problems in a world in which ‘planetary boundaries’ have become a priority consideration, we may find in this root concept of oikos a new tool in an ancient sheath as we actively rethink and reexplore our bonds to the earth and to each other.
