A ciência e a técnica frente à questão da crise ambiental: apontamentos teóricos para o debate

Abstract

The current paper begins by drawing a historical path about how the human thought understands the relation between science, technique and nature. This path begins with the “myth of progress,”, that arises within the scientific revolution and reaches its pick during the industrial modernity; passes by the disenchantment and technological pessimism of the interwar and post-war period and culminates with the perception that nowadays we live in a risky society. Subsequently, the paper turns to the philosophy of technology in order to discuss if the human technique, understood as one of the causes of environmental crisis, can be democratically reformed in a way that its development respects the harmonic relation with the environment. Based on Andrew Feenberg’s critic theory, we give a positive answer to the question.

Keywords

• environmental crisis
• science and technique
• philosophy of technology
• myth of progress
• risky society