Environmental sustainability and economic cooperation in the longue duree: A comparative approach to locality, history, and development

In recent years there have been multiple challenges to the existing understandings of economic growth and the environment, and the difficulties in balancing economic, social, and environmental goals. There is growing awareness of the challenges posed by climate change and the depletion of natural resources, and the urgency of developing balanced approaches for future economic growth and environmental sustainability. At the same time, the uneven economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the lingering repercussions of the 2008 financial crisis continue to raise important questions regarding social and economic equality, how to manage access to financial resources, and how to protect the agency and opportunity of individuals within a globalized economic system dominated by large multinational corporations. This network seeks to explore and bridge these two issues of our times - sustainable development and economic inequality. In particular, we seek to explore diverse models of economic cooperation and sustainable resource management through comparative and interdisciplinary engagement with historians, anthropologists, political scientists, geographers, and sociologists, with the goal of developing future research agenda into sustainable growth that can incorporate a diverse range of economic, environmental, and social objectives.

Contemporary environmental and economic crises highlight the importance of incorporating a humanistic approach to growth and development that brings to the fore sustainable and equitable patterns of resource management. As such, this network brings together humanities and social science researchers in order to explore the historical and cultural contexts surrounding diverse models of economic cooperation and resource management. In this way, we seek to provoke new understandings of sustainable development, both past and present, while also fostering new collaborations across disciplines and regions in order to highlight the significance of the social and cultural context of sustainable growth. In particular, we seek to prompt new insights and comparative studies into sustainable growth through the example of the Korean kye - a type of organization that has been used to manage a wide range of resources throughout Korean history including forests, fishery rights, education, and financial resources, to name just a few. By bringing examples of Korean kye organizations over time into dialogue with comparative models of economic cooperation and sustainable development from other regions, we aim to generate new directions for future research into alternative models of growth and economic activity.

Overall, this project will search for links between historically specific examples and contemporary case studies in order to develop a deeper understanding of the interrelations between environmentally sustainable growth and social and economic equality. We will create an environment for interdisciplinary conversations where researchers can learn from one another, while using discussions of kye as a vehicle to expand the understanding of sustainable development and create a foundation for future collaborative research. Throughout this process, we will foster strong ties between researchers in both South Korea and the United Kingdom by hosting a programme of visiting research fellowships and international workshops and conferences that will not only provide a valuable contribution to academic knowledge but also support researchers - especially early career researchers - to develop future research and international collaborations.