ABSTRACT
It is common to hear that a shift in social values is necessary in order to promote a more ecologically just way of inhabiting the earth. The term “value” frequently appears in debates about socio-ecological transformation and transition to low-carbon futures. This chapter pays attention to the way the concept of value is deployed and the work it does in two different environmental policy arenas, first of all in attempts to make the value of nature and “ecosystem services” legible in monetary terms as part of building a “green economy” and, second, in arguments that fossil fuel assets and associated infrastructures could be devalued, and thus become “stranded assets”, in the face of regulatory measures to mitigate climate change. The first example draws attention to the role of law in co-constituting forms of value by creating new forms of property and the conditions for their exchange, and by engendering market confidence through regulatory infrastructure and perceptions of good governance. The second example draws attention to the key role played by law in stabilising future expectations, which does not just produce value but also creates the conditions for its realization.
