ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces theoretical frameworks for analyzing or considering the relationship between economic production, energy, science/technology, and environmental impact. The chapter primarily looks historically to the Industrial Revolution and to the social context in which fossil energy, machine technologies, and capitalist economic production took hold. Drawing from the treadmill of production theory and the political economy of science, the chapter argues that science/technology, fossil energy, and climate remain shaped by economic interests in growth, despite ecologically harmful costs. The chapter also draws from ecological modernization theory and related approaches in STS to demonstrate openings for environmental values, interests, and sustainability to be incorporated into the design and functioning of economic markets and governance. Ultimately, the chapter highlights how STS approaches to climate change can centrally consider issues of economic interests in their analyses and understanding of the dynamic relationship between climate, science, and society.
