An intellectual revolution is overthrowing the mechanistic conception of nature and replacing it with a biological concept. Some are calling this paradigm shift the ecological revolution. With the realization that the world, and the environment, are part of a larger whole on which we all depend, it is apparent that our patterns of development are based on an outdated model of reality. This new model makes us aware of our ecological, economic, and social interconnectedness. For this reason, ecology is probably a more descriptive concept for our purposes than environment.
Ecology suggests an inclusive perspective, one in which the observer is a participant.
The economic system is, after all, a part of the human ecological system. The ecological revolution holds out the possibility that economic necessity and ecological responsibility are not mutually exclusive, that development and environment are not necessarily in conflict. By teaching us to see and think in different ways, it can point to ways in which the built and natural environments can be closely integrated. It provides new approaches to design, engineering, industry, business, and economics that can be used to create opportunities rather than constraints. George Burton Brewster is a San Francisco-based development consultant who specializes in integrating the economic and environmental aspects of real estate.