Technological thinking: Its impact on environmental management

A style of thinking that is variously called technological, technocentric, and technocratic dominates environmental management. However, there is growing criticism of this style of thought, leading some to conclude that, if environmental management is to progress, technological thinking needs to be supplemented by radically different ways of thinking. The intent of this article is to examine the role of technological thinking in environmental management, seeking to establish some of its limitations. It is concluded that, while technological thinking is a satisfactorytactical strategy, it has serious deficiencies when problems requirestrategic thinking.