Putting Philosophy to Work: Toward an Ecological Civilization
Change your thinking; change the world.
Philosophy has gotten a bad rap. As an academic discipline, it is mocked as irrelevant to modern society. But bias against philosophy doesn’t mean we don’t have one. We all have a basic worldview. This is as true for whole civilizations as for individuals, a point driven home daily as the dire consequences of the Western worldview—the most urgent being climate change—are now inescapable. But if Western philosophy has brought us to this razor’s edge, would another one be any better? The twelve contributors to this book argue, yes: the process philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead.
But what is process philosophy? This book is designed not only to answer the what, but also to demonstrate the how and why—how process philosophy provides a practical answer to so many of the potentially catastrophic issues now facing us, and why it is so urgently needed.
About the Author(s)
Dr. John B. Cobb, Jr. is an American theologian, philosopher, and environmentalist. Described by historian Gary Dorrien as one of the two most important North American theologians of the twentieth century, Cobb is the preeminent scholar in the field of process philosophy and process theology, and the author of more than fifty books. In 2014, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Cobb is a founding co-director of the Center for Process Studies and Professor Emeritus of Claremont School of Theology and Claremont Graduate University.
Dr. Wm. Andrew Schwartz is a scholar, educator, and activist working at the intersection of process philosophy, ecological civilization, and global cross-cultural engagement. He currently serves as Executive Director of the Center for Process Studies (CPS), Co-Founder & Vice President of the Institute for Ecological Civilization (EcoCiv), and Associate Professor of Process Studies and Comparative Philosophy at Claremont School of Theology (CST). His research and teaching covers a wide range of topics, such as environmental philosophy, philosophy of religion, Asian and comparative philosophies, metaphysics, economic philosophy, philosophy of mind, philosophy of education, and more. However, his current work mainly focuses the application of process philosophy in understanding reality, understanding humanity, and understanding how best to organize systems of society for ecological civilization. He is author/editor of 7 books, including What is Ecological Civilization (2019) and The Metaphysics of Paradox (2018). Most recently, he spent the 2025–26 academic year in China as Visiting Associate Professor at Beijing Normal–Hong Kong Baptist University (BNBU) in Zhuhai, China. As Executive Director, Andrew has overall strategic and operational responsibility for CPS, including development and implementation of the CPS mission, programs, and strategic vision.
More Books
