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Generalization without universalization: Towards an agroecology theory

ABSTRACT We consider the question of whether agroecology can be said to have a theory, given its interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity. Based on the discussions from a workshop at the 2015 conference on The Agroecological Imagination: A Franco-American Exchange, we argue in the affirmative. But rather than understanding theory as universalistic generalized explanation, we argue that agroecological theory focuses on the consequences of context. Such a focus leads agroecologists to offer contextually sensitive principles of general relevance but not universal outcomes, and thus generalizing without universalizing. We conclude by arguing that a contextual approach leads agroecologists to think in terms of the philosophical triad of ontology, epistemology, and axiology, taking seriously a wide range of perspectives as well as questions of justice.