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THE DYNAMICS OF LOCAL-GLOBAL RELATIONS 401

in the 1850s and is firmly attached to biolog- system with a common origin and history for
ical evolution (Darwin, 1859). It is then several centuries, our observational and ana-
imported by early, secular social develop- lytical capacities still allow only a partial
ment theorists (Marx, 1867; Spencer, 1862); understanding of the place of the earth in the
becomes a sub-field of sociology called cosmos. Eventually our grasp of the world has
human ecology in North America (Park et al., come to include the reality that our world
1925); and finally bounces back to Europe as emerged from larger, more encompassing sys-
social ecology (Dogan and Rokkan, 1969). In tems that continue to shape it both incremen-
about a generation, social ecology has moved tally by the impact of energy and matter and
as a discipline from the national to the inter- episodically by massive intrusions from outer
national and now to the global, the ultimate space. Challenges abound in the study of the
1
social niche. From the point that ecological evolution of species. Even now, the search
analysis was opened as a paradigm for the goes on for evidence of catastrophic events
study of human change in general, it is now from space millions of years ago that trans-
being considered as a way to interpret theo- formed the configurations of living systems.
retically the most important transformation Understanding of the world as a single
of the past several decades, the integration of human system is not within easy analytical
all human societies into a single human grasp, and research and teaching about it
social system. remain ensconced in national sociologies.
An essential component of ecological While the global human system can be
analysis is the definition of an environment – addressed from the perspective of an interna-
a niche – that must be justified theoretically tional sociology, the challenge of construct-
and empirically. However conceived, the ing a global social science remains. Still,
world unto its ‘ends’ was always an ‘environ- politics about the virtues and vices of a
ment’ for the human race. In social ecology, global human system are supplanting the
the neighborhood was defined as an environ- focus on the influence of particular civiliza-
ment within a city or settlement; the city, as a tions and states that seek control and domi-
space for population distributions by social nance. An ideological struggle about a global
class in ‘capitalist’ development with its free human system is taking place on the cusp of
migration of people and capital; the region, as a transformation from an international world
formal and informal units determining the eco- composed of states continuing to pursue their
nomic functions of spatially aggregated cities; interests in competition over limited
and the country, as the powerful political entity resources to a global system of growth and
controlling basic social and economic relations development with cooperation.
among groups and individuals. The progression The structure of the ecological paradigm
is from local niches, to regions as aggregates for theory and research has the following
of localities, to countries as aggregations of fundamental characteristics: at least two levels
regions, and, finally, to the dynamics of glob- (environment and the encompassed entities);
alization that makes the world a total physical, at least two points in time; and at least one
living, and human system, ‘the ultimate envi- relationship, conflict being the most common.
ronment’ of theoretical relevance today. Implied are comparisons across systems and
Since the fifteenth century with its across time. From this ecological perspective,
European naval explorations, the world is processes that increase complexity and change
seen, mostly in outline form, as a changing, as growth or decline at the global level both
single living system, focused on dispersions incorporate and stimulate conflict dynamics
of germs and plant and animal populations at the local levels.
invading world regions and localities mostly In social ecology, as in any macro-social
through human carriers. Although the world analysis, the first question is the aggregation
has been understood as a single physical rules of relevance for explanation; and