The question can also be posed in a more normative way: In which direction should ecological economics be developed in the future? The intention of this paper is to
contribute to both the positive and the normative
discussion by outlining important trends in the development
of ecological economics since the formal
establishment of the field and by taking a stance
concerning the perspective for the future. This paper is
a follow-up to a paper on the early history of modern
ecological economics (Rbpke, 2004), and both papers
form parts of a research project concerning ecological
economics as a special perspective.1