L’Antropocene come sfida cognitiva per la teoria costituzionale

The Anthropocene as a Cognitive Challenge for Constitutional Theory

Abstract

This study explores the Anthropocene and its implications for constitutional law, and recognises the Anthropocene as a cognitive challenge – forcing constitutional law to open up to new perspectives – and proposes a critical view on constitutional theory through the acknowledgement of a “learning constitutionalism”. The considerations that follow are situated in the field of constitutional theory and constitutional comparison in a dialogical and interdisciplinary approach. With the aim of defining the aforementioned assumptions, the paper focuses on four main thematic areas: 1) the Anthropocene as a cognitive challenge; 2) “the unforeseen Anthropocene” and the new horizons of constitutionalism; 3) resisting apolitical normalisation and “deciding how to decide”; 4) dependence and empathy in reference to constitutionalism’s cognitive openness to the ethics of care.

Keywords: Anthropocene; Learning constitutionalism; Constitutional law; Cognitive challenges