Urgent needs for multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary research

Abstract

Traditional methods based on mono-disciplinary research or economic growth models cannot solve linked and diversified environmental problems. It requires a holistic view to understand the network of problems and how they are interrelated. In this regard, multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches and models are urgently needed. This paper demonstrates that for ten problems, including population growth, poverty, inequality, wars, refugees, famine, pollution, global warming, loss of nature, and depletion of resources, are interconnected. An integration of the use of eight toolboxes (the energy toolbox, the environment toolbox, the ecology toolbox, pollution control, Pigovian tax, aids to developing countries education and research and family planning) is proposed to provide holistic solutions to examine the networks of complex problems. Due to the linkage of global problems, problems that can be solved directly by toolboxes may result in partially and indirectly settlement of other problems. It should be emphasized that uses of integrated solutions based on several toolboxes are needed to solve the many interacting global problems that we are confronted with.