Landscape and Liberty
摘要
Liberty can be described, negatively, as an absence of constraints (also termed ‘negative liberty’). However, liberty can also be understood positively (also known as ‘positive liberty’): As the ability to act with self-determination, i.e., the capacity of a person to seize opportunities based on their individual considerations (Isaiah Berlin). This tradition of positive liberty is linked to Ralf Dahrendorf’s concept of life chances, which formulates the maximization of life chances as a societal norm. This implies an ethical responsibility in dealing with landscape. This can be described as responsible, impartial, and tolerant. It is inherently open-ended and seeks suitable solutions to specific problems instead of following a general utopia.