Intersecting Crises: Anthropocene, Capitalocene, and the Future of Care and Service Sector Work through a Public Sociology Lens
Language: English
This session critically examines how public sociology can address the challenges facing care and service sector workers during the Anthropocene and Capitalocene eras. While the Anthropocene is marked by ecological degradation and climate change, the Capitalocene highlights the capitalist structures driving these crises. The exploitation inherent in capitalist systems disproportionately burdens healthcare workers, teachers, and service workers, who are essential yet undervalued. They face precarious employment, low wages, and significant mental and physical health risks while responding to the cascading social, economic, relational, and environmental crises.
Public sociology can bridge research and action by offering a path to challenge the deep-rooted inequalities perpetuated by the Capitalocene. By engaging with policymakers, unions, and workers, public sociologists can advocate for systemic changes to improve labour conditions, including fair wages and secure employment. Structural reforms are needed not just to support these workers but also to challenge the capitalist logic that exacerbates ecological and social harm. Achieving ‘knowing justice’ in the Anthropocene and Capitalocene requires recognising the vital role of these workers and addressing the capitalist exploitation that shapes their vulnerabilities.
At the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology, the Sociology of Health, Sociology of Professional Goups, and Sociology of Work committees will provide interdisciplinary reflections on how public sociology can foster resilience, equity, and sustainability, advocating for a justice-oriented response to the environmental and economic challenges driven by Anthropocene and Capitalocene.