When the Footprint is a Carbon One: A Sustainable Paradigm fo the Analysis of the Contemporary Society

Starting from the commonly used meaning of a “human” footprint, connected to the traces that every action, product, or process leaves in the atmosphere as greenhouse gases, the paper explores new perspectives for a changing social theory considering the principles of sustainability. This theoretical hypothesis stands on the necessity of a revision of the sociological principles to observe and analyse the contemporary phenomena connected to economic, political, and social transformations due to environmental problems. The focus is on human action and its new role in the changing social space, time and relations. The application of these revised notions to a concrete process, such as the assessment of policies and social participation in Italian National Parks, according to the “positive thinking” model, will add some evidence about the radical transformation of cognitive paths and social dynamics.