Abstract

Ecological economics is an approach dealing with the main problems of global and long term impact defining the new Century, expressed in United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. A change in focus from quantitative growth to qualitative development in ecological economics necessitates a shift where quality changes character from being a thing, static and objective, to being anchored in relationships contextualized in time and space. I study quality in Norwegian kindergartens as ‘living organisms’ on different levels, micro, meso and macro to develop a concept of quality that is relevant within ecological economics as a holistic, dynamic and transdisciplinary field of science. The article is structured as follows; Firstly, I discuss qualitative development and quality of life in ecological economics. Secondly, structural and process quality in kindergartens are explained. Thirdly, I describe and discuss the relevance of narrative research methodology as a gateway to dig deeper into the concept of quality. Fourthly, I clarify key topics and characteristics in the narratives based upon stories from the field of Norwegian kindergartens. Fifthly, I focus on some implications in relation to ecological economics. In conclusion, I summarize the main principles for a dynamic and holistic understanding of quality in ecological economics.