Metaphysics allows one to make value judgements about ‘being’. I am an architect. I must have criteria for evaluating good environments from bad. Objective quantity judgements are not enough. I must make subjective quality judgements on what is good/valuable. Vitrivius, the Roman architect, call these different types of information ‘commodity, firmness, and delight’. This was directly adapted from Roman metaphysics.

As we move from an industrial age that is focused on objective scientific information, to a postindustrial age that is focused on intersubjective (social) information, it becomes increasingly important to develop a system of values that can address both objective and intersubjective requirements.

In climate change, ‘scientists’ often mix up objective scientific data with social data (often economics), and thus cannot make good decisions and judgements. Metaphysics is one of the few areas of study that allow us to combine objective, subjective and social information and make value judgements on which one is most important in a given situation.

As an architect I’m always evaluating what is more important; the objective built building, the person’s subjective experience in the building, or the intersubjective social use of the building. This is increasingly true with our digital environments where objective facts matter little, and user experience is most important.