Katana VentraIP

Ecofeminism

Ecofeminism is a branch of feminism and political ecology. Ecofeminist thinkers draw on the concept of gender to analyse the relationships between humans and the natural world.[1] The term was coined by the French writer Françoise d'Eaubonne in her book Le Féminisme ou la Mort (1974).[2][3] Ecofeminist theory asserts a feminist perspective of Green politics that calls for an egalitarian, collaborative society in which there is no one dominant group.[4] Today, there are several branches of ecofeminism, with varying approaches and analyses, including liberal ecofeminism, spiritual/cultural ecofeminism, and social/socialist ecofeminism (or materialist ecofeminism).[4] Interpretations of ecofeminism and how it might be applied to social thought include ecofeminist art, social justice and political philosophy, religion, contemporary feminism, and poetry.

Ecofeminist analysis explores the connections between women and nature in culture, economy, religion, politics, literature and iconography, and addresses the parallels between the oppression of nature and the oppression of women. These parallels include, but are not limited to, seeing women and nature as property, seeing men as the curators of culture and women as the curators of nature, and how men dominate women and humans dominate nature. Ecofeminism emphasizes that both women and nature must be respected.[5]


Though the scope of ecofeminist analysis is dynamic,[6] American author and ecofeminist Charlene Spretnak has offered one way of categorizing ecofeminist work: 1) through the study of political theory as well as history; 2) through the belief and study of nature-based religions; 3) through environmentalism.[7]

Concepts[edit]

Modern science and ecofeminism[edit]

In Ecofeminism (1993) authors Vandana Shiva and Maria Mies ponder modern science and its acceptance as a universal and value-free system. They view the dominant stream of modern science not as objective science but as a projection of Western men's values.[18] The privilege of determining what is considered scientific knowledge and its usage has been controlled by men, and for the most part of history restricted to men. Many examples exist, including the medicalization of childbirth and the industrialization of plant reproduction.


A common claim within ecofeminist literature is that patriarchal structures justify their dominance through binary opposition, these include but are not limited to: heaven/earth, mind/body, male/female, human/animal, spirit/matter, culture/nature and white/non-white. Oppression, according to them, is reinforced by assuming truth in these binaries, which factuality they challenge, and instilling them as 'marvelous to behold' through what they consider to be religious and scientific constructs.[19]

Major critiques[edit]

Accused essentialism[edit]

In the 1980s and 1990s ecofeminism began to be heavily critiqued as 'essentialism'. The critics believed ecofeminism to be reinforcing patriarchal dominance and norms.[22] Post structural and third wave feminists argued that ecofeminism equated women with nature and that this dichotomy grouped all women into one category enforcing the very societal norms that feminism is trying to break.


The ascribed essentialism appears in two main areas:

– Bari was a principal organizer of the Earth First! movement and experienced sexist hostility.

Judi Bari

– Called upon women to lead an ecological revolution in order to save the planet. This entailed revolutionizing gender relations and human relations with the natural world.[2]

Françoise d'Eaubonne

– Greta Gaard is an American ecofeminist scholar and activist. Her major contributions to the field connect ideas of queer theory, vegetarianism, and animal liberation. Her major theories include ecocriticism which works to include literary criticism and composition to inform ecofeminism and other feminist theories to address a wider range of social issues within ecofeminism. She is an ecological activist and leader in the U.S. Green Party, and the Green Movement.[50]

Greta Gaard

- A radical feminist philosopher, essayist and playwright particularly known for her innovative, hybrid-form ecofeminist works. A Californian, she taught as an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley as well as at Stanford University and California Institute of Integral Studies.

Susan Griffin

– A prominent ecofeminist theologian, McFague uses the metaphor of God's body to represent the universe at large. This metaphor values inclusive, mutualistic and interdependent relations amongst all things.[51]

Sallie McFague

– Historian of science who taught at University of California, Berkeley for many years. Her book The Death of Nature: Women, Ecology and the Scientific Revolution is a classic ecofeminist text.

Carolyn Merchant

Mary Mellor – UK sociologist who moved to ecofeminist ideas from an interest in cooperatives. Her books Breaking the Boundaries and Feminism and Ecology are grounded in a materialist analysis.

– Mies is a German social critic who has been involved in feminist work throughout Europe and India. She works particularly on the intersections of patriarchy, poverty, and the environment on a local and global scale.[43]

Maria Mies

– A cultural and environmental theorist. She has published eight books and numerous articles on environmental activism, feminist new materialism, and imagination. Most notable is her trilogy – Hijacking Sustainability, The Wrath of Capital, and Birth of a New Earth.

Adrian Parr

– Val Plumwood, formerly Val Routley, was an Australian ecofeminist intellectual and activist, who was prominent in the development of radical ecosophy from the early 1970s through the remainder of the 20th century. In her work Feminism and the Mastery of Nature she describes the relationship of mankind and the environment relating to an eco-feminist ideology.[52]

Val Plumwood

– The author of several books and articles on ecofeminism and gender inequality, Alicia Puleo has been characterized as "arguably Spain's most prominent explicator-philosopher of the worldwide movement or theoretical orientation known as ecofeminism."[53]

Alicia Puleo

– Has written 36 books and over 600 articles exploring the intersections of feminism, theology, and creation care.[54] Ruether was the first person to connect the domination of the earth with the oppression of women.[55]

Rosemary Radford Ruether

– Australian ecofeminist with a global perspective; a founding editor of the journal Capitalism Nature Socialism; author of three books and some 200 articles examining links with deep and social ecology, green politics and eco-socialism.

Ariel Salleh

– Shiva is a scientist by training, prolific author and Indian ecofeminist activist.[56] She was a participant in the Chipko movement of the 1970s, which used non-violent activism to protest and prevent deforestation in the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand, India, then in Uttar Pradesh. Her fight against genetically modified organisms (GMOs) (together with the fights led by Rachel Carson against DDT and Erin Brockovich against hexavalent chromium) has been described as an example of ecofeminist position.[57]

Vandana Shiva

– Spretnak is an American writer largely known for her writing on ecology, politics and spirituality. Through these writings Spretnak has become a prominent ecofeminist. She has written many books which discuss ecological issues in terms of effects with social criticisms, including feminism. Spretnak's works had a major influence in the development of the Green Party. She has also won awards based on her visions on ecology and social issues as well as feminist thinking.[58]

Charlene Spretnak

– An American writer and activist, Starhawk is known for her work in spiritualism and ecofeminism. She advocates for social justice in issues surrounding nature and spirit. These social justice issues fall under the scope of feminism and ecofeminism. She believes in fighting oppression through intersectionality and the importance of spirituality, eco consciousness and sexual and gender liberation.[59]

Starhawk

– Lemgruber is a Brazilian lawyer, writer,[60] activist, and ecofeminist.[61] She defends[62] the Doce river in Brazil and advocates for water quality and zero waste movements.[63]

Vanessa Lemgruber

– An American ecocritic whose edited volumes include Ecofeminism and Rhetoric: Critical Perspectives on Sex, Technology, and Discourse (2011),[64] Feminist Ecocriticism: Environment, Women, and Literature (2012),[65] Dystopias and Utopias on Earth and Beyond: Feminist Ecocriticism of Science Fiction (2021),[66] Ecofeminist Science Fiction: International Perspectives on Gender, Ecology, and Literature (2021),[67] The Routledge Handbook of Ecofeminism and Literature (2023),[68] (with Nicole Anae) Indian Feminist Ecocriticism (2022),[69] and (with Sam Mickey) Ecofeminism in Dialogue (2018),[70] Literature and Ecofeminism: Intersectional and International Voices (2018),[71] and Women and Nature?: Beyond Dualism in Gender, Body, and Environment (2018).[72]

Douglas Vakoch

– Warren received her B.A. in philosophy from the University of Minnesota (1970) and her Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst in 1978. Before her long tenure at Macalester College, which began in 1985, Warren was Professor of Philosophy at St. Olaf College in the early 1980s. Warren was the Ecofeminist-Scholar-in-Residence at Murdoch University in Australia.[1] In 2003, she served as an Oxford University Round Table Scholar and as Women's Chair in Humanistic Studies at Marquette University in 2004. She has spoken widely on environmental issues, feminism, critical thinking skills and peace studies in many international locations including Buenos Aires, Gothenburg, Helsinki, Oslo, Manitoba, Melbourne, Moscow, Perth, the U.N. Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro (1992), and San Jose.

Karen J. Warren

— Wright proposed Vegan studies as an academic discipline.

Laura Wright

Ancient Futures: Learning from Ladakh, by

Helena Norberg-Hodge

The Body of God by

Sallie McFague

The Chalice & The Blade: Our History, Our Future, by

Riane Eisler

The Death of Nature: Women, Ecology, and the Scientific Revolution by

Carolyn Merchant

Ecofeminism by and Vandana Shiva

Maria Mies

Ecofeminism in Latin America by Mary Judith Ross

Ecofeminist Philosophy by

Karen J. Warren

Environmental Culture by

Val Plumwood

Feminism and the Mastery of Nature by Val Plumwood

Gaia & God: An Ecofeminist Theology of Earth Healing by

Rosemary Radford Ruether

Integrating Ecofeminism, Globalization, and World Religions by Rosemary Radford Ruether

Neither Man Nor Beast by

Carol J. Adams

Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place by

Terry Tempest Williams

The Resurgence of the Real: Body, Nature, and Place in a Hypermodern World by

Charlene Spretnak

Sacred Longings: Ecofeminist theology and Globalization by

Mary Grey

The Sexual Politics of Meat by

Carol J. Adams

by Rachel Carson

Silent Spring

by Starhawk

The Spiral Dance

Staying Alive: Women, Ecology and Development by

Vandana Shiva

Thinking Green! Essays on Environmentalism, Feminism, and Nonviolence by

Petra Kelly

Tomorrow's Biodiversity by

Vandana Shiva

Woman and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her by

Susan Griffin

Breaking the Boundaries by Mary Mellor

Feminism and Ecology by Mary Mellor

Ecofeminism as Politics: nature, Marx, and the postmodern by

Ariel Salleh

The Greening of Costa Rica by Ana Isla

Feminist Greta Gaard and Lori Gruen's ecofeminist framework

Ecofeminism: Toward global justice and planetary health

Metanexus Institute by Lisa Stenmark

"An Ecology of Knowledge: Feminism, Ecology and the Science and Religion Discourse"

by Catherine Keller (2005); cf. Carol P. Christ, "Ecofeminism", in Michel Weber and Will Desmond (eds.), Handbook of Whiteheadian Process Thought, Frankfurt / Lancaster, ontos verlag, 2008, pp. 87–98.

"Ecofeminism and the Democracy of Creation"

by Greta Gaard

"Toward a Queer Ecofeminism"

by Marijke Colle

Feminism and ecology: the same struggle? – The shaping of ecofeminism

by Karen Warren

Feminist Environmental Philosophy

Perlego Books

What is Ecofeminism?