Environment World Society
There are many views with regard to the environment; dating back to the start of the Christianity it can be seen that people usually adopted their view of nature from their religious beliefs (Connelly & Smith, 1999). So according to Christianity; people either view the world as something which is theirs to be used for their benefit no matter the cost, on the other hand some people view the earth as finite which needs conserving (Connelly & Smith, 1999) To date the environment has been 'conquered' by humans; the relationship between humans and the environment is an exploitative relationship, this relationship is mirrored by the relationship between men and women. Woman and the environment are dominated by man, it is therefore crucial that man, woman and the environment be viewed as equal to conserve for future generations. As society changes the views of society also change; seems that as the environment becomes more and more degraded; people's concern for it increases. It is imperative that humans are aware of their consequences of their activities as the environment is finite.
English colonisers were not accustomed to the wilderness which many of their new colonised continents possessed; they felt that the wilderness was a place of darkness, with wild beastly animals (Conover & Conover, 2001). When they first arrived on these new continents they tried to re-invent the landscape which was present in Europe, they used what they needed and killed what they thought was a threat (Conover & Conover, 2001). However after many countries started to gain independence; it was realised what was lost (Conover & Conover, 2001). The industrial revolution created many unfavourable conditions and it has been questioned whether or not the move to civilisation was better (Conover & Conover, 2001). As more and more wilderness areas were destroyed people started to realise its value and it began to be viewed as something which is beautiful which needs conserving (Conover & Conover, 2001).
Although first world countries were the initial countries to show concern for the environment, many governments still refused to accept policies on protecting the environment (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). The USA government had many criticisms towards the environmental issue; authors such as John Maddox choose to criticize the belief in resources running out, Maddox believed in economic growth and that technological advances would aid humans to surpass the reliance of specific resources (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Environmental concern was a fast growing topic in 1970's and 1980's; many people aimed at getting environmental policies on the political agenda, however there were differing views on how it was to be achieved (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). All were concerned with portraying growth as the answer to economic, environmental and social problems (Doyle & McEachern, 2001:32). There have been various attempts to confront the environmental concerns however many were unsuccessful as intervention by the market in environmental affairs was ineffective (Doyle & McEachern, 2001).
During the 1990's the movement away from environmental concern was experienced, it was thought that population growth was not a dilemma as 'biotechnology' would supply any number of people with food and nutrition (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). During this period it was also thought that there were exaggerations regarding the poor biodiversity and species extinction rate (Doyle & McEachern, 2001).
Presidents such as Ronald Reagan opted for policies, which focussed mainly on the economic sector of the economy almost ignoring the environmental sector (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). There were various attempts to halt environmental protection the head of the USA Environmental Protection Agency was citied for contempt of congress and the head of Superfund (a scheme for cleaning up contaminated waste sites) served a term in jail for trying to enact his vision of a regulation-free environmental policy (Doyle & McEachern, 2001:33). The USA challenged many international protocols and environmental measures and was striving to an economic Utopia. Many other governments around the world did attempt to 'green' many of their policies however their commitment to the policies was reflected in the futile implementation (Doyle & McEachern, 2001).
Sustainable development encompasses meeting the needs of today's generation while conserving for the future generations (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Many people believe sustainable development is just an economic policy made to look pretty so that it is accepted by wider environmentally concerned people (Connelly & Smith, 1999).
Since the 1960's there have been various texts written about the environment; such as Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring 1962. Carson's mainly focussed on pesticide use and its detrimental affect on the environment (Moore & Frodeman, 2008:136). Carson found that the pesticide DDT was having a deadly effect on the environment (Moore & Frodeman, 2008). Silent Spring raised concerns to the public which prompted a 'need to know society' (Moore & Frodeman, 2008). From the late 1960's onwards, many western countries experienced the emergence of so-called new social movements (women's movement, peace movement, environmental movement etc.) (Van der Heijden, 2002:187).
The awareness for environmental problems has generally grown since about 25 years ago the First Club of Rome report and the 'oil crisis' became hotspot of public debate (Radermacher, 1999:339). During the 1970's the depletion of natural resources became a heavily deliberated topic, people wanted to become 'greener' in their approach to everything (Radermacher, 1999). Many countries may appear to be sustainable by looking at their policies and 'clean industries' but looking deeper some cracks and flaws may be found. Some countries that appear sustainable have just become experts in exporting their industries with high pollution (Rademacher, 1999).
By the early 1990's, the twin assumptions that our valuing of nature is solely a matter of ethics, and that our ethical claims must be grounded in science, ready for re-evaluation (Moore & Frodeman, 2008:138). The United Nations Commission on Environment and Development (UNCED) was a change from the mainstream approaches with regards to environmental management (Amanor, 2001). The UNCED aids in participation of the community, and woman's rights within the community are also addressed (Amanor, 2001).
The Rio Earth Summit in 1992 seemed to achieve a shift in thinking, woman were a central focus of many of the policies as it has been pointed out it is often women who are subjected to harsh consequences of unfriendly environmental practices. Many women in third world countries are involved in the subsistence farming practices; and toxic spills can affect the reproductive chances and success. They are usually the providers of food and safety for their children and sometimes make sacrifices in order to protect and feed their families. First World women can also be subjected to harmful substances in household products (Amanor, 2001).
The Brundtland Commission, 1987 'Our Common Future' was a benchmark conference as environmental issues started to be recognised as a global condition. Environmental degradation could be conceived of as one of the consequences of modernity (Van der Heijden, 2002; 190). Although there have been international policies; environmental degradation continues to happen, the reason for this is the failure to implement the policies.
There are many environmental critiques, mainly posed by 'radical environmentalists' (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). They require that the environment be taken more seriously; some radical positions include deep ecology, social ecology, eco-socialism, ecological post-modernism and eco-feminism (Doyle & McEachern, 2001:36).
Deep ecology or eco-centrisim identifies the environment and humans have equal value in the world, and resources of the world are limited (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Deep ecologists believe that there should be population control as the population directly effects the environment (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Social ecology is a critique of the deep ecology philosophy; it finds that the social organisation of humans is important; humans must not have a dominant role over the environment (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Social ecologists believe that humans should no longer justify things by what happens in nature. ...once all forms of hierarchy and domination are removed from human societies, then the separation between humans and other parts of nature will also dissipate (Doyle & McEachern, 2001:42).
Eco-socialism is based on the Marxist approach to the environment; eco-socialists believe that classes and the capitalist system are to blame with regard to environmental degradation (Doyle & McEachern, 2001). Ecological post-modernism; believe that society has made little or no progress as technology has created just as many problems if not more than it has solved (Doyle & McEachern, 2001).Eco-feminism promotes the idea of social change to have a non-dominant society, eco-feminism draws many similarities to the mentioned theories however its focus is central to women (Doyle & McEachern, 2001).
It is hard to subscribe to one set of values and ideals when it comes to the environment. The concern for the environment is being placed higher and higher on the agenda of many countries; this is mainly due to the realisation that the environment is finite and plays an integral part in human's survival. Due to the mounting pressure caused by climate change and global warming there is a need for a solution. Many of the environmental philosophies encompass similar ideals and values; ultimately it is the environment that needs protection, it is human's duty to do this; as humans are responsible for most of its degradation.
Ecological Feminism is a feminism which attempts to unite the demands of the women's movement with those of the ecological movement in order to bring about a world and world view that are not based on socioeconomic and conceptual structures of domination (Warren & Cheney, 1991:179). Warren & Cheney (1991) suggest that the natural world has been subjected to similar treatment which many women have received; the eco-feminist approach identifies the fact that dominance over women and nature is wrong and it should be eradicated.
According to eco-feminists science and technology is a good thing as it can supply solutions to environmental problems (Warren & Cheney, 1991). If science and technology were improved then the reliance on coal, oil and other natural resources could be limited; wind and wave technology could be used for electricity generation to reduce the reliance on natural resources'. The process of determining environmental problems is constantly changing as society changes and people experience different problems (Warren & Cheney, 1991).
It has been argued that many environmental plans have been drawn up in conflict of many women's needs (Amanor, 2001). Gender differentiation results in men and women relating to natural resources in different ways, and these variations are inserted into class, social and economic relations (Amanor, 2001:65). The oppression of women and the despoliation of the natural environment; essentially the connection is that both arise from man-centred thinking (Marshall, 1993:49).
In South Africa and other developing countries; women have often be discriminated against; even now although women and men are considered equal according to the law; it is still a patriarchal society. Traditional beliefs in Africa still regard women as lower than men, and this is reflective in their beliefs in the environment. Women tend to show more co-operative, initiative and responsive approaches to the environment. Eco-feminism is transformative rather than reformist in orientation, in that eco-feminists seek to radically restructure social and political institutions. (Lahar, 1991:30).
In South Africa many households are headed by women; so empowering woman and educating them about the environment is important, more progress can be made in conserving for 'our' future generations. Eco-feminism also seems to encompass more than just the discrimination of woman and the environment. Eco-feminist analyses of the twin dominations of women and nature include considerations of the domination of people of colour, children, and the underclass (Connelly & Smith, 1999:53). As South Africa has a history of an unequal society; it is important that everyone is now considered equal, if people were not selfish and had some compassion then everyone would be interested in conserving for future generations. The problem with conserving the environment is that if it is more lucrative to exploit the environment; people would rather make a fast buck then conserve.
Eco-feminists are also concerned with the inter-relationship between the social and environmental issues (Lahar, 1991). Eco-feminism is a grass root theory and its plans and policies are implemented at the community level; to often policies are implemented by government without government actually having an understanding of the local community setting. An example of this may be such as in rural areas and the introduction of monocropping of alien species such as maize instead of the indigenous crop being planted with little or no destruction. This monocropping of the alien plant results in depletion of nutrients in the soil and soil erosion.
Eco-feminism does not only operate at a local level; many eco-feminists argue for the employment of green technology to preserve nature (Soper, 1995). Society simply can not move away from development, it is impossible to move to back to a more traditional society. Society does however need to shift from the use of natural non-renewable resources such as coal and oil, there needs to be more environmentally friendly technologies adopted in order for society to move forward and to safeguard the environment for 'our children'.
As with every theory and philosophy there are criticisms to eco-feminism; an obvious one is discrimination on the opposite end; discrimination against man. Doyle & McEachern, (2001) raise this issue in the analogy of a natural occurring incident; of the lion being a 'toy-boy' who is used for breeding purposes only then traded in for a better 'model'. Another criticism stems form the fact that some eco-feminists argue that women are closer to the environment; however it is important that all beings are viewed as equal and that men and women work together to protect the environment.
In order for there to be an optimal environmental policy; it is important that aspects form all environmental theories are taken, not one theory can be right as society is constantly changing and evolving. Although there seemed to be an uprising in environmental issues during the 1960's and 1970's nothing concrete was done; society continued to industrialise and to destroy the environment; either they did not realise the impacts they were truly having or no one cared. In thirty years nothing has changed our course of development. There is all this talk of sustainable development and it may look good on paper; but ultimately people still are biased towards the economic sector.
Although there are different environmental plans and policies they are all western constructs; imposed on the developing world. Many developing countries have yet to industrialise and now these environmental policies stipulate that they can't have industries (which bring jobs and money) as they are detrimental to the environment. Often environmental policies are top down approaches; which are ineffective. Eco-feminism is a more participatory approach one which works at the 'grass roots' although there are many criticisms of eco-feminism; its approach to nature and humans is vital; that humans should safeguard nature as it is equal to us. Humans need to stop having a dominant role over nature as it is destroying it, as without it humans would not exist.
References:
Amanor, K.S. (2001) Empowering women through tree planning? Gender and Global environmentalism in Northern Ghana. Research Review. 17(1). 63-73.
Conover, M.R. & Conover, D.O. (2001) For Whom do we manage wildlife: The Resource, Society, or future generations? Wildlife Society Bulletin.29 (2). 675-679.
Connelly, J & Smith, G., (1999) Politics and the Environment. Routledge: London.
Doyle, T & McEachern, D. (2001) Environment and Politics. Routledge: London.
Lahar, S. (1991) Eco-feminist Theory and Grassroots Politics. Hypatia. 6(1). 28-45. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3810031 Accessed: 10/09/2008.
Marshall, I. (1993). Liberal and Metamorphic Harmony with Nature: Eco-feminism and Harriet Prescott Spofford's circumstance Modern Language Studies. 23(2). 48-58.
Moore, D. E. & Frodeman, R. (2008) Separated at Birth, Signs of Rapprochement: environmental ethics and space exploration. Ethics & the Environmental 13(1). 135-151.
Soper, K. (1995) Feminism and Ecology: Realism and Rhetoric in the Discourses of Nature Science, Technology, & Human Values, 20(3). 311-331 http://www.jstor.org/stable/690018 Accessed: 10/09/2008 13:45
Van der Heijden, H.A. (2002) Political Parties and NGOS in global environmental politics, International Political Science Review. 23(2) 187-201.
Warren, K. & Cheney, J. (1991) Ecological Feminism and Ecosystem Ecology, Ecological Feminism, 6(1). 179-197.
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