This study assumes, rather than debates, that there is an increasingly global environmental crisis – global warming, loss of ozone layer, biodiversity loss, deforestation and desertification, natural resource depletion, toxic pollution - brought about by western nations’ abuse of the natural environment during nineteenth century industrialization, continuing through the twentieth century, and, many would argue, into the new millennium as well. Greens have been warning of the dangers of human-induced climate change since the 1960s. And yet, their analysis of the reasons for the wide and global range of ecological problems currently being experienced, of which climate change is only one, is not widely known. And even less so, are their solutions to the ecological crisis. This thesis, “Towards the development of a "green" worldview, and criteria to assess the "green-ness" of a text: Namibia Vision 2030 as example”, poses two research questions, and undertakes three tasks. The first question asks: “What does ‘seeing green’ as worldview mean?” “Green” emerges as not only pro-environmental attitudes and behaviours, but a fundamental challenge to western-cultural views on Self, and on the Self/Other relationship, including our human-nature relationship. It represents a total worldview, with its own legitimating narratives, epistemology, ontology, ethics, and viewpoints on real-world political issues as well. The green worldview differs sharply in its ultimate premises from mainstream sustainable development. On the green view, only the radical changes in Self, the Self/Other relationship, and society’s structures, which a green worldview demands, will be sufficient to avert the impending ecological crisis. A green worldview, while containing considerable diversity, is still sufficiently coherent and consistent that it can be reduced to a set of criteria and indicators for “seeing green”. This was the study’s second task. The study’s third task co-incides with its second research question: “How green is Namibia Vision 2030s worldview?” Namibia Vision 2030 is Namibia’s premier policy text designed to guide Namibia through a generation of sustainable development. Using the green criteria and indicators developed during the study, it is argued that particularly as far as this text’s ultimate premises on the human/nature relationship are concerned, its worldview is best described as pale green fading into grey. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Psychology / unrestricted

The idea of the human as a rational man is deeply engrained into the thinking and the construction of the human culture within industrialized societies. It enables the domination and commodification of nonhuman species and the natural world (the Other). This has led to the creation of a highly technologized, industrialized and environmentally destructive food system. Such system centers around the production and consumption of meat whereas meat symbolizes the dominant culture. It stands for hegemonic masculinity, rationalism and the subordination of the Other. In the 1970s, the ethical vegetarian movement arose, tackling the environmental destruction from a non-anthropocentric angle. Although the movement has not achieved the value shift it asks for, it identified the commodification of the Other as majorly problematic.Today, human induced climate change puts increasing pressure on humanity. Without inherent social change and restructuring, global warming may cause the extinction of the human and many other species.That is why, a new generation of activists has arisen. They use the environmental vegetarian argument to abolish commodification. It is an anthropocentric argumentation that aims to replace the exploitative, violent rationalist and industrialized society with the creation of a compassionate society that lives temperate lives. Environmental vegetarianism becomes powerful because it threatens the dominant culture daily. It challenges hegemonic masculinity because it embraces feminine virtues which build the basis for an ethics of care that centers around compassion. The argument’s power is reinforced by the natural scientific argument the confirms the reduction of meat consumption as important for the counteraction of climate change.

Ecofeminism has long demonstrated how patriarchal structures and masculine norms constitute major obstacles for a transition to an ecologically and socially just society. In recent years, this has been illustrated by the hegemonic masculine performances of world leaders such as Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro. There is a vital need to engage men in changing these structures and norms in favour of environmental and social care. Therefore, pro-feminist and pro-environmental reflective groups for men have been initiated in Sweden. This study explores how men who have participated in these groups narrate the global ecological crisis and their role in it. The political power of these personal narratives must be understood as part of a discursive struggle in the international arena. The narratives construct these men in a way that positions social and environmental justice as normative. This, in turn, challenges the prevailing norms and enables different international environmental politics.

Louise Erdrich's novel Love Medicine presents a variety of voices that depict thetruths of Chippewa life and how they as a group are victims of a society that authorizesoppression and domination. Studies show that Chippewa tribes have a close connectionto nature and with each other as people. Ecofeminist critics draw analogies between theexploitation of nature and the oppression of groups such as those based on race, class,and sexuality, which results in a distortion of Native people's identity and connection tonature. Since the characters and nature are both oppressed and exploited by the U.Sgovernment, it becomes relevant to draw parallels between Erdrich's characters andnature with ecofeminism. The analysis concludes that ecofeminism can be applied toErdrich's novel because they share some values such as the importance of striving forinterconnection between humans and nature to free both from the power structure. TheChippewa characters and the U.S government can be identified in ecofeminist discourseas a set of dualisms. However, there are also some differences between ecofeminismand the way in which Erdrich depicts her Chippewa characters and nature. Erdrich’sstory shows that both female and male characters of Chippewa origin possess a sacredrelationship to Mother Earth, not only women, as ecofeminists would suggest.

In this essay, Parable of the Sower (1993) by Octavia E. Butler will be analyzed. The analysis investigates how the novel can enable discussions about empathy in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom. Empathy and its related notions are examined from an ecofeminist point of view in combination with research that investigates narrative empathy from a cognitive literary theory perspective. This essay does not advocate for specific ways of working with empathy but rather seeks to illustrate in what ways it could be discussed by students and to further encourage the development of their own thoughts on the matter. The findings show that the novel contains multiple aspects that can serve as a basis for discussions about empathy as well as working with climate change and gender perspectives in the EFL classroom.

This thesis examines Fielding Burke's Call Home the Heart, Grace Lumpkin's To Make My Bread, and Myra Page's Gathering Storm through the lens of ecofeminism, an interdisciplinary theory that contributes the necessary insight into the link between the abuse of power on personal, political, and economic levels that underlies the human oppression and environmental exploitation experienced by the novels' characters and communities. A resurrection of the Gastonia novels through the framework of ecofeminism will contribute to the scholarly discourse regarding this maturing theory as well as intensify the critical body of work concerning the Gastonia novels themselves. This thesis, in conjunction with the works of instrumental Appalachian scholars, literary critics, and historians as well as major landmark texts in the field of ecofeminism such as Kathy Warren's Ecofeminism: Women, Culture, Nature and Greta Gaard's Ecofeminism: Women, Animals, Nature, purposes to advance the critical standing of the Gastonia novels.

This thesis explores the conception and embodiment of nature in the songs of American folkmusic/doom metal singer-songwriter Chelsea Wolfe. Through the theoretical perspective of ecocritical feminism that emphasise the interconnectedness of the subjugation of women and the environment, this study delves into how Wolfe’s songs relate to nature and the feminine in relation to voice and song. I employ the methodology of Critical Musicology as described by Lawrence Kramer, to provide an understanding of the relationship between song, text and language. And to further facilitate a comprehensive understanding of gender and vocal expression, I utilise the feminist vocal philosophy of Adriana Cavarero where the logocentric division of speech and sound is scrutinised. Alongside this study’s primary focus on Wolfe’s vocal expression, attention to how ideas are musicalized and conveyed through sound and textual inclusions contribute to a richer and more nuanced understanding of how the relationship with nature is embodied in Wolfe’s songs.

Ce mémoire s’intéresse à la crise environnementale, prenant place de manière globale et exponentielle dans le monde. L’objectif est de chercher, à travers ses causes historiques, quelles peuvent être les solutions possibles. Le travail débute par l’exposition d’un lien de causalité entre crise environnementale et colonisation occidentale. Nous verrons aussi que les deux phénomènes sont empreints d’une épistémologie patriarcale ayant déréglé le rapport humain à la nature. Plutôt que de prôner l’interdépendance, les humains en sont venus à favoriser la séparation et la domination des entités les unes sur les autres, endommageant ainsi les écosystèmes. Dans un deuxième temps, nous proposerons une piste de solution à ce problème : la pensée éthique d’Emmanuel Lévinas. Si ce penseur prêche un retour du souci de l’altérité, son éthique demeure néanmoins porteuse de limites occidentales la rendant ineffective dans le cadre d’une révolution environnementale. Finalement, des solutions seront plutôt recherchées du côté de penseurs décoloniaux, autochtones et écoféministes. Ceux-ci ont en commun de proposer un renversement épistémique des schèmes de pensée dominants, afin de modifier le rapport éthique à l’environnement. Une ouverture à l’existence de pluralités culturelles et la mise en place de coopérations à travers la différence sont des stratégies politiques revendiquées par ces penseurs pour résoudre la crise écologique. / This thesis is about the environmental crisis, taking place in the world in a global and exponential way. The objective is to understand the historical causes of this crisis, so we can create some possible solutions. The work begins by demonstrating a causal link between the environmental crisis and Western colonialism. We argue that both phenomena are rooted in a patriarchal epistemology which modified the human connection with nature. Rather than promoting interdependence, humans acted towards separation and domination of some entities over the others, which leaded to the destruction and depletion of ecosystems. Secondly, we propose a possible solution to the problem: the ethical philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas. Levinas argues in favour of caring for otherness, though his ethics is limited by some Western traditions, making it ineffective for an environmental revolution. This thesis concludes with solutions from decolonial, native, and ecofeminist thinkers. These philosophies share a vision in which dominant schemes should go through subversive epistemic changes, so we can modify the ethical link to the environment. Acknowledging the existence of cultural pluralities and cooperating through differences are political strategies claimed by these ideologies to resolve the ecological crisis.

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This paper addresses the harmful effects of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) within animal farming systems, including poor animal welfare, environmental damage, and environmental injustice. I argue that bioregionalism and socialist ecofeminism can help inform a holistic approach to mitigating these harms and evoke ethical and sustainable animal farming systems. Bioregionalism emphasizes local resource use, community engagement, and ecological knowledge within a specific region, while socialist ecofeminism critiques oppressive systems and seeks to uplift the viewpoints of all beings, including animals, nature, and humans of various identities. Through a scaffolded hypothetical case study informed by the CAFOs-practicing hog farms in the coastal plain of North Carolina, I examine the potential benefits and limitations of a solely bioregional animal farming system followed by the potential benefits and limitations of a solely socialist ecofeminist animal farming system. I then combine the two theories to explore how they complement one another. I conclude that an ecologically informed structure advocated by bioregionalism functioning together with the moral values of socialist ecofeminism creates the possibility for ethical and sustainable animal farming systems.