Environmental justice and gender equality have been two distinct critical social movements in the last century. However, both of these movements might share a deeper connection than we thought.
The principles of Ecofeminism originate from a series of philosophers in the 70s and 80s. However, the movement gained momentum on the surface of other larger social movements: second-wave feminism and the green movement.
Ecofeminism is an intersectional framework that explores the connections between women's subjugation and the environment's exploitation. The framework incorporates three main principles:
1. Oppositional Dualism:
Oppositional Dualism is the close examination of the impact of binary systems on gender and the environment. In our gender binary, we perceive men and women as complete opposites. We draw heavily on their differences to ingrain this division. Ecofeminism attacks this principle by analyzing how humans also perceive nature as opposites. With influences from capitalism, humans perceive the preservation of nature as stunted growth for human development. By continuing to differentiate and separate, we dissociate ourselves from the egregious degradation of the environment.
2. Hierarchical thinking:
Hierarchical thinking is the foundation of oppositional dualism. We view the gender binary as objective, because of the powerful patriarchal hierarchy that perpetuates in its various and complex forms in our day-to-day lives; however, these binaries are merely social constructs. To understand ecofeminism, it’s essential to recognize how hierarchies produce thought and create the tangible impact that allows for the oppression of women and the deterioration of the environment.
3. Ethics of Care
With the patriarchal system, we have embraced a masculine framework. We align the notion of domination and exploitation, the prominent and most active social form, with masculinity. To address the systems of inequity, we have to reframe our culture by implementing ethics of care. This incorporates feminine characteristics that work towards being understanding and nurturing to the world around us. In shifting our practices, we can begin to treat and act in ways that are rooted in care and empathy, allowing us to make equitable and sustainable decisions.
Anti-GMO activist Vandana Shiva has been instrumental in embracing worldwide awareness in the ecofeminist movement. She launched her footing in the ecology movement, after being a long-time front-fighter in the Chipko Movement in the 70s. Chipko, translated to tree huggers, was a large-scale non-violent movement in Uttarakhand to fight against corporate industries that allowed the mass clear-cut processes of the trees. In 1991, Dr. Shiva founded Navadanya, a movement to protect the diversity of resources, specifically native seeds, and retaliate against imperialist efforts. In her persistent sustainable efforts, she became a fearless leader in inspiring food sovereignty movements around the world. Feeling inspired by the stories of the Chipko women and their resilience, Dr. Shiva extended her work to explore the intersection between feminism and ecology.
Her research in her 2014 Book, “Ecofeminism”, critically examines the link between the two. In her groundbreaking work. Shiva incorporates an intersectional framework to shift the narrative of western ecofeminist movements by amplifying the voices of women’s issues worldwide.
Indigenous women carry immense knowledge about soil types, seed preparation, and plant cultivation. They are at the root of subsistence work. These women create an ecological balance which is the essence of sustainable agriculture.
Shiva argues that GMOs advance monoculture schemes, ultimately erupting the ecological balance that women provide. This is a serious issue because it allows bigger corporations to capitalize and advance the commodity value of the biodiversity of crops in the global market. Modern Science, sparked by the Green Revolution, enables patriarchal violence and colonialism. Not only does its uniformity efforts fail to support worldwide bodily health and food demands, but it further marginalizes indigenous women. “Diversity is the basis of women’s work and politics and the organizing principle of non-western pre-scientific communities” (Molyneux and Steinberg 90). Ecofeminism acknowledges the debilitating state of indigenous communities, by disrupting the sustainable solidarity that creates their way of life. These communities are alienated and manipulated from their generational style of life, and ultimately forcefully removed from these diverse practices in the face of industrial GMO agriculture.
Bio-diversity feeds our mouths and our minds, and it is essential to begin re-centering indigenous women as the safeguard of environmental life in their communities to restore ecological balance.
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