Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability 1

human centeredness, but specifically male centeredness(androcentrism).Many ecofeminists argue that the rise of maledominatedsocieties and environmental worldviewssince the advent of agriculture is primarily responsiblefor our violence against nature and for the oppressionof women and minorities as well. To such ecofeminists,our shift from hunter–gatherer to agriculturaland industrial societies changed our view of naturefrom that of a nurturing mother to that of a foe to beconquered.Ecofeminists note that women earn less than 10%of all wages, own less than 1% of all property, and inmost societies have far fewer rights than men. Theseanalysts also argue that to become primary players inthe male power-and-domination game, most womenare forced to emphasize the characteristics deemedmasculine and become “honorary men.”Some ecofeminists suggest that oppression bymen has driven women closer to nature and madethem more compassionate and nurturing. As oppressedmembers of society, they argue, many womenhave more experience in dealing with interpersonalconflicts, bringing people together, acting as caregivers,and identifying emotionally with injustice,pain, and suffering. Thus women with such qualitiesare in a better position to help lead as we struggle todevelop more environmentally sustainable and just societies.Such societies would be based on cooperation,rather than confrontation and domination, and onfinding win-win solutions to our environmental andhuman problems instead of win-lose solutions often associatedwith our current male-dominated societies.Ecofeminists argue that women should be treatedas equal partners with men. They do not want just afair share of the patriarchal pie or to be given tokenroles or co-opted into the male power game. Theywant to work with men to bake an entirely new pie.They hope to heal the rift between humans and natureand end oppression based on sex, race, class, and culturaland religious beliefs.Ecofeminists are not alone in calling for us to encouragethe rise of life-centered people who emphasizethe best human characteristics: gentleness, caring,compassion, nonviolence, cooperation, and love.xHOW WOULD YOU VOTE? Which one of the followingcomes closest to your environmental worldview: planetarymanagement, stewardship, environmental wisdom, deepecology, ecofeminist? Cast your vote online at http://biology.brookscole.com/miller14.Which Worldview Is More Likely to ProveCorrect? Catastrophe vs. Continuing GrowthUsing images of economic or ecological collapsecan deter us from preventing or slowing the spreadof environmental degradation.The planetary management, stewardship, and environmentalwisdom worldviews differ over whetherthere are physical and biological limits to economicgrowth, beyond which ecological and economic collapseare likely to occur. This argument has been goingon since Thomas Malthus published his book The Principlesof Political Economy in 1836.In 2000, conservation biologist Carlos Davidsonproposed a way to bridge the gap between differingworldviews and to help motivate the political changesneeded to halt or slow the spread of environmentaldegradation.Davidson disagrees with the view of some economiststhat technology will allow continuing economicgrowth without causing serious environmental damage.However, he also disagrees with the view thatcontinuing economic growth based on consuming anddegrading natural capital will lead to ecological andeconomic crashes.Instead of crashes, he suggests the metaphor of agradually unraveling tapestry to describe the effects ofenvironmental degradation. He asks us to think of natureas a diverse tapestry—an incredible variety of biomes,aquatic systems, and ecosystems.The tapestry is losing threads, more in some areasthan in others, and is even torn in some places, but it isunlikely to simply fall apart. However, he believes thatdegradation in parts of the earth’s ecological tapestryis occurring; is likely to increase because of problemssuch as climate change and biodiversity; and must beprevented and slowed by using the pollution preventionand precautionary principles.However, Davidson believes that using catastrophemetaphors such as “ecological collapse” and “goingover a cliff” can hinder these efforts. He arguesthat repeated predictions of catastrophe, like the boywho cried wolf, will be heard at first, but later ignored.As a result, people will lose motivation to preventmore tears in nature’s tapestry or to look more deeplyat the causes of the damage.xHOW WOULD YOU VOTE? Do you believe there are physicaland biological limits to human economic growth? Castyour vote online at http://biology.brookscole.com/miller14.28-3 LIVING MORE SUSTAINABLYWhat Are the Main Components ofEnvironmental Literacy? Understandingand Caring about How the Earth Works andSustains ItselfEnvironmentally literate citizens and leaders areneeded to build more environmentally sustainableand just societies.Most environmentalists believe that learning how tolive more sustainably requires a foundation of envi-636 CHAPTER 28 Environmental Worldviews, Ethics, and Sustainability