ECOFEMINISM: WOMEN AND NATURE
Ilustration: Studio Permanent
The term ecofeminism at first reading gives an impression as a combination between the ecological movement and the feminist one, but what is it that really connects the two together. “Ecological feminism or ecofeminism is the position that there is an important connection between how women, people of color, and the underclass are treated on the one hand and how man treats the non-human natural environment on the other.” For the first time the word ecofeminism was heard by the French feminist Françoise d’Eeubonne in the 70s. The modern ecofeminist movement was born in the United States from a coalition of academic women who wanted to combine feminism and environmentalism to promote respect for women and the natural world.
At its core, this philosophy addresses the ways in which nature and women are treated by patriarchal society and capitalism. With ecofeminism we can understand a view that there is a connection between women and nature, namely a kind of parallelism between woman-nature and man-culture. The aim is to demonstrate the ways in which social norms exercise unfair dominance over nature and over women, precisely because women were seen as irrational and in need of control while men were seen as rational and able to control women and nature. Given that we live in civilizations that are built on the idea of oppression, as a result, categorizations are created dividing the world into superior and inferior categories. Ecofeminists argued that this stems from a hierarchical structure that gives men power and allows the exploitation of women and nature. “The deconstruction of nature and social injustice have a common cause – hierarchical thinking.” A simple but very useful way to explain ecofeminism is an acknowledgment of patriarchy’s parallel dominance over women and the environment. Men through the patriarchal system not only deplete animals and natural resources to suit their needs but they have also exercised their dominance over women.
The ecofeminist movement tries to highlight how men in the patriarchal system dominate women, just as patriarchal culture and civilization dominates nature. Thus, we cannot liberate the environment until we liberate women and vice versa, because the force behind the two systems is the same. Some feminist writers see women’s connection to nature as empowering, while others believe it stems from patriarchy. Those who see the bond as empowering claim that this bond is created because women are closer to nature due to bodily function, reproduction, and their position as mothers and homemakers. While others who see it as degrading and do not see similarities between women and nature because they think that it is men who see women and nature as producers and use them to ensure life, this makes women inferior and weaker.
Ecofeminists demand equality and justice for all forms of biological life, so they are an interconnected part of a common network. A well-known movement in terms of ecofeminism is the “Chipko Movement”, a non-violent social and ecological movement from rural villages. The Hindi word “chipko” means “to hug” or “to grab” and reflects the main tactic of the demonstrators, to hug the trees and thus prevent their cutting. This movement started in the 70s when the government had announced an auction for about 2000 trees located near the village of Reni in Uttarakhand, movement in the north of India. The men in this area had gone to work in factories and industrial areas, so the women were the ones who dealt with all the main economic work and housework, cleaning, childcare, food, providing firewood, etc. The women saw the damage that could be caused by cutting trees such as: floods and erosion. They gathered in a peaceful assembly to protest against this decision. Gaurvi Devi, head of the Mahila Mangal Dal, sent a group of 27 women to the location who hugged trees as a practice of protest. This went on through the night and the cutters left because it made it impossible for them to cut. Later, the government itself agreed with the villagers. Since this event had a large participation of women, it began to appear as a women’s movement for forest rights. As a movement it resembles Gandhi’s for peaceful resistance. Further, the Green Belt Movement is an environmental organization that aimed to empower the community, especially women, to improve their lives and protect the environment. This movement was founded by Wangari Maathai in 1977, women in rural Kenya reported that their streams were drying up, food supplies were becoming insecure. In this case the movement motivated women to work together to grow seedlings and plant trees – which would connect the earth – to preserve
About the author: Ridona Berisha, is currently pursuing Master’s studies – second year at the Department of Sociology, University of Prishtina.
This grant is supported by Austrian Development Agency
