{"id":521,"date":"2009-10-07T14:37:26","date_gmt":"2009-10-07T21:37:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/?p=521"},"modified":"2011-04-25T03:05:57","modified_gmt":"2011-04-25T03:05:57","slug":"deep-ecology-and-alternative-political-models","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/2009\/10\/07\/deep-ecology-and-alternative-political-models\/","title":{"rendered":"Deep Ecology and Alternative Political Models"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By <a href=\"#Victor\" name=\"top\">Viktor Postnikov<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">A<\/span>survey of socio-political models and movements based on ecocentric ethics &mdash; left biocentrism, bioregionalism, global eco-village movement, post-historical primitivism, and the &ldquo;coerced&rdquo; biocentrism of Pentii Linkola &mdash; reveals that all these models share a common vision of an anti-capitalist, anti-industrial, and decentralized (self-sustained) society, while conventional political modes to this time have mainly been based on centralised, authoritarian, human  structures&mdash;Monarchies, Empires, Republics&mdash;all designed to serve human needs. With the growing complexity and interdependence of ecosystems in the entire planet, these social organizations pose a grave threat to human beings, to the environment, and to non-human species. Incorrect decisions made at the top of the human power structure can easily propagate, augment their impact, and affect a great number of humans as well as animals of the non-human world. Decentralisation of power and &ldquo;local&rdquo; solutions seem to offer the only remedies that can avert us from imminent global destruction.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">Left biocentrism<\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">A<\/span>ccording to David Orton<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f3\" name=\"n3\">3<\/a><\/span>, an originator of left biocentrism, this socio-political model has descended from several parallel anti-capitalist and anti-industrial movements in green politics and environmental activism, with the aim of marrying deep ecology and left perspective:\n<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&ldquo;deep green theory&rdquo; of Richard Sylvan<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f14\" name=\"n14\">14<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<li>&ldquo;socialist biocentrism&rdquo; Helga Hoffman and David Orton<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f2\" name=\"n2\">2,<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f3\" name=\"n3\">3<\/a><\/span> <\/li>\n<li>&ldquo;ecologism&rdquo; of Andrew Dobson<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f16\" name=\"n16\">16<\/a><\/span>;<\/li>\n<li>&ldquo;radical ecocentrism&rdquo; of Andrew McLaughlin<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f15\" name=\"n15\">15<\/a><\/span>;<\/li>\n<li>&ldquo;revolutionary ecology&rdquo; of Judi Bari<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f13\" name=\"n13\">13<\/a><\/span>; <\/li>\n<li>&ldquo;green fundamentalism&rdquo; of Rudolf Bahro<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f12\" name=\"n12\">12<\/a><\/span>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\nIn fact, left biocentrism can be viewed as a left political wing of deep ecology<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f4\" name=\"n4\">4<\/a><\/span>. The later, however, is known more as a philosophy of ecocentric ethics<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f14\" name=\"n14\">14<\/a><\/span>. The &ldquo;left&rdquo; means that biocentrists try to weave ecoethics with the class issues and social justice, but do not hold them above biocentrism, or ecocentrism (like the left parties). At present, this direction is being developed within the international discussion group, comprising activists, philosophers, scientists, poets and ecologists. The group was initiated in the 90s by a Canadian writer-activist David Orton.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f3\" name=\"n3\">3<\/a><\/span> The group has an on-line theoretical journal Dandelion Times<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f1\" name=\"n1\">1<\/a><\/span> and links with other left-wing &ldquo;green&rdquo; organisations.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">Bioregionalism<\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">B<\/span>ioregionalism is a political, cultural, and environmental system based on naturally-defined areas called bioregions, or ecoregions<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f18\" name=\"n18\">18<\/a><\/span>. Bioregions are defined through physical and environmental features, including watershed boundaries and soil and terrain characteristics. Bioregionalism stresses that the determination of a bioregion is also a cultural phenomenon, and emphasizes local populations, knowledge, and solutions<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f19\" name=\"n19\">19<\/a><\/span> The term appears to have originated in work by Peter Berg and Raymond Dasmann in the early 1970s.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f20\" name=\"n20\">20<\/a><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>\nThe bioregionalist perspective opposes a homogeneous economy and consumer culture with its lack of stewardship towards the environment. This perspective seeks to:\n<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li> Ensure that political boundaries match ecological boundaries.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f21\" name=\"n21\">21<\/a><\/span> <\/li>\n<li> Highlight the unique ecology of the bioregion.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f7\" name=\"n7\">7<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<li> Encourage consumption of local foods where possible. <\/li>\n<li> Encourage the use of local materials where possible. <\/li>\n<li> Encourage the cultivation of native plants of the region. <\/li>\n<li> Encourage sustainability in harmony with the bioregion.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f22\" name=\"n22\">22<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\nSo far, bioregionalism has spread primarily in North America. Since 1984 there have been bi-annual gatherings of bioregionalists<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f23\" name=\"n23\">23<\/a><\/span> that have given rise to national level Green Parties.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">Global eco-villages<\/p>\n<p>\n <span class=\"dropcap\">T<\/span>oday, the number of eco-villages in the world exceeds 10&nbsp;000. They all are interconnected in the Global Ecovillage Network.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f6\" name=\"n6\">6,<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f24\" name=\"n24\">24<\/a><\/span> Eco-villages are the small communities (20 to 500 members) with tight social connections, united by common ecological and spiritual interests. These communities could be rural, urban, usually low-tech, depending on circumstances and the intentions of their members. For example, &Ouml;kodorf Seiben Linden&nbsp; is a rural community in Eastern Germany with a minimum energy consumption. Eco-village&nbsp;&ldquo;Los Angeles&rdquo; is a small region in Los Angeles. Village Sasardi&nbsp; is hidden in the tropical rain forest in northern Columbia. The world&rsquo;s oldest (since 1962) Findhorn eco-village is located at the northern extremity of Scotland. They all have deep respect for nature and are striving to build self-sustainable communities with a minimal ecological footprint. Many eco-villages serve as a learning ground for those who seek to radically change their life ways.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">Post-historical primitivism<\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">T<\/span>his (theoretical) model is based on the works of Paul Shepard. According to Fred Bender,<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f9\" name=\"n9\">9,<\/a><\/span> <span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f10\" name=\"n10\">10<\/a><\/span> Shepard recommends that we need to recover pre-history and reconnect to mythos (sacred story), ancestors, and nonhuman Others. He believes that history&rsquo;s real lesson is that it is no guide to the future, because it is a declaration of independence from the deep past and its peoples, living or dead, and from the natural state of our being. Despite these deep-rooted prejudices, we must study primal peoples (who are not primitive in any defensible sense of the term) so we can begin to think about living ecologically in post-historic and post-industrial ways. Contrary to the deep-rooted prejudices, we must study aboriginal people, in order to learn how to live ecologically in post-historical and post-industrial times. Other deep ecologists, particularly, Jerry Mander<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f11\" name=\"n11\">11<\/a><\/span> also develops this theory.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">The radical biocentrism of Pentti Linkola<\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">R<\/span>adical biocentrist Pentti Linkola stands at some distance from the aforementioned models, as his model is based on a coerced radical reduction of population, rejection of technologies and consumerist economy. His programme, elaborated mainly for his native Finland, despite its radicalism, does not differ in essence from other decentralist models.<span class=\"footnote\"><a href=\"#f17\" name=\"n17\">17<\/a><\/span> The only significant difference is that Linkola envisages the introduction of an authoritative government as the most radical solution for the transition of society and conservation of life (he does not have illusion about the voluntary transition to the new way of life). Linkola&rsquo;s programme has 205 points and evokes admiration from some and severe critique from the others. Nonetheless, we can&rsquo;t render Linkola a &ldquo;fascist&rdquo; because he speaks against nationalism or any expansion of a nation, or race, to the detriment of all others &ndash; which is the major feature of fascism.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">Conclusion<\/p>\n<p>\n<span class=\"dropcap\">T<\/span>o prevent the global catastrophe, provoked by an excessive anthropogenic pressure, deep change in individual consciousness is needed. But that is not enough. We need to radically change the social structures. Some ecocentric ideologues are sceptical as to voluntary transition of the large masses, let alone &ldquo;the golden billion&rdquo;, to the ecocentric society. The issue of the permissibility of a coerced transition remains open.\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\"><a href=\"#top\" name=\"Victor\">About the author<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/images\/mugs\/Victor_2007_95x122.jpg\" class=\"small-left\" alt=\"Viktor Ivanovitch Postnikov\" \/><em>Viktor Ivanovitch Postnikov is a Russian-born independent scientist (DSc.) who lives in Kiev, Ukraine. A prolific <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stihi.ru\/author.html?transpoetry\" target=\"_blank\">poetry translator,<\/a> he has also translated books on both eastern philosophies and deep ecology, and written many essays on Russian anarchism and eco-poetry for journals and other publications.<\/em>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"crosshead\">References<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n1\" name=\"f1\">1.<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/category\/left-biocentrism\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/category\/left-biocentrism\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n2\" name=\"f2\">2.<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n3\" name=\"f3\">3.<\/a> David Orton &ndash; My Path to Left Biocentrism: Pt.1- The Theory <a href=\"http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/GW63-Path.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/GW63-Path.html<\/a><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n4\" name=\"f4\">4.<\/a> David Greenfield &ndash;The Left in Left Biocentrism <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/2008\/07\/the-left-in-left-biocentrism\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/2008\/07\/the-left-in-left-biocentrism\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n5\" name=\"f5\">5.<\/a> Bill Metcalf &ndash; Sustainable Communal Living Around the Globe, Diggers and Dreamers 00\/01, p.5 -19.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n6\" name=\"f6\">6.<\/a> Albert Bates, Ecovillages &ndash; What Have We Learned? &#8211; Communities Magazine, issue #117.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n7\" name=\"f7\">7.<\/a> V.Postnikov &ndash; Ecocentric Ukraine Project &ndash; a sketch <a href=\"http:\/\/www.proza.ru\/2009\/01\/13\/716\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.proza.ru\/2009\/01\/13\/716<\/a> (In Russian).\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n8\" name=\"f8\">8.<\/a> V.Postnikov &ndash; Russian Roots: From Populism to Radical Ecology, Anarchist Studies, Volume 12, N.1, 2004.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n9\" name=\"f9\">9.<\/a> Frederic Bender (2003). The Culture of Extinction: Toward a Philosophy of Deep Ecology. Amherst, NY: Humanity.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n10\" name=\"f10\">10.<\/a> Frederic Bender, On the Importance of Paul Shepard&rsquo;s Call for Post-Historic Primitivism and Palaeolithic Counter-Revolution against Modernity, The Trumpeter, Volume 23, Number 3 (2007)\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n11\" name=\"f11\">11.<\/a> Jerry Mander, In the Absence of the Sacred: The Failure of Technology and the Survival of the Indian Nations. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1991.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n12\" name=\"f12\">12.<\/a> David Orton, Rudolf Bahro (1935 &#8211; 1997): A tribute, Socialist Studies Bulletin_ No. 50 (Oct.-Dec. 1997).\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n13\" name=\"f13\">13.<\/a> Judi Bari, Revolutionary Ecology. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.judibari.org\/revolutionary-ecology.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.judibari.org\/revolutionary-ecology.html<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n14\" name=\"f14\">14.<\/a> Patrick Curry, Deep Ecology and Left Biocentrism: An Introduction,<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/2008\/08\/deep-ecology-and-left-biocentrism-an-introduction\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/2008\/08\/deep-ecology-and-left-biocentrism-an-introduction\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n15\" name=\"f15\">15.<\/a> Andrew McLaughlin &ndash; Regarding Nature: Industrialism and Deep Ecology (Albany, State University New York Press, 1993.)\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n16\" name=\"f16\">16.<\/a> Andrew Dobson, Green Political Thought: An Introduction&nbsp; (London: Harper Collins &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Academic, 1990). A book review by David Orton <a href=\"http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/Ecologism.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/home.ca.inter.net\/~greenweb\/Ecologism.html<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n17\" name=\"f17\">17.<\/a> Pentti Linkola, Can Life Prevail? <a href=\"http:\/\/www.evfit.com\/linkola_CLP.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.evfit.com\/linkola_CLP.htm<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n18\" name=\"f18\">18.<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bioregionalism\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bioregionalism<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n19\" name=\"f19\">19.<\/a> Don Alexander, Bioregionalism: The Need For a Firmer Theoretical Foundation, Trumpeter, v.13.3, 1996.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n20\" name=\"f20\">20.<\/a> Berg, Peter and Raymond Dasmann, &ldquo;Reinhabiting California,&rdquo; The Ecologist 7, no. 10 (1977)\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n21\" name=\"f21\">21.<\/a> Davidson, S. (2007) The Troubled Marriage of Deep Ecology and Bioregionalism, Environmental Values, vol. 16(3): 313-332\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n22\" name=\"f22\">22.<\/a> Bastedo, Jamie. Shield Country: The Life and Times of the Oldest Piece of the Planet, Red Deer Press, 1994.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n23\" name=\"f23\">23.<\/a> North American Bioregional Congress website <a href=\"http:\/\/biocongress.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/biocongress.org\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n<a href=\"#n24\" name=\"f24\">24.<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/gen.ecovillage.org\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/gen.ecovillage.org\/index.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The complexity and interdependence of ecosystems mean that exclusively human-centric social organizations pose an increasingly grave threat to non-human species and to the environment, as well as to indigenous human societies. Incorrect decisions made by the dominant human power structure can easily propagate and augment their impact. Decentralisation of power and &ldquo;local&rdquo; solutions seem to offer the only remedies that can avert us from imminent global destruction, writes Ukrainian eco-centrist <strong>Victor Postikov<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,11],"tags":[18,21,22,40,41,134,42,50,51,75,136,88,93,111],"class_list":["post-521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deep-ecology","category-left-biocentrism","category-politics","tag-andrew-dobson","tag-biocentralism","tag-bioregionalism","tag-david-orton","tag-decentralisation","tag-deep-ecology","tag-deep-green","tag-eco-villages","tag-ecocentralism","tag-judu-bari","tag-left-biocentrism","tag-political-ideology","tag-rudolph-bahri","tag-victor-postnikov"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/521","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=521"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/521\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":901,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/521\/revisions\/901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.stuzog.com\/dandeliontimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}