Ecologism
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for the Gaia hypothesis is that the Earth’s biosphere, atmosphere, oceans and soil exhibit precisely the same kind of self-regulating behaviour that characterizes other forms of life. The implication of this is that human beings must respect the health of the planet, and act to conserve its beauty and resources, the well-being of the planet being more important than that of any single species living on it at present. Sustainability Green thinkers argue that the ingrained assumption of conventional political creeds, articulated by virtually all mainstream political parties (so-called ‘grey’ parties), is that human life has unlimited possibilities for material growth and prosperity. Indeed, green thinkers commonly lump capitalism and socialism together, and portray them both as examples of ‘industrialism’. A particularly influential metaphor for the environmental movement has been the idea of ‘spaceship Earth’, because this emphasizes the notion of limited and exhaustible wealth. The idea that Earth should be thought of as a spaceship was first suggested by Kenneth Boulding (1966). Boulding argued that human beings have traditionally acted as though they live in a ‘cowboy economy’, an economy with unlimited opportunities, like the American West during the frontier period. He suggested that this encourages, as it did in the American West, ‘reckless, exploitative, and violent behaviour’. However, as a spaceship is a capsule, it is a ‘closed’ system. ‘Open’ systems receive energy or inputs from outside; for example, all ecosystems on Earth – ponds, forests, lakes and seas – are sustained by the Sun. However, ‘closed’ systems, as the Earth itself becomes when it is thought of as a spaceship, show evidence of ‘entropy ’. All ‘closed’ systems tend to decay or disintegrate because they are not sustained by external inputs.
KEY CONCEPT INDUSTRIALISM
relentless growth. As a philosophy, it is dedicated to materialism, utilitarian values, absolute faith in science and a worship of technology. Many green thinkers thus see industrialism as ‘the problem’. Ecosocialists, however, blame capitalismrather than industrialism (which ignores important issues such as the role of ownership, profit and the market), while ecofeminists argue that industrialism has its origins in patriarchy.
The term ‘industrialism’, as used by environmental theorists, relates to a ‘super-ideology’ that encompasses capitalism and socialism, left- wing and right-wing thought. As an economic system, industrialism is characterized by large- scale production, the accumulation of capital and
Not only have green thinkers argued that, in their economic activity, humans live beyond the constraints of a ‘closed’ ecosystem, but they have also been unwisely cavalier in plundering its resources. Garrett Hardin (1968) developed a particularly influential model
to explain why over-exploitation of environmental resources has occurred, in the form of the ‘ tragedy of the commons ’. The idea of the tragedy of the commons draws parallels between global environmental degradation and the fate of common land before the introduction of enclosures. Common land or common fisheries stocks encourage individuals to act in rationally self-interested ways, each exploiting the resources available to satisfy their needs and the needs of their families and communities. However, the collective impact of such behaviour may be devastating, as the vital resources on which all depend become depleted, Thus, as Hardin put it,
Entropy: A tendency towards decay or disintegration, exhibited by all ‘closed’ systems. Tragedy of the commons: A parable that shows that economic resources will be despoiled unless access to them is strictly constrained.
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