Mainstreaming Morality

An Examination of Moral Ecologies as a Form of Resistance

Authors

  • Lauren Baker Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
  • Samara Brock Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
  • Luisa Cortesi Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and Department of Anthropology
  • Aysen Eren The Institute of Environmental Sciences in Bogazici University, Turkey
  • Chris Hebdon Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and Department of Anthropology
  • Francis Ludlow Yale Climate & Energy Institute and Department of History
  • Jeffrey Stoike Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.
  • Michael Dove Professor, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies Curator, Peabody Museum of Natural History Professor, Department of Anthropology Yale University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/jsrnc.27506

Keywords:

moral ecology, environmental movements, development, resistance, multispecies justice

Abstract

In this article, we ask how considerations about moral (and immoral) ecologies have motivated and shaped ecological resistance movements. The concept of ‘moral ecologies’ involves expectations of reciprocal, just, and sustainable relations between society and environment, which we consider a central concern of environmental movements. We analyze the cultural, material, and political importance of moral ecologies as a form of resistance by examining social movements in Alaska and Turkey, as well as ideas about sumak kawsay (‘good living’) in Ecuador and historical precursors in the form of the ‘righteous ruler’ in early medieval Ireland. Our analysis demonstrates that a focus on moral ecologies has often resonated widely, facilitated new and cross-cutting coalitions, and in some cases garnered elite support and signilcantly inmuenced national politics and landscapes.

Author Biographies

  • Lauren Baker, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
    Ph.D. candidate in social and political ecology at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. Beginning in August 2015: John. D. Montgomery Postdoctoral Fellow at the Pacific Basin Research Center at Soka University of America
  • Samara Brock, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
    Ph.D. candidate at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
  • Luisa Cortesi, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and Department of Anthropology
    Ph.D. candidate in the joint Ph.D. program in Anthropology and Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University
  • Aysen Eren, The Institute of Environmental Sciences in Bogazici University, Turkey
    Ph.D. student at Bogazici University
  • Chris Hebdon, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and Department of Anthropology
    Ph.D. candidate in the joint Ph.D. program in Anthropology and Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University
  • Francis Ludlow, Yale Climate & Energy Institute and Department of History
    Postdoctoral Fellow with the Yale Climate & Energy Institute and Department of History, Yale University
  • Jeffrey Stoike, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.
    Ph.D. candidate in Social Ecology at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
  • Michael Dove, Professor, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies Curator, Peabody Museum of Natural History Professor, Department of Anthropology Yale University
    Margaret K. Musser Professor of Social Ecology, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University

Published

2017-07-04

How to Cite

Baker, L., Brock, S., Cortesi, L., Eren, A., Hebdon, C., Ludlow, F., Stoike, J., & Dove, M. (2017). Mainstreaming Morality: An Examination of Moral Ecologies as a Form of Resistance. Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture, 11(1), 23-55. https://doi.org/10.1558/jsrnc.27506