Environmental problems manifest larger structural problems, so EJ must fuse movements

Evidence

The German poet Goethe said, “We should do our utmost to encourage the Beautiful, for the Useful encourages itself.” Indeed, utility needs nothing other than its physical materials to work upon. We need not quarrel with that. And it was inevitable that the primeval landscape of America would be vastly altered; that the rich resources would be eagerly tapped and exploited; that rivers should be harnessed, prairies plowed, that roads should scar the land surface, that virgin forests should fall. Nor could it be expected that, except for a few souls gifted with insight, a people aiming at a fuller and more comfortable existence would exercise a philosophic restraint. There is no deep villain in this very human drama. There is only a saddening imbalance that was bound to ensue. Man does not live by bread and gadgets alone. Take beauty out of his life: a googol of dollars and a Lucullan luxury will not fill the void. — Freeman Tilden, Interpreting Our Heritage, 617 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

In order to address the complex environmental issues and prolonged impacts on the Earth, a paradigmatic shift is needed—moving away from ideologies that objectify the natural world, to worldviews that necessitate ethical relationality inclusive of all beings—living or existing. Today, Western colonial capitalist agendas have superseded an ethic of care for the Earth, seeing earthly inhabitants persistently subjugated. To counter the narrative of human supremacy over the non-human world, people might benefit from re-imagining ecological relationships in ways that push beyond hierarchies of oppression, engaging in radical listening as a means of dialogue with the more-than-human world, and responding with care for others such that the cared-for may exist unencumbered in the liberation of their whole selves. — James D. Kirylo (ed.), Reinventing Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 1036 (#expands, via linked claim)

The problem of Russian politics will not be resolved within the closed field of the Russian movement; the direct contribution of the entire communist proletarian International is necessary”. — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 215 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: EJ advocates lack the power base to win without fusing movements; Right-wing environmentalists tried to link immigration to ecological harm; Breast cancer activism shifted from cure toward prevention via EJ alliances (+6 more)

Related

• Environmentalism needs a worldview shift to relationality, not just policy fixes. (similarity 0.79)
• Environmental problems require cultural analysis, not just scientific study (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Environmental destruction stems from structural imbalance, not individual villainy #corroborates (0.88) — Freeman Tilden, Interpreting Our Heritage, 617
• Environmentalism needs a worldview shift to relationality, not just policy fixes. #expands (0.80) — James D. Kirylo (ed.), Reinventing Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 1036
• Revolutionary problems transcend national boundaries and require international coordination #corroborates (0.75) — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 215
• Environmental problems require cultural analysis, not just scientific study #qualifies (0.75) — Rebecca A. Martusewicz, Jeff Edmundson, and John Lupinacci, EcoJustice Education, 234
• Environmental damage has three independent root causes that all need addressing #expands (0.72)
• Economic problems are political problems about how social power is distributed #corroborates (0.72) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 38