Chapter Abstract
This chapter questions the anthropocentric assumptions that shape how ‘we’ think about ‘nature’ and ‘our’ relations to the ‘natural world’. Focusing on forests as an illustrative example, the chapter suggests that people tend to think about forests in economic terms, as a resource that we can exploit to satisfy our needs now, or conserve in order to satisfy our needs in the future. Rather than focusing on how forests can satisfy human needs, the chapter proposes that we should consider their intrinsic value as forests, and think about how environmental politics might differ as a consequence. In doing so, the chapter raises broader issues about the relationship between the human and non-human world, Indigenous knowledges and multispecies justice.
Further reading
Burke, Anthony and Fishel, Stefanie (2020) ‘Across Species and Borders: Political Representation, Ecological Democracy and the Non-Human’, in Joana Castro Pereira and André Saramago (eds.), Non-Human Nature in World Politics: Theory and Practice (Cham: Springer International), pp. 33–52.
Covers the debates about democracy and ecology that lead to the question of the representation and membership of non-human animals, ecosystems and the biosphere in world politics.
Cadena, Marisol . de la (2015) Earth beings: ecologies of practice across Andean worlds (Durham: Duke University Press).
This book explores the mutual entanglements of indigenous and nonindigenous worlds, and the partial connections between them through the Turpos' indigenous ways of knowing and being.
Chao, Sophie (2022) In the Shadow of the Palms: More-Than-Human Becomings in West Papua (Durham: Duke University Press).
Ethnographic fieldwork and human rights advocacy in the Indonesian-controlled region of West Papua that explores how deforestation and monocrop oil palm expansion reconfigure Indigenous Marind communities.
Kimmerer, Robin W. (2013) Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants (Minneapolis: Milkweed Editions).
Examines the role of Indigenous knowledge as an alternative or complementary approach to Western mainstream scientific methodologies through personal stories and Indigenous science.
Navarro, Eduardo and Marder, Michael (2022) This Book is a Plant: How to Grow, Learn and Radically Engage with the Natural World (London: Profile Books).
This handbook guides the reader in reimagining the relationship of with a different kind of natural world where plants take centre stage.
Simard, Suzanne (2022) Finding the Mother Tree: Uncovering the Wisdom and Intelligence of the Forest (London: Penguin Books).
Through an interplay of personal stories scientific research, this book details the scientific understandings of tree and forest communication.
Youatt, Rafi (2020) Interspecies Politics: Nature, Borders, States (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Pres).
The book explores the ways that international politics involves the interactions, ideas, and practices of multiple species, both human and nonhuman.
Matthew Leep, ed., (2023) ‘Special Issue on Multispecies International Politics’, Review of International Studies 49, 2: 181-338.
Using multiple perspectives, this issue articulates the political dynamics of international life in more-than-human terms.
Websites
Eco-Jurisprudence Monitor
https://ecojurisprudence.org/
The Eco Jurisprudence Monitor is an interactive online platform that compiles ecological jurisprudence initiatives globally as well as related resources for researchers, lawyers, policymakers, and activists.
International Day of Forests
https://www.un.org/esa/forests/outreach/international-day-of-forests/
Every year, the Forum secretariat holds a special event to celebrate the International Day of Forests at United Nations Headquarters in New York which attract participation from representatives of Member States, regional organizations, members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests and non-governmental organizations.
UN SDG #15
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/biodiversity/
Goal 15 is about conserving life on land. It is to protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and stop biodiversity loss.
The Mother Tree Project
https://mothertreeproject.org/
The Mother Tree Project (MTP) is a groundbreaking research initiative investigating forest renewal practices that aim to safeguard biodiversity, carbon storage, and forest regeneration as climate changes.
Rola (Stone)
https://www.rolastone.com/
Rola is the Anaiwan word for “stone”. This film explores the inseparable connection between geology, landscapes and culture on Anaiwan Country (Northern Tablelands area of New South Wales, Australia).
More-than-human Rights Project (MOTH)
https://www.mothcourse.org/about-moth
MOTH is a long-term effort to document, discuss, disseminate, and advance ideas, strategies, partnerships, and practices that offer creative and rigorous answers to these pressing questions and others.
The Planet Politics Institute
https://www.planetpolitics.org/
The PPI is a virtual institute dedicated to connecting advanced academic research in ecological politics, ethics and law to active struggles for political change, improved governance, and ecological survival.
Rights of Mother Earth
https://www.rightsofmotherearth.com/our-mission
This Declaration includes the wisdom and knowledge of people from ancient and modern societies from around the world and points the way to aligning our laws and ways of living with those of Nature.
Harmony with Nature
http://www.harmonywithnatureun.org/
Information about how some states acknowledged that the Earth and its ecosystems are our common home, and expressed their conviction that it is necessary to promote Harmony with Nature to achieve a just balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations.
What is multispecies justice, and why does it matter?
https://www.sydney.edu.au/arts/news-and-events/news/2022/06/01/what-is-multispecies-justice-and-why-does-it-matter.html
It is a theory of justice that includes not only the interests of all humans but of the nonhuman, such as other animals, plants, forests, rivers and ecological systems. Taking their interests seriously as ‘justice claims’ means there is a moral and political obligation for the basic institutions of society – including our political and legal systems – to take those interests into account when making decisions.