Social ecology developed by Elisee Reclus and revived by Murray Bookchin in the 1960s. Human ecology is an academic discipline that deals with the relationship between Humans and their natural social and created environments Élisée Reclus ( March 15 1830 &ndash July 4 1905) also known as Jean Jacques Élisée Reclus, was a renowned French Murray Bookchin ( January 14, 1921 – July 30, 2006) was an American libertarian socialist, political and social

It holds that present ecological problems are rooted in deep-seated social problems, particularly in dominatory hierarchical political and social systems. Ecology (from Greek grc οἶκος oikos, "house(hold" and grc -λογία -logia) is the scientific study of @@@ main@@@ - title Hierarchy@@@ keywords structure; sociology; information@@@ review@@@ - These have resulted in an uncritical acceptance of an overly competitive grow-or-die philosophy. It suggests that this cannot be resisted by individual action such as ethical consumerism but must be addressed by more nuanced ethical thinking and collective activity grounded in radical democratic ideals. Ethical consumerism is buying products and services that are made ethically. The complexity of relationships between people and with nature is emphasised, along with the importance of establishing social structures that take account of this.

Social ecology is, in the words of its leading exponents, "a coherent profound critique of current social, political, and anti-ecological trends" as well as "a reconstructive, ecological, communitarian, and ethical approach to society".

What literally defines social ecology as "social" is its recognition of the often overlooked fact that nearly all our present ecological problems arise from deep-seated social problems. Conversely, present ecological problems cannot be clearly understood, much less resolved, without resolutely dealing with problems within society. To make this point more concrete: economic, ethnic, cultural, and gender conflicts, among many others, lie at the core of the most serious ecological dislocations we face today—apart, to be sure, from those that are produced by natural catastrophes.

Undoubtedly social ecology is one of the most influential currents in the eco-anarchist thread within anarchism. Green anarchism is a school of thought within Anarchism which puts an emphasis on Environmental issues. Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i Social ecology is associated with the ideas and works of Murray Bookchin, who had written on such matters from the 1950s until his death, and, from the 1960s, had combined these issues with revolutionary social anarchism. Murray Bookchin ( January 14, 1921 – July 30, 2006) was an American libertarian socialist, political and social The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Social anarchism, socialist anarchism, anarcho-socialism, anarchist socialism or Communitarian anarchism,(sometimes used interchangeably with His works include Post-Scarcity Anarchism, Toward an Ecological Society, The Ecology of Freedom, and a host of others.

Social ecology locates the roots of the ecological crisis firmly in relations of domination between people. An ecological crisis occurs when the environment of a Species or a Population changes in a way that destabilizes its continued survival The domination of nature is seen as a product of domination within society, but this domination only reaches crisis proportions under capitalism. Nature, in the broadest sense is equivalent to the natural world, physical universe, material world or material universe. A society is a Population of Humans characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals that share a distinctive Culture and Institutions Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where In the words of Murray Bookchin:

"The notion that man must dominate nature emerges directly from the domination of man by man… But it was not until organic community relations… dissolved into market relationships that the planet itself was reduced to a resource for exploitation. Murray Bookchin ( January 14, 1921 – July 30, 2006) was an American libertarian socialist, political and social In biological terms a community is a group of interacting Organisms sharing an environment. Sao Paulo Stock Exchangejpg|thumb| Virtual market arena where buyer and seller are not present and trade via intemediates and electronical information The term " exploitation " may carry two distinct meanings The act of utilizing something for any purpose This centuries-long tendency finds its most exacerbating development in modern capitalism. Owing to its inherently competitive nature, bourgeois society not only pits humans against each other, it also pits the mass of humanity against the natural world. Just as men are converted into commodities, so every aspect of nature is converted into a commodity, a resource to be manufactured and merchandised wantonly. " (Post Scarcity Anarchism, p. 85)

"The plundering of the human spirit by the market place is paralleled by the plundering of the earth by capital. " (Ibid. , p. 86)

Beginning in 1995, Murray Bookchin became increasingly critical of anarchism, and in 1999 he took a decisive stand against anarchist ideology. Instead Bookchin came to recognize social ecology as a genuinely new form of libertarian socialism and positioned its politics firmly in the framework of communalism. Libertarian socialism is a group of political philosophies that aim to create a society without political economic or social hierarchies – a society in which all violent See also Communalism (South Asia. In many parts of the world communalism is a modern term that describes a broad range of Social movements ^[1]

Contrasting views

• Deep Ecology
• Eco-socialism
• Inclusive Democracy
• Green syndicalism
• Ecofeminism
• Gaia philosophy
• Greens
• Anarcho-primitivism

See also

• Janet Biehl
• Peter Kropotkin
• Human ecology

References

• Bookchin, Murray: The Ecology of Freedom: The Emergence and Dissolution of Hierarchy (Oakland, CA: AK Press, 2005). Deep ecology is a recent branch of ecological Philosophy ( Ecosophy) that considers Humankind an integral part of its environment. Eco-socialism, Green socialism or Socialist ecology is an Ideology merging aspects of Marxism, Socialism, Green politics The theoretical project of Inclusive Democracy ( ID; as distinguished from the political project which is part of the democratic and autonomy traditions emerged from the work Green syndicalism has been used as a name for the philosophy of the green guild or sustainable trades movement Ecofeminism is a social and political movement which attempts to unite Environmentalism and Feminism, with some currents linking Deep ecology and Gaia philosophy (named after Gaia, Greek Goddess of the Earth) is a broadly inclusive term for related concepts that living organisms on Green politics is a Political ideology which places a high importance on ecological and environmental goals and on achieving these goals through broad-based Anarcho-primitivism is an anarchist critique of the origins and progress of Civilization. Janet Biehl (1953 -) is one of the premier authors on Social ecology. Human ecology is an academic discipline that deals with the relationship between Humans and their natural social and created environments
• Bookchin, Murray: Post Scarcity Anarchism (Montreal and New York: Black Rose Books, 1986)
• Bookchin Breaks with Anarchism by Janet Biehl

Notes

External links

• Libertarian Communist Library Murray Bookchin holdings
• Social Ecology London English study/action group exploring the philosophy of social ecology.