Social ecology

DEFINITION: Philosophical movement based on the belief that the domination of nature by humans is derived from the domination of human society by the capitalist mode of production

The philosophy and set of organizing principles known as social ecology have had some political success with the Green movement and provide trenchant criticism of modern society; nevertheless, social ecology is often treated with suspicion by many mainstream environmentalists.

Social ecologists try, in many ways, to combine the environmental concerns of American preservationist John Muir with the economic concerns of German political philosopher Karl Marx. They argue that the domination of both disadvantaged peoples and the environment is derived from modern capitalist society and that both forms of domination must be corrected together. All social ecologists look to the views of Marx and Friedrich Engels for guidance, although they may differ in the policies they advocate.

There are two main theoretical approaches to social ecology: anarchist and socialist. Murray Bookchin was one of the leading proponents of anarchist social ecology; his writings emphasize the interdependence of humans and nonhuman nature. Anarchist social ecologists believe that hierarchy in society leads to the domination of some people by others and to the domination of nature by humankind. They are suspicious of the state as an agent of domination. Ideally, they would do away with all hierarchy in society, which they contend would remove the hierarchy of exploitation of nature by humans. Social ecologists should thus work to eliminate the domination of nature by the material world by first taking into account social issues in order to address environmental problems. Those who hold this view of social ecology are critical of mainstream environmentalism, which they see as a mechanistic approach that treats nature as a resource for humans to use. They are also critical of some deep ecologists for being insensitive to social issues. Successful social ecology in this perspective emphasizes the achievement of small-scale communities in which local groups live in harmony with one another and the environment.

Socialist ecology is also rooted in the Marxist tradition, but instead of an emphasis on hierarchy and domination and the achievement of a utopian society modeled on nature, this school of thought calls for an economic transformation of society into an ecological socialist system. This variant is often the motivating force for much of the Green social and political movement. Particularly in the work of James O’Connor, socialist ecology starts from a Marxist framework of society but then incorporates the concepts of the autonomy of nature and ecological science. In an ecological socialist society, nature would be recognized as autonomous rather than as humanized and capitalized. The interrelatedness of all living organisms would be recognized, and socially and environmentally harmful means of production would be curtailed. Socialist ecology often emphasizes the importance of central planning and organizing the working class to achieve its aims of remaking first the state and then the human-nature relationship. An example of socialist ecology at work is integrated pest management, which is based on using biological rather than chemical means of controlling pests, a process that, compared with other methods, is less exploitative of nature and society.

Social ecology, no matter what its perspective, has much to offer anyone concerned about the environment. It also has many critics from a variety of perspectives. Deep ecologists, for example, criticize social ecology for its essentially human-centered perspective. Some ecofeminists contend that social ecology does not do enough regarding the domination of women. Social ecologists respond to the first criticism by maintaining that humans are part of the environment and that the domination of humans is just as wrong as the domination of nature. Moreover, they argue that because the domination of nature is centered in the capitalist mode of production—a socioeconomic phenomenon—protecting nature must deal with capitalist, industrial society in a realistic fashion. Social ecologists also contend that dealing with the exploitation of humans includes dealing with the exploitation of women.

A more telling criticism is that some socialist ecologists are overly caught up in Marxist rhetoric and are unable to go beyond doctrine to offer workable alternatives to modern capitalist society. The deep ecologist argument that social ecology does not pay enough attention to environmental ethics would also appear to have some validity. Anarchist social ecology has a tendency to become utopian rather than practical in orientation, and socialist ecology is often doctrinaire and rigid. Social ecologists in both groups often expend a good deal of energy criticizing those in the other group.

A far-ranging attack on social ecology comes from a market-based perspective. This approach, which social ecologists would argue is a mechanistic one that is ultimately exploitative of people and nature, argues that small-scale communal efforts at dealing with environmental issues are ineffective. Because modern society is based on property rights, environmental solutions must take property rights into account. Such critics argue that social ecology is too utopian and unable to deal with the problems facing modern society. One social ecologist response would be that this may be true, but that is why capitalist, industrial society needs to be remade rather than taking for granted a perspective that is, at base, exploitative of humans and nature.

Social ecology is both a philosophy and a set of organizing principles for social reformers who are concerned about the environment. It aims to achieve an ecosystem in which humans and the rest of the natural world live in harmony in a non-exploitative setting. It has had some political success with the Green movement and provides trenchant criticism of modern society. Both variants of social ecology, however, were treated with suspicion by many mainstream environmentalists into the twenty-first century.

Into the mid-2020s, social ecology evolved. Contemporary social ecology increasingly collaborated with other movements, including ecofeminism, Indigenous rights, and environmental justice. They integrated challenges related to climate change, technology, and globalization. Modern frameworks in social ecology often stressed practical coalition-building and advocacy for policy change, rather than remaining focused on critiques of capitalism or achieving small-scale utopias alone. Finally, social ecology began to employ intersectional, multi-level analysis to connect individual, community, institutional, and global systems in understanding environmental and social interrelations.

Bibliography

Barry, John. “Murray Bookchin, 1921-.” In Fifty Key Thinkers on the Environment, edited by Joy A. Palmer. Routledge, 2001.

Bookchin, Murray. The Ecology of Freedom: The Emergence and Dissolution of Hierarchy. 1982. Reprint. AK Press, 2005.

Bookchin, Murray. “What Is Social Ecology?” In Earth Ethics: Introductory Readings on Animal Rights and Environmental Ethics, edited by James P. Sterba. 2nd ed., Prentice Hall, 2000.

Dorninger, Christian, et al. "Social-Ecological Niche Construction for Sustainability: Understanding Destructive Processes and Exploring Regenerative Potentials." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, vol. 379, no. 1893, 1 Jan. 2024. The Royal Society Publishing, doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2022.0431. Accessed 17 Sept. 2025.

Eckersley, Robyn. Environmentalism and Political Theory: Toward an Ecocentric Approach. 1992. Reprint. Routledge, 2003.

Pepper, David. Eco-Socialism: From Deep Ecology to Social Justice. Routledge, 1993.

Tol, Jason van. "A Social Ecological Model of Education: Economic Problems, Citizenship Solution." The Journal of Environmental Education, vol. 55, no. 3, 2024. Taylor & Francis Online, doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2023.2284245. Accessed 17 Sept. 2025.

“What is Social Ecology?” Institute for Social Ecology, social-ecology.org/wp/about/what-is-social-ecology/. Accessed 17 Sept. 2025.