Editing Green anarchism

{{Short description|Branch of anarchism focused on the environment}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{green anarchism|all}}
'''Green anarchism''', also known as '''ecological anarchism''' or '''eco-anarchism''', is an [[anarchist school of thought]] that focuses on [[ecology]] and [[environmental issues]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=281}} It is an [[anti-capitalism|anti-capitalist]] and [[anti-authoritarianism|anti-authoritarian]] form of [[radical environmentalism]], which emphasises [[social organization]], [[freedom]] and [[self-fulfillment]].{{Sfn|Aaltola|2010|p=161}}

Ecological approaches to anarchism were first formulated during the 19th century, as the rise of [[capitalism]] and [[colonialism]] caused [[environmental degradation]]. Drawing from the [[ecology]] of [[Charles Darwin]], the anarchist [[Mikhail Bakunin]] elaborated a [[Naturalism (philosophy)|naturalist philosophy]] that rejected the dualistic separation of [[human]]ity from [[nature]]. This was developed into an [[Philosophy of ecology|ecological philosophy]] by [[Peter Kropotkin]] and [[Élisée Reclus]], who advocated for the [[decentralisation]] and [[degrowth]] of industry as a means to advance both [[social justice]] and [[environmental protection]].

Green anarchism was first developed into a distinct political theory by sections of the [[New Left]], as a revival in anarchism coincided with the emergence of an [[environmental movement]]. From the 1970s onwards, three main tendencies of green anarchism were established: [[Murray Bookchin]] elaborated the theory of [[Social ecology (Bookchin)|social ecology]], which argues that [[environmental issues]] stem directly from [[social issues]];  [[Arne Næss]] defined the theory of [[deep ecology]], which advocates for [[Biocentrism (ethics)|biocentrism]]; and [[John Zerzan]] developed the theory of [[anarcho-primitivism]], which calls for the abolition of [[technology]] and [[civilization]]. In the 21st century, these tendencies were joined by [[total liberation]], which centres [[animal rights]], and [[green syndicalism]], which calls for the workers themselves to manage [[deindustrialisation]].

At its core, green anarchism concerns itself with the identification and abolition of social [[hierarchy|hierarchies]] that cause environmental degradation. Opposed to the [[extractivism]] and [[productivism]] of industrial capitalism, it advocates for the degrowth and deindustrialisation of the economy. It also pushes for greater [[localism (politics)|localisation]] and decentralisation, proposing forms of [[municipalism]], [[bioregionalism]] or a "[[back to nature|return to nature]]" as possible [[stateless society|alternatives]] to the [[state (polity)|state]].

==History==
===Background===
Before the [[Industrial Revolution]], the only occurrences of [[ecological crisis]] were small-scale, localised to areas affected by [[natural disaster]]s, [[overproduction]] or [[war]]. But as the [[enclosure]] of [[common land]] increasingly forced dispossessed workers into factories, more wide-reaching ecological damage began to be noticed by [[classical radicalism|radicals]] of the period.{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=220}}

During the late 19th century, as [[capitalism]] and [[colonialism]] were reaching their height, political philosophers first began to develop critiques of [[Industrialisation|industrialised society]], which had caused a rise in [[pollution]] and [[environmental degradation]]. In response, these early environmentalists developed a concern for [[nature conservation|nature]] and [[wildlife conservation]], [[soil erosion]], [[deforestation]], and [[natural resource management]].{{Sfn|Morris|2017|p=371}} Early political approaches to environmentalism were supplemented by the [[Naturalism (literature)|literary naturalism]] of writers such as [[Henry David Thoreau]], [[John Muir]] and [[Ernest Thompson Seton]],{{Sfnm|1a1=Hall|1y=2011|1p=379|2a1=Morris|2y=2017|2p=373}} whose best-selling works helped to alter the popular perception of nature by rejecting the dualistic "[[Conflict (narrative)#Man against nature|man against nature]]" conflict.{{Sfn|Morris|2017|p=373}} In particular, Thoreau's advocacy of [[anti-consumerism]] and [[vegetarianism]], as well as his love for the [[wilderness]], has been a direct inspiration for many eco-anarchists.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=379}}

[[Ecology]] in its modern form was developed by [[Charles Darwin]], whose work on [[evolutionary biology]] provided a scientific rejection of [[Christianity|Christian]] and [[Cartesianism|Cartesian]] [[anthropocentrism]], instead emphasising the role of [[probability]] and [[Agency (philosophy)|individual agency]] in the process of [[evolution]].{{Sfn|Morris|2017|pp=373-374}} Around the same time, [[anarchism]] emerged as a political philosophy that rejected all forms of [[hierarchy]], [[authority]] and [[oppression]], and instead advocated for [[decentralisation]] and [[voluntary association]].{{Sfn|Hall|2011|pp=375-378}} The framework for an ecological anarchism was thus set in place, as a means to reject anthropocentric hierarchies that positioned humans in a dominating position over nature.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=375}}

===Roots===
The ecological roots of anarchism go back to the classical anarchists, such as [[Pierre-Joseph Proudhon]] and [[Mikhail Bakunin]], who both conceived of [[human nature]] as the basis for anarchism.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=281}} Drawing from Charles Darwin's work,{{Sfn|Morris|2017|p=370}} Bakunin considered people to be an intrinsic part of their environment.{{Sfnm|1a1=Hall|1y=2011|1p=378|2a1=Morris|2y=2017|2p=370}} Bakunin rejected [[Cartesian dualism]], denying its [[anthropocentrism|anthropocentric]] and [[Mechanism (philosophy)|mechanistic]] separation of [[human]]ity from [[nature]].{{Sfn|Morris|2017|pp=370-371}} However, he also saw humans as uniquely capable of self-determination and called for humanity to achieve a mastery of its own natural environment as a means to achieve [[freedom]].{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=378}} Bakunin's [[Naturalism (philosophy)|naturalism]] was developed into an [[Philosophy of ecology|ecological philosophy]] by the geographers [[Peter Kropotkin]] and [[Éliseé Reclus]], who conceived the relationship between human society and nature as a [[dialectic]]. Their [[environmental ethics]], which combined [[social justice]] with [[environmental protection]], anticipated the green anarchist philosophies of [[social ecology (Bookchin)|social ecology]] and [[bioregionalism]].{{Sfn|Morris|2017|p=371}}

[[File:Peter_Kropotkin_circa_1900.jpg|thumb|alt=Portrait photograph of Peter Kropotkin|right|[[Peter Kropotkin]], an early environmentalist figure and a predecessor of the green anarchist tendency]]
Like Bakunin before him, Kropotkin extolled the [[domestication]] of nature by humans, but also framed humanity as an intrinsic part of its natural environment and placed great value in the natural world.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=378}} Kropotkin was among the first environmentalist thinkers to note the connections between industrialisation, environmental degradation and [[Marx's theory of alienation|workers' alienation]]. In contrast to [[Marxism|Marxists]], who called for an increase in industrialisation, Kropotkin argued for the [[Localism (politics)|localisation]] of the economy, which he felt would increase people's connection with the land and halt environmental damage.{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=220}} In ''[[Fields, Factories and Workshops]]'', Kropotkin advocated for the satisfaction of human needs through [[horticulture]], and the [[decentralization|decentralisation]] and [[degrowth]] of industry.{{Sfn|Ward|2004|p=90}} He also criticised the [[division of labour]], both between [[White-collar worker|mental]] and [[manual labour]]ers, and between the [[peasants|rural peasantry]] and [[proletariat|urban proletariat]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=222-223}} In ''[[Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution]]'', he elaborated on the natural basis for [[communism]],{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=281}} depicting the formation of [[social organization|social organisation]] among [[animals]] through the practice of [[Mutual aid (organization theory)|mutual aid]].{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=378}} 

Reclus himself argued that environmental degradation caused by industrialisation, exemplified to him by mass [[deforestation]] in the [[Pacific Northwest]], was characteristic of the "barbarity" of modern [[civilisation]], which he felt subordinated both workers and the environment to the goal of [[capital accumulation]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=222-223}} Reclus was also one of the earliest figures to develop the idea of "[[total liberation]]", directly comparing the [[exploitation of labour]] with [[cruelty to animals]] and thus advocating for both [[human rights|human]] and [[animal rights]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=220-221}} 

Kropotkin and Reclus' synthesis of environmental and social justice formed the foundation for [[eco-socialism]], chiefly associated with [[libertarian socialism|libertarian socialists]] who advocated for a "[[Back to nature|return to nature]]", such as [[Robert Blatchford]], [[William Morris]] and [[Henry Stephens Salt|Henry Salt]].{{Sfn|Morris|2017|pp=372-373}} Ecological aspects of anarchism were also emphasised by [[Emma Goldman]] and [[Alexander Berkman]], who, drawing from the work of Henry David Thoreau, conceived of anarchism as a means to promote unity between humans and the natural world.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=379}} These early ecological developments in anarchism lay the foundations for the elaboration of green anarchism in the 1960s, when it was first taken up by figures within the [[New Left]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Morris|1y=2017|1p=374|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2pp=220-223}}

===Development===
Green anarchism first emerged after the dawn of the [[Atomic Age]], as increasingly [[centralized government]]s brought with them a new host of [[environmental issues|environmental]] and [[social issue]]s.{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=281-282}} During the 1960s, the rise of the [[environmental movement]] coincided with a concurrent revival of interest in anarchism, leading to anarchists having a considerable influence on the development of [[Radical environmentalism|radical environmentalist thought]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Carter|1y=2002|1p=13|2a1=Curran|2y=2004|2p=40}} Principles and practices that already formed the core of anarchist philosophy, from [[direct action]] to [[community organizing]], thus became foundational to radical environmentalism.{{Sfn|Curran|2004|pp=40-41}} As the threats presented by [[environmental degradation]], [[industrial agriculture]] and [[pollution]] became more urgent, the first green anarchists turned to [[decentralisation]] and [[Biodiversity|diversity]] as solutions for [[socio-ecological system]]s.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=282}}

[[File:Murray_Bookchin.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Portrait photograph of Murray Bookchin|[[Murray Bookchin]], a founding figure of green anarchism and the chief proponent of [[social ecology (Bookchin)|social ecology]]]]
Green anarchism as a tendency was first developed by the American social anarchist [[Murray Bookchin]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Curran|1y=2004|1p=41|2a1=Gordon|2y=2009|2p=1|3a1=Price|3y=2019|3p=282|4a1=Ward|4y=2004|4p=93}} Bookchin had already began addressing the problem of environmental degradation as far back as the 1950s.{{Sfnm|1a1=Price|1y=2019|1p=282|2a1=Ward|2y=2004|2p=93}} In 1962, he published the first major modern work of [[environmentalism]], ''[[Our Synthetic Environment]]'', which warned of the ecological dangers of [[pesticide application]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=221}} Over the subsequent decades, Bookchin developed the first theory of green anarchism, [[social ecology (Bookchin)|social ecology]],{{Sfnm|1a1=Parson|1y=2018|1p=221|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=282}} which presented social [[hierarchy]] as the root of ecological problems.{{Sfnm|1a1=Curran|1y=2004|1p=41|2a1=Gordon|2y=2009|2p=1|3a1=Parson|3y=2018|3p=221|4a1=Price|4y=2019|4p=282}}

In 1973, Norwegian philosopher [[Arne Næss]] developed another green anarchist tendency, known as [[deep ecology]], which rejected of [[anthropocentrism]] in favour of [[Biocentrism (ethics)|biocentrism]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=287}} In 1985, this philosophy was developed into a political programme by the American academics [[Bill Devall]] and [[George Sessions]], while Australian philosopher [[Warwick Fox]] proposed the formation of [[bioregion]]s as a green anarchist alternative to the [[nation state]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=287-288}} 

Following on from deep ecology,{{Sfnm|1a1=Parson|1y=2018|1pp=223-224|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=289}} the next major development in green anarchist philosophy was the articulation of [[anarcho-primitivism]], which was critical of [[agriculture]], [[technology]] and [[civilisation]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1pp=1-2|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2pp=223-224|3a1=Price|3y=2019|3p=289}} First developed in the pages of the American anarchist magazine ''[[Fifth Estate (periodical)|Fifth Estate]]'' during the mid-1980s, anarcho-primitivist theory was developed by [[Fredy Perlman]], David Watson,{{Sfn|Gordon|2009|pp=1-2}} and particularly [[John Zerzan]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1pp=1-2|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=289}} It was later taken up by the American periodical ''Green Anarchy'' and British periodical ''[[Green Anarchist]]'',{{Sfn|Gordon|2009|pp=1-2}} and partly inspired groups such as the [[Animal Liberation Front]] (ALF), [[Earth Liberation Front]] (ELF) and [[Individualists Tending to the Wild]] (ITS).{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=223-224}}

===From theory to practice===
[[File:Alf_israel_47.jpg|thumb|right|[[Political demonstration]] by the [[Animal Liberation Front]] (ALF) in [[Israel]]]]
By the 1970s, radical environmentalist groups had begun to carry out [[direct action]] against [[nuclear power]] infrastructure, with mobilisations of the [[anti-nuclear movement]] in France, Germany and the United States providing a direct continuity between contemporary environmentalism and the New Left of the 1960s.{{Sfn|Gordon|2009|p=1}} In the 1980s, green anarchist groups such as [[Earth First!]] started taking direct action against [[deforestation]], [[roadworks]] and [[industrial agriculture]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Marshall|2y=2008|2p=689|3a1=Price|3y=2019|3p=288}} They called their sabotage actions "monkey-wrenching", after [[Edward Abbey]]'s 1984 novel ''[[The Monkey Wrench Gang]]''.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=288}} During the 1990s, the [[Road protest in the United Kingdom|road protest movements in the United Kingdom]] and [[Israel]] were also driven by eco-anarchists, while eco-anarchist action networks such as the [[Animal Liberation Front]] (ALF) and [[Earth Liberation Front]] (ELF) first rose to prominence.{{Sfn|Gordon|2009|p=1}} Eco-anarchist actions have included violent attacks, such as those carried out by cells of the [[Informal Anarchist Federation]] (IAF) and [[Individualists Tending to the Wild]] (ITS) against nuclear scientists and nanotechnology researchers respectively.<ref name="Nature2012">{{cite journal|title=Anarchists attack science|journal=Nature|volume=485|issue=7400|pages=561|date= 28 May 2012|doi=10.1038/485561a|pmid=22660296|last1=Phillips|first1=Leigh|bibcode=2012Natur.485..561P|doi-access=free}}</ref>

[[File:Demonstration 2004 AB.jpg|thumb|right|Political demonstration by the [[Anti-globalization movement|anti-globalisation movement]] (AGM) in [[Poland]]]]
As environmental degradation was accelerated by the rise of [[Economic globalization|economic globalisation]] and [[neoliberalism]], green anarchists broadened their scope of action from a specific environmentalist focus into one that agitated for [[global justice]].{{Sfn|Curran|2004|p=44}} Green anarchists were instrumental in the establishment of the [[anti-globalization movement|anti-globalisation movement]] (AGM), as well as its transformation into the subsequent [[global justice movement]] (GJM).{{Sfn|Curran|2004|pp=44-45}} The AGM gained support in both the [[Global North and Global South]], with the [[Zapatista Army of National Liberation]] (EZLN) becoming a key organisation within the movement.{{Sfn|Curran|2004|pp=45-46}} It also gained a wide range of support from different sectors of society, not only including [[activist]]s from [[left-wing politics]] or the environmental and peace movements, but also people from [[trade union]]s, church groups and the agricultural sector. Trade unionists were the most prominent presence at the [[1999 Seattle WTO protests]], even outnumbering the environmentalists and anarchists.{{Sfn|Curran|2004|p=46}} Drawing from its anarchist roots, the AGM adopted a decentralised and non-hierarchical model of [[flat organization|horizontal organisation]], embracing new "anarchical" technologies such as the [[internet]] as a means to network and communicate.{{Sfn|Curran|2004|pp=46-47}} Through the environmental and anti-globalisation movements, [[contemporary anarchism]] was ultimately able to achieve a "quasi-renaissance" in anarchist ideas, tendencies and modes of organisation.{{Sfn|Curran|2004|pp=49-50}}

=== Contemporary theoretical developments ===
Writers such as Murray Bookchin and [[Alan Carter (philosopher)|Alan Carter]] have claimed contemporary anarchism to be the only political movement capable of addressing [[climate change]].{{Sfn|Ward|2004|p=98}} In his 1996 book ''Ecology and Anarchism'', British anthropologist [[Brian Morris (anthropologist)|Brian Morris]] argued that anarchism is intrinsically environmentalist, as it shared the ecologist principles of decentralisation, non-hierarchical social organisation and interdependence.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=379}}

By the 21st century, green anarchists had begun to move beyond the previous century's divisions into social ecologist and anarcho-primitivist camps, establishing a new body of theory that rejected the dualisms of humanity against nature and civilisation against wilderness.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=383}} Drawing on the biocentric philosophy of deep ecology, in 2006, [[Mark Somma]] called for a "revolutionary environmentalism" capable of overthrowing [[capitalism]], reducing consumption and organising the [[Nature conservation|conservation]] of biodiversity.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|pp=383-384}} Somma championed a form of [[solidarity]] between humanity and the non-human natural world, in a call that was taken up in 2009 by [[Steven Best]], who called for eco-anarchists to commit themselves to "[[total liberation]]" and extend solidarity to animals.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|p=384}} To Best, [[morality]] ought to be extended to animals due to their [[sentience]] and capacity to feel [[pain]]; he has called for the abolition of the hierarchy between humans and animals, although he implicitly excludes non-sentient plants from this moral consideration.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|pp=384-385}}
Drawing from [[eco-feminism]], [[pattrice jones]] called for human solidarity with both plants and animals, neither of which she considered to be lesser than humans, even describing them as "natural anarchists" that do not recognise or obey any government's laws.{{Sfn|Hall|2011|pp=385-386}}

In 2012, Jeff Shantz developed a theory of "[[green syndicalism]]", which seeks to use of [[syndicalism|syndicalist]] models of workplace organisation to link the [[labour movement]] with the [[environmental movement]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=221}}

==Branches==

===Social ecology===
The green anarchist theory of [[social ecology (Bookchin)|social ecology]] is based on an analysis of the relationship between [[society]] and [[nature]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Hall|2y=2011|2pp=379-380|3a1=Price|3y=2019|3p=282}} Social ecology considers human society to be both the cause of and solution to environmental degradation, envisioning the creation of a [[Rationalism|rational]] and [[Ecology|ecological]] society through a process of [[sociocultural evolution]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=282-283}} Social ecologist [[Murray Bookchin]] saw society itself as a natural product of [[evolution]],{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2pp=283-284}} which intrinsically tended toward ever-increasing [[complexity]] and diversity.{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=283-284}} While he saw human society as having the potential to become "nature rendered self-conscious",{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=284}} in ''[[The Ecology of Freedom]]'', Bookchin elaborated that the emergence of [[hierarchy]] had given way to a disfigured form of society that was both ecologically and socially destructive.{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1pp=1-2|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=284}}

According to social ecology, the oppression of humans by humans directly preceded the exploitation of the environment by hierarchical society, which itself caused a [[vicious circle]] of increasing socio-ecological devastation.{{Sfnm|1a1=Hall|1y=2011|1p=380|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2p=221|3a1=Price|3y=2019|3pp=284-285|4a1=Radcliffe|4y=2016|4p=194}} Considering social hierarchy to go against the natural evolutionary tendencies towards complexity and diversity,{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=285}} social ecology concludes that oppressive hierarchies have to be abolished in order to resolve the [[ecological crisis]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Parson|1y=2018|1p=221|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=285}} Bookchin thus proposed a decentralised system of [[direct democracy]], centred locally in the [[municipality]], where people themselves could [[Public participation (decision making)|participate in decision making]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=285-286}} He envisioned a [[Self-organization|self-organized]] system of [[popular assembly|popular assemblies]] to replace the [[state (polity)|state]] and re-educate individuals into socially and ecologically-minded citizens.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=286}}
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===Deep ecology===
The theory of [[deep ecology]] rejects [[anthropocentrism]] in favour of [[Biocentrism (ethics)|biocentrism]], which recognizes the [[Instrumental and intrinsic value|intrinsic value]] of all life, regardless of its utility to humankind.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=287}} Unlike social ecologists, theorists of deep ecology considered human society to be incapable of reversing environmental degradation and, as a result, proposed a drastic reduction in [[world population]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=287-288}} The solutions to [[human overpopulation]] proposed by deep ecologists included [[bioregionalism]], which advocated the replacement of the [[nation state]] with [[bioregion]]s, as well as a widespread return to a [[hunter-gatherer]] lifestyle.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=288}} Some deep ecologists, including members of [[Earth First!]], have even welcomed the mass death caused by [[disease]] and [[famine]] as a form of [[Human population planning|population control]].{{Sfn|Price|2019|pp=288-289}}
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===Anarcho-primitivism===
The theory of [[anarcho-primitivism]] aims its critique at the emergence of [[technology]], [[agriculture]] and [[civilisation]], which it considers to have been the source of all social problems.{{Sfnm|1a1=Parson|1y=2018|1pp=223-224|2a1=Price|2y=2019|2p=289}} According to American primitivist theorist [[John Zerzan]], it was the [[division of labour]] in agricultural societies that had first given way to the [[social inequality]] and [[social alienation|alienation]] which became characteristic of [[modernity]]. As such, Zerzan proposed the abolition of technology and science, in order for society to be broken down and humans to return to a hunter-gather lifestyle.{{Sfn|Price|2019|p=289}} [[Libertarian socialism|Libertarian socialists]] such as [[Noam Chomsky]] and [[Michael Albert]] have been critical of anarcho-primitivism, with the former arguing that it would inevitably result in [[genocide]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=223-224}}
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===Green syndicalism===
Green syndicalism, as developed by [[Graham Purchase]] and [[Judi Bari]],{{Sfn|Marshall|2008|p=689}} advocates for the unification of the [[labour movement]] with [[environmental movement]] and for [[trade union]]s such as the [[Industrial Workers of the World]] (IWW) to adopt ecological concerns into their platforms.{{Sfnm|1a1=Marshall|1y=2008|1p=689|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2p=221}} Seeing [[workers' self-management]] as a means to address environmental degradation, green syndicalism pushes for workers to agitate their colleagues, [[sabotage]] environmentally destructive practices in their workplaces, and form [[workers' councils]]. Green syndicalist Jeff Shantz proposed that a [[free association of producers]] would be best positioned to dismantle the industrial economy, through the decentralisation and localisation of production.{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=221}} In contrast to [[Marxism]] and [[anarcho-syndicalism]], green syndicalism opposes [[mass production]] and rejects the idea that the industrial economy has a "liberatory potential"; but it also rejects the radical environmentalist calls for a "complete, immediate break with industrialism".{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=223}}

==Theory==
Although a diverse body of thought, eco-anarchist theory has a fundamental basis unified by certain shared principles.{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2p=222}} Eco-anarchism considers there to be a direct connection between the problems of [[environmental degradation]] and [[hierarchy]], and maintains an [[anti-capitalism|anti-capitalist critique]] of [[productivism]] and [[industrialisation|industrialism]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2pp=222-223}} Emphasising [[decentralisation]] and [[community ownership]], it also advocates for the [[degrowth]] of the economy and the re-centring of social relations around [[Local community|local communities]] and [[bioregions]].{{Sfn|Gordon|2009|p=1}}
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===Critique of civilisation===
Green anarchism traces the roots of all forms of oppression to the widespread transition from [[Hunter-gatherer|hunting and gathering]] to [[sedentary lifestyle]]s.{{Sfnm|1a1=Marshall|1y=2008|1p=688|2a1=Parson|2y=2018|2p=224}} According to green anarchism, the foundation of [[civilisation]] was defined by the [[extractivism|extraction]] and [[import]]ation of [[natural resource]]s, which led to the formation of [[hierarchy]] through [[capital accumulation]] and the [[division of labour]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=224-225}} Green anarchists are therefore critical of [[civilisation]] and its manifestations in globalized capitalism, which they consider to be causing a [[societal collapse|societal]] and [[ecological collapse]] that necessitates a "[[Back to nature|return to nature]]".{{Sfn|Marshall|2008|p=689}} Green anarchists uphold [[direct action]] as a form of resistance against civilisation, which they wish to replace with a way of [[simple living]] in harmony with [[nature]]. This may involve cultivating [[self-sustainability]], practising [[survivalism]] or [[rewilding]].{{Sfn|Marshall|2008|pp=688-689}}

=== Decentralisation ===
Eco-anarchism considers the rise of [[state (polity)|states]] to be the primary cause of environmental degradation, as states promote greater industrial extraction and production as means to remain competitive with other state powers, even at the expense of the environment.{{Sfn|Carter|2002|p=14}} Drawing from the ecological principle of "[[unity in diversity]]", eco-anarchism also recognises humans as an intrinsic part of the ecosystem that they live in and how their culture, history and language is shaped by their local environments.{{Sfn|Marshall|2008|p=689}} Eco-anarchists therefore argue for the abolition of states and their replacement with [[stateless society|stateless societies]],{{Sfn|Carter|2002|p=14}} upholding various forms of [[localism (politics)|localism]] and [[bioregionalism]].{{Sfnm|1a1=Gordon|1y=2009|1p=1|2a1=Marshall|2y=2008|2p=689}}
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=== Deindustrialisation ===
Ecological anarchism considers the [[exploitation of labour]] under [[capitalism]] within a broader ecological context, holding that [[environmental degradation]] is intrinsically linked with societal [[oppression]].{{Sfn|Parson|2018|p=222}} As such, green anarchism is opposed to [[industrialisation|industrialism]], due to both its social and ecological affects.{{Sfn|Parson|2018|pp=222-223}}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Anarchism|Politics}}
* [[Animal rights and punk subculture]]
* [[Chellis Glendinning]]
* [[Earth Liberation Front]]
* [[Earth First!]]
* [[Green Scare]]
* [[Eco-socialism]]
* [[Intentional community]]
* [[Left-libertarianism]]
* [[Operation Backfire (FBI)]]
* [[Permaculture]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
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{{refbegin|2}}
* {{cite book|last=Aaltola|first=Elisa|year=2010|chapter=Green Anarchy: Deep Ecology and Primitivism|editor-first1=Benjamin|editor-last1=Franks|editor-first2=Matthew|editor-last2=Wilson|title=Anarchism and Moral Philosophy|publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]]|pages=161–185|doi=10.1057/9780230289680_9|isbn=978-0-230-28968-0}} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" -->
*{{Cite book|last=Carter|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Carter (philosopher)|year=1999|title=A Radical Green Political Theory|location=[[London]]|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=0-415-20309-0|lccn=98-41317}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Carter|first=Alan B.|year=2002|title=Anarchism/eco-anarchism|editor1-last=Barry|editor1-first=John|editor2-last=Frankland|editor2-first=E. Gene|encyclopedia=International Encyclopedia of Environmental Politics|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=9780415202855|doi=10.4324/9780203996188|lccn=2001019754}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Curran|first=Giorel|year=2004|title=Anarchism, environmentalism, and anti–globalisation|journal=Interdisciplinary Environmental Review|volume=6|issue=2|pages=37–50|issn=2042-6992|doi=10.1504/IER.2004.053924}} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" and "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Dunlap|first=Alexander|year=2021|title=Toward an Anarchist Decolonization: A Few Notes|journal=Capitalism Nature Socialism|volume=32|issue=4|pages=62–72|doi=10.1080/10455752.2021.1879186|s2cid=234082682 }} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" and "ecological anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last1=Edwards-Schuth|first1=Brandon|last2=Lupinacci|first2=John|year=2023|chapter=Anarchism, EcoJustice, and Earth Democracy|editor1-first=John|editor1-last=Lupinacci|editor2-first=Alison|editor2-last=Happel-Parkins|editor3-first=Rita|editor3-last=Turner|title=Ecocritical Perspectives in Teacher Education|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZMudEAAAQBAJ|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|pages=138–157|doi=10.1163/9789004532793_008|lccn=2022046926|isbn=9789004532793}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Gordon|first=Uri|year=2009|title=Eco-Anarchism|editor-first=Immanuel|editor-last=Ness|encyclopedia=The International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest|isbn=9781405198073|doi=10.1002/9781405198073.wbierp0491|pages=1–2}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Hailwood|first=Simon|year=2003|title=Eco-Anarchism and Liberal Reformism|journal=[[Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture|Ecotheology: Journal of Religion, Nature & the Environment]]|volume=8|issue=2|pages=224–241|issn=1363-7320|doi=10.1558/ecotheology.v8i2.224 }} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Hall|first=Matthew|year=2011|title=Beyond the human: extending ecological anarchism|journal=[[Environmental Politics (journal)|Environmental Politics]]|volume=20|issue=3|pages=374–390|issn=1743-8934 |doi=10.1080/09644016.2011.573360|bibcode=2011EnvPo..20..374H |s2cid=143845424 }} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" and "ecological anarchism"  -->
* {{cite journal|last=Holohan|first=Kevin J.|year=2022|title=Navigating Extinction: Zen Buddhism and Eco-Anarchism|journal=Religions|volume=13|issue=60|page=60 |issn=2077-1444|doi=10.3390/rel13010060 |doi-access=free }} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|first=Peter H.|last = Marshall|author-link=Peter Marshall (author, born 1946)|title=[[Demanding the Impossible|Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism]]|year=2008|orig-year=1992|location=[[London]]|publisher=[[Harper Perennial]]|isbn=978-0-00-686245-1|oclc=218212571}} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last=Mellos|first=Koula|year=1988|chapter=Theory of Eco-anarchism: Bookchin’s Critique of Authority|title=Perspectives on Ecology: A Critical Essay|publisher=[[Macmillan Press]]|pages=77–107|isbn=978-1-349-19600-5|doi=10.1007/978-1-349-19598-5_5}}
* {{cite book|chapter=Anarchism and Environmental Philosophy|first=Brian|last=Morris|author-link=Brian Morris (anthropologist)|year=2017|location=[[Leiden]]|publisher=[[Brill Publishers|Brill]]|editor-first=Nathan|editor-last=Jun|title=Brill's Companion to Anarchism and Philosophy|isbn=978-90-04-35689-4|pages=369–400|doi=10.1163/9789004356894_015|url=https://brill.com/view/title/35861}} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" and "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last=Parson|first=Sean |chapter=Ecocentrism |editor-last1=Franks |editor-first1=Benjamin |editor-last2=Jun |editor-first2=Nathan |editor-last3=Williams |editor-first3=Leonard |year=2018 |title=Anarchism: A Conceptual Approach |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-138-92565-6 |lccn=2017044519 |pages=219–233}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism", "ecological anarchism" and "green anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last=Parsons|first=Jonathan|year=2018|chapter=Anarchism and Unconventional Oil|chapter-url=http://jonparsons.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Parsons_Anarchism-Oil.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225215809/http://jonparsons.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Parsons_Anarchism-Oil.pdf |archive-date=2021-02-25 |url-status=live|editor1-first=Brent Ryan|editor1-last=Bellamy|editor2-first=Jeff|editor2-last=Diamanti|title=Materialism and the Critique of Energy|url=https://www.mcmprime.com/books/marxism-and-energy|location=[[Chicago]]|publisher=MCM Publishing|pages=547–579|lccn=2018949294}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite book |author-last=Price |author-first=Andy |year=2019 |chapter=Green Anarchism |editor1-last=Adams |editor1-first=Matthew S. |editor2-last=Levy |editor2-first=Carl |title=The Palgrave Handbook of Anarchism |location=[[Cham, Switzerland]] |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |pages=281–291 |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-75620-2_16 |isbn=978-3-319-75620-2|s2cid=242090793 |chapter-url=https://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9783319756196 }} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last=Radcliffe|first=James|year=2016|orig-year=2012|chapter=Eco-anarchism, the New Left and Romanticism|editor1-first=John|editor1-last=Rignall|editor2-first=H. Gustav|editor2-last=Klaus|title=Ecology and the Literature of the British Left: The Red and the Green|publisher=[[Routledge]]|pages=193–206|isbn=9781409418221|lccn=2012003109|doi=10.4324/9781315578675-15}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" and "ecological anarchism" -->
* {{cite book|last=Shahar|first=Dan C.|year=2020|chapter= Anarchism for an Ecological Crisis?|editor-first1=Gary|editor-last1=Chartier|editor-first2=Chad|editor-last2=Van Schoelandt|title=The Routledge Handbook of Anarchy and Anarchist Thought|pages=381–392 |location=[[New York City|New York]]|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=9781315185255|doi=10.4324/9781315185255-27|s2cid=228898569 }} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" and "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last1=Smessaert|first1=Jacob|last2=Feola|first2=Giuseppe|year=2023|title=Beyond Statism and Deliberation: Questioning Ecological Democracy through Eco-Anarchism and Cosmopolitics|journal=[[Environmental Values]]|volume=32 |issue=6 |pages=765–793 |issn=1752-7015|doi=10.3197/096327123X16759401706533 |s2cid=257854522 |doi-access=free}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Taylor|first=Bron|year=2013|title=Threat Assessments and Radical Environmentalism|journal=Terrorism and Political Violence|volume=15|issue=4|pages=173–182|issn=1556-1836|doi=10.1080/09546550390449962|s2cid=143100557 }} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last1=Verstraeten|first1=Guido J. M.|last2=Verstraeten|first2=Willem W.|year=2014|title=Eco-refuges as Anarchist's Promised Land or the End of Dialectical Anarchism|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/VEREAA-2|journal=Asian Journal of Humanities and Social Studies|volume=2|issue=6|pages=781–788|issn=2321-2799}} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite book |last=Ward |first=Colin |year=2004 |title=Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-280477-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/anarchismverysho00ward_0 |chapter=Green aspirations and anarchist futures |pages=90–98}} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal |last1=Wiedmann|first1=Thomas |last2=Lenzen|first2=Manfred |last3=Keyßer|first3=Lorenz T. |last4=Steinberger|first4=Julia K.|author-link4=Julia Steinberger|title=Scientists' warning on affluence |journal=[[Nature Communications]] |date=2020 |volume=11 |issue=3107 |page=3107 |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-16941-y |pmid=32561753 |pmc=7305220 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.3107W }} <!-- Uses "eco-anarchism" -->
* {{cite journal|last=Williams|first=Dana M.|year=2009|title= Red vs. green: regional variation of anarchist ideology in the United States|journal= Journal of Political Ideologies|volume=14|issue=2|pages=189–210|doi=10.1080/13569310902925816|s2cid=33888366 }} <!-- Uses "green anarchism" and "eco-anarchism" -->
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
<!-- Comment with which reliable source has cited these works -->
{{refbegin|2}}
* {{cite book|last=Abbey|first=Edward|author-link=Edward Abbey|year=1974|title=[[The Monkey Wrench Gang]]|publisher=[[Lippincott Williams & Wilkins]]|isbn=0397010842}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019 -->
* {{cite book|author-link=Janet Biehl|last=Biehl|first=Janet|year=1998|title=The Politics of Social Ecology|url=https://archive.org/details/ThePoliticsOfSocialEcologyJanetBiehl|location=[[Montreal]]|publisher=Black Rose Books|lccn=97-074155|isbn=978-1-55164-415-8}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|author-link=Murray Bookchin|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|title=Our Synthetic Environment|url=https://archive.org/details/oursyntheticenvi0000book_u0e3|year=1974|orig-year=1962|location=New York|edition=Revised|publisher=[[Harper (publisher)#Harper and Row|Harper & Row]]|isbn=0-06-090363-5}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 and Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|year=1986|orig-year=1971|title=Post-Scarcity Anarchism|title-link=Post-Scarcity Anarchism|edition=2nd|location=[[Montréal]]|publisher=Black Rose Books|isbn=0-920057-41-1|oclc=977237290}} <!-- Cited by Carter 2002 -->
* {{cite book|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|year=1980|title=Toward an Ecological Society|url=https://archive.org/details/towardecological0000book|url-access=registration|location=[[Montréal]]|publisher=Black Rose Books|isbn=0-919618-99-5|oclc=7753479}} <!-- Cited by Carter 2002 -->
* {{cite book|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|year=1991|orig-year=1982|title=The Ecology of Freedom|title-link=The Ecology of Freedom|edition=Revised|location=[[Montreal]]|publisher=Black Rose Books|isbn=0-921689-72-1|lccn=81-21745}} <!-- Cited by Gordon 2009, Parson 2018 and Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|year=1987|title=The Rise of Urbanization and the Decline of Citizenship|publisher=Sierra Club Books |url=https://archive.org/details/riseofurbanizati0000book/|lccn=86-22083|isbn=0-87156-706-7}}<!-- Cited by Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|last=Bookchin|first=Murray|year=2007|title=Social Ecology and Communalism|url=https://archive.org/details/SocialEcologyAndCommunalism/|publisher=[[AK Press]]|isbn=978-1-904859-49-9|lccn=2006933557}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|first1=Bill|last1=Devall|first2=George|last2=Sessions|year=1985|title=Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered|url=https://archive.org/details/deepecology0000deva/|location=[[Layton, Utah]]|publisher=Gibson Smith|lccn=84-14044|isbn=0-87905-158-2}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019 -->
* {{cite book|last=Kropotkin|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Kropotkin|year=1974|orig-year=1899|title=[[Fields, Factories, and Workshops]]|publisher=[[Allen & Unwin]]|isbn=0-06-136161-5|lccn=74-9072}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 and Ward 2004 -->
* {{cite book|last=Kropotkin|first=Peter|year=1902|title=[[Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution]]|publisher=McClure, Phillips & Co.|lccn=03000886}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 and Price 2019 -->
* {{Cite book|last=Perlman|first=Fredy|author-link=Fredy Perlman|year=1983|title=Against His-Story, Against Leviathan!|url=https://archive.org/details/againsthistoryag0000unse|url-access=registration|location=[[Detroit]]|publisher=Black & Red|oclc=12933940}} <!-- Cited by Gordon 2009 -->
* {{cite book|last=Purchase|first=Graham|year=1997|orig-year=1993|title=Anarchism and Ecology|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SuyaEpeWTDIC|location=[[Montreal]]|publisher=Black Rose Books|isbn=9781551640266|oclc=35938985}} <!-- Cited by Gordon 2009 -->
* {{cite journal|last=Reclus|first=Élisée|year=1896|title=The Progress of Mankind|author-link=Élisée Reclus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5PQAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA761|journal=[[The Contemporary Review]]|volume=70|issue=December|pages=761–683|issn=0010-7565}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 -->
* {{cite book|last=Reclus|first=Élisée|year=2013|title=Anarchy, Geography, Modernity: Selected Writings of Elisée Reclus|url=https://archive.org/details/AnarchyGeographyModernitySelectedWritingsOfEliseeReclus|publisher=[[PM Press]]|editor1-first=John|editor1-last=Clark|editor2-first=Camille|editor2-last=Martin|isbn=978-1-60486-429-8|lccn=2013911520}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 -->
* {{cite book|last=Shantz|first=Jeff|year=2012|title=Green Syndicalism: An Alternative Red/Green Vision|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ppa-yVg0vYUC|publisher=[[Syracuse University Press]]|doi=10.2307/j.ctt1j1nv1v |jstor=j.ctt1j1nv1v|isbn=978-0-8156-3307-5|lccn=2012019259}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 and Price 2019 -->
* {{Cite book|last=Snyder|first=Gary|author-link=Gary Snyder|year=1969|title=Earth House Hold|url=https://archive.org/details/earthhouseholdte0000snyd|publisher=[[New Directions Publishing]]|lccn=68-28281}}<!-- Cited by Marshall 1993, p. 690 -->
* {{cite book|last=Snyder|first=Gary|title=[[Turtle Island (book)|Turtle Island]]|year=1974|publisher=[[New Directions Publishing]]|isbn=0-8112-0545-2}} <!-- Cited by Marshall 1993, p. 690 -->
* {{cite book|last=Snyder|first=Gary|year=1990|title=The Practice of the Wild|url=https://archive.org/details/practiceofwildes00snyd|publisher=[[North Point Press]]|lccn=90-7590}} <!-- Cited by Marshall 1993, p. 690 -->
* {{cite book|editor-last=Tobias|editor-first=Michael|year=1984|title=Deep Ecology|location=[[San Diego]]|publisher=Avant Books|isbn=0-932238-13-0}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019 -->
* {{Cite book|last=Watson|first=David|year=1998|title=Against the Megamachine: Essays on Empire and its Enemies|url=https://archive.org/details/againstmegamachi0000wats/|url-access=registration|location=[[Brooklyn]]|publisher=[[Autonomedia]]|isbn=1-57027-063-5|oclc=59376926}} <!-- Cited by Gordon 2009 -->
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Witoszek|editor1-first=Nina|editor2-last=Brennan|editor2-first=Andrew|title=Philosophical Dialogues: Arne Næss and the Progress of Philosophy|year=1999 |url=https://archive.org/details/philosophicaldia0000unse/|publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield]]|lccn=98-24368|isbn=0-8476-8929-8}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019 -->
* {{cite book|editor1-link=John Zerzan|editor-last1=Zerzan|editor-first1=John|editor-last2=Carnes|editor-first2=Alice|title=Questioning Technology|url=https://archive.org/details/questioningtechnologyacriticalanthology|isbn=0-86571-205-0|publisher=New Society Publishers|year=1991}} <!-- Cited by Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|last=Zerzan|first=John|year=1994|title=Future Primitive and Other Essays|title-link=Future Primitive and Other Essays|publisher=[[Autonomedia]]|isbn=1-57027-000-7}} <!-- Cited by Gordon 2009, Parson 2018 and Price 2019. -->
* {{cite book|last=Zerzan|first=John|title=Elements of Refusal|url=https://archive.org/details/ElementsofRefusal/|orig-year=1988|edition=Revised|publisher=Columbia Alternative Library Press|year=1999|isbn=1-890532-01-0}} <!-- Cited by Parson 2018 and Price 2019. -->
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}
* [http://www.social-ecology.org/ The Institute for Social Ecology].
* Articles tagged with "[http://theanarchistlibrary.org/topics/green green]" and "[http://theanarchistlibrary.org/topics/ecology ecology]" at The Anarchist Library.

{{anarchism}}
{{Green politics}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green Anarchism}}
[[Category:Green anarchism| ]]
[[Category:Anarchist schools of thought]]
[[Category:Animal Liberation Front]]
[[Category:Animal rights and politics]]
[[Category:Animal rights movement]]
[[Category:Animal welfare]]
[[Category:Earth Liberation Front]]
[[Category:Green politics]]
[[Category:Political theories]]
[[Category:Simple living]]