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Ecofeminism
This impressive book celebrates the coming together of two well-known critics of Western philosophy and science. From their respective backgrounds in social science and physics, Maria Mies and VAndana Shiva write about the concerns which unite them as women.
Theirs is a powerful critique of the emnacipatory ideas of the Enlightenment, which measured civilizationin terms of domination of Nature. They argue that feminism should see linkages between patriarchal opression and the destruction of Nature in the name of profit and progress. Women - in many parts of the world the principal farmers, food-providers, and nurturers of children - are the hardest hit by technological excess and environmental degradation.
Through examining issues such as the growth of new reproductive technologies, 'development', indigenous knowledge, globalization, and the concepts of freedom and self-determination, teh authors provide a vision of a different value system. Ecofeminism is after all a 'new term for an ancient wisdom'. Their book is a powerful plea for the rediscovery of such wisdom by feminists and ecologists everywhere.
Theirs is a powerful critique of the emnacipatory ideas of the Enlightenment, which measured civilizationin terms of domination of Nature. They argue that feminism should see linkages between patriarchal opression and the destruction of Nature in the name of profit and progress. Women - in many parts of the world the principal farmers, food-providers, and nurturers of children - are the hardest hit by technological excess and environmental degradation.
Through examining issues such as the growth of new reproductive technologies, 'development', indigenous knowledge, globalization, and the concepts of freedom and self-determination, teh authors provide a vision of a different value system. Ecofeminism is after all a 'new term for an ancient wisdom'. Their book is a powerful plea for the rediscovery of such wisdom by feminists and ecologists everywhere.
336 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
168 people are currently reading
5307 people want to read
About the author
Vandana Shiva
190 books1,315 followersA major figurehead of the alter-globalization movement as well as a major role player in global Ecofeminism, Dr. Vandana Shiva is recipient to several awards for her services in human rights, ecology and conservation. Receiving her Ph.D in physics at the University of Western Ontario in 1978, Dr. Vandana Shivas attentions were quickly drawn towards ecological concerns.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
December 4, 2013
The problem with reading seminal works late in your study of a subject is that the ideas presented in the original are not only old news, but the ideas themselves have been critiqued and reworked so much over time that the original revolutionary work appears clumsy, dull, and oftentimes misguided.
I didn't read all the chapters in this book and may spend some more time on it later, but overall I was uninspired. Shiva and Mies fail to make a biting case for what distinguishes ecofeminism from environmental justice or anti-colonialism... I was looking for something stronger, and more importantly, distinct. Mies kept hanging her theory on essentialist definitions of 'man' and 'woman,' 'colonizer' and 'colonized,' and I think the field has just moved way beyond that simplification in the past 15 years.
That's not to discount this book or the concept of ecofeminism. Shiva and Mies work that connects capitalism's exploitation of indigenous people, nature, and women is right on. This book influenced a great number of the thinkers I admire, not to mention my own socio-ecological thought. It's just that reading this book, I kept saying, "I've read this before." And since its an oft-quoted, important piece, I probably have.
I didn't read all the chapters in this book and may spend some more time on it later, but overall I was uninspired. Shiva and Mies fail to make a biting case for what distinguishes ecofeminism from environmental justice or anti-colonialism... I was looking for something stronger, and more importantly, distinct. Mies kept hanging her theory on essentialist definitions of 'man' and 'woman,' 'colonizer' and 'colonized,' and I think the field has just moved way beyond that simplification in the past 15 years.
That's not to discount this book or the concept of ecofeminism. Shiva and Mies work that connects capitalism's exploitation of indigenous people, nature, and women is right on. This book influenced a great number of the thinkers I admire, not to mention my own socio-ecological thought. It's just that reading this book, I kept saying, "I've read this before." And since its an oft-quoted, important piece, I probably have.
June 20, 2011
I keep wavering between 4 and 5 stars. (When is goodreads going to add that 1/2 star option?!)
Undoubtedly, a very important book.
I do think it loses steam during the second half. The first chapters and sections were where they pulled all their big punches - their great joint introduction, Shiva's criticism of the classical scientific paradigm, Mies' brilliant analysis of "catching-up" development. I was less excited about Mies' discussion regarding reproductive technologies, which felt less relevant and too lengthy. And again, Shiva's writing is a little wandering and redundant.
The promise of this book is very exciting. I really appreciated the insistence that the modern, industrial, growth-driven economic model is just madness and devastation. They are not apologetic about stating that the North's lifestyle is unsustainable and must be altered. It was inspiring.
I was still left wanting a little more, though, in terms of solutions offered. Obviously, we in the North need to individually commit to changing our consumption patterns (I say, as I type on my fancy computer with an HD screen). And grassroots, small-scale community organizations such as those they highlight are great. But I feel like we need something a lot more comprehensive and powerful to actually coordinate a revolution - and nothing short of a revolution is going to make a meaningful change in the system. When you're battling big global forces, you got to have big global thoughts.
Undoubtedly, a very important book.
I do think it loses steam during the second half. The first chapters and sections were where they pulled all their big punches - their great joint introduction, Shiva's criticism of the classical scientific paradigm, Mies' brilliant analysis of "catching-up" development. I was less excited about Mies' discussion regarding reproductive technologies, which felt less relevant and too lengthy. And again, Shiva's writing is a little wandering and redundant.
The promise of this book is very exciting. I really appreciated the insistence that the modern, industrial, growth-driven economic model is just madness and devastation. They are not apologetic about stating that the North's lifestyle is unsustainable and must be altered. It was inspiring.
I was still left wanting a little more, though, in terms of solutions offered. Obviously, we in the North need to individually commit to changing our consumption patterns (I say, as I type on my fancy computer with an HD screen). And grassroots, small-scale community organizations such as those they highlight are great. But I feel like we need something a lot more comprehensive and powerful to actually coordinate a revolution - and nothing short of a revolution is going to make a meaningful change in the system. When you're battling big global forces, you got to have big global thoughts.
August 31, 2023
no va a ser mi nueva biblia (como pensaba antes de leerlo) ni tampoco es lo más amable para adentrarse en el mundo del ecofeminismo, pero la visión de las autoras es súper interesante y varias de sus reflexiones me mostraron problemáticas que consideraba puntos ciegos hasta ahora :) 💜
September 5, 2017
Jelas, bahasanya ringan, enak dibaca. Ekofeminisme adalah satu teori, aliran, praksis yang sangat menarik karena dapat mengaitkan tautan antara alam dan perempuan. Buku ini diterbitkan pertama kali pada tahun 1993 sehingga beberapa gagasannya terkesan naif dan utopis jika dikaitkan dengan problem dan keadaan ekologi yang ada saat ini, 14 tahun setelah buku ini terbit. Sedikit ulasan Shiva terkait anthropocene di bagian prakata edisi ini tidak cukup memuaskan saya. Namun, saya tidak ingin gegabah untuk mengatakan bahwa ekofeminisme sudah benar-benar usang dan kadaluwarsa sebab saya melihat ada kesamaan semangat antara ekofeminisme, dengan perjuangan teman-teman ForBALI untuk menolak reklamasi Teluk Benoa dan perjuangan para petani di Pegunungan Kendeng. Saya hanya perlu untuk membaca literatur lain, dari segi yang mendukung dan yang mengkritik ekofeminisme, untuk memperkaya isi otak saya--dan siapa tahu, bisa menentukan standing position saya terkait ekofeminisme.
Terlepas dari itu, buku ini cukup menggugah saya bahwa pemikiran dan praktik dari "hidup yang sederhana" ternyata nampak membahagiakan. Omong-omong tentang "hidup yang sederhana", per 1 Oktober tahun ini, Papa saya akan resmi pensiun dari pekerjaan yang telah ia kerjakan selama lebih dari tiga puluh tahun ke belakang, dan berencana untuk hidup sederhana di rumah masa kecilnya. Banyak waktu yang akan ia habiskan dengan bercocok tanam, mengolah sawah dan ladang, merawat peliharaan, dan menyama-braya dengan para tetangga. Hidupnya akan jauh lebih sederhana dari biasanya dan sepertinya, ritme hidup seperti inilah yang telah ia nantikan beberapa tahun belakangan. Hidup sederhana karena kebutuhan-kebutuhan utama telah terpenuhi dan adanya perasaan cukup atas telah apa yang telah dipunyai inilah yang juga merupakan gagasan utama ekofeminisme. Tidak perlu yang rumit-rumit, kalau memang bisa yang sederhana, mengapa tidak? Namun tetap saja, saya masih tetap punya sedikit kesangsian tentang itu. Memang susah untuk jadi sederhana di tengah hidup yang memang tidak sederhana.
Terlepas dari itu, buku ini cukup menggugah saya bahwa pemikiran dan praktik dari "hidup yang sederhana" ternyata nampak membahagiakan. Omong-omong tentang "hidup yang sederhana", per 1 Oktober tahun ini, Papa saya akan resmi pensiun dari pekerjaan yang telah ia kerjakan selama lebih dari tiga puluh tahun ke belakang, dan berencana untuk hidup sederhana di rumah masa kecilnya. Banyak waktu yang akan ia habiskan dengan bercocok tanam, mengolah sawah dan ladang, merawat peliharaan, dan menyama-braya dengan para tetangga. Hidupnya akan jauh lebih sederhana dari biasanya dan sepertinya, ritme hidup seperti inilah yang telah ia nantikan beberapa tahun belakangan. Hidup sederhana karena kebutuhan-kebutuhan utama telah terpenuhi dan adanya perasaan cukup atas telah apa yang telah dipunyai inilah yang juga merupakan gagasan utama ekofeminisme. Tidak perlu yang rumit-rumit, kalau memang bisa yang sederhana, mengapa tidak? Namun tetap saja, saya masih tetap punya sedikit kesangsian tentang itu. Memang susah untuk jadi sederhana di tengah hidup yang memang tidak sederhana.
February 28, 2019
read with a student for an independent study on transnational feminist climate activism. i was excited to revisit this book after discovering Patriarchy and Accumulation via its contemporary uptick in ecological marxism. i was not a fan of ecofeminism as a young scholar (fancying myself as a harawayian), and i still found this a bit essentialist and grating. the political arguments are fine, but sometimes unsupported by evidence or argument. the holism of nature presented here is a bit too unreflective for me. it is easy to say "this is dated", but it was preceded by Cyborg Manifesto by quite a few years, and a 1993 contemporary like Val Plumwood's Feminism and the Mastery of Nature has aged a bit better
November 26, 2019
Ya girl LOVES bringing up hot topics such as ecofeminism and environmental justice and what we as consumers need to do about such topics and this book gave me loads of information with which to fire back. As it would turn out, while factories and companies do cause a lot of harm, so do consumers! And it's our job to help. Not only that, but screw recycling and reducing, we need to flat out refuse. I've been saying these things for so long, and this book has just given me the academic ammunition I need.
Both Maria Mies and Vandana Shiva, upon agreeing to coauthor this book, decided to only write about their own countries and perspectives and experiences--to try to write a book with a mutual understanding and mutual goal in sight for both a daughter of Germany and a daughter of India would be too difficult, and perhaps counterproductive. Both highly-industrialized countries and colonized countries have vastly different goals. For example, industrialized countries are dealing with carbon, CO2, pollution, so on and so forth. Colonized countries deal with factories, environmental racism, garbage deposits, and more. The problems can't necessarily be conflated, but there are solutions and ideological shifts that folks in either country can make in order to make our world more livable.
On the academic side of things, I find that this book was well-sourced, well-argued, and well-cited. They bring in interesting concepts such as consumerism, surrogate mothers, Chernobyl, and more in order to make their point: there is something we can all do for each other, and something we can all do for this earth, despite what billionaires may have us believe.
Most shocking to me, however, is that I'm personally still making the same arguments today, despite this book being published in 1993. It's older than I am, yet so few people understand the very real and necessary individual actions we need to make in order to become a collective. It only goes to show that this book is as important as ever, and hugely necessary in the world of ecofeminism and environmental justice.
Review cross-listed here!
Both Maria Mies and Vandana Shiva, upon agreeing to coauthor this book, decided to only write about their own countries and perspectives and experiences--to try to write a book with a mutual understanding and mutual goal in sight for both a daughter of Germany and a daughter of India would be too difficult, and perhaps counterproductive. Both highly-industrialized countries and colonized countries have vastly different goals. For example, industrialized countries are dealing with carbon, CO2, pollution, so on and so forth. Colonized countries deal with factories, environmental racism, garbage deposits, and more. The problems can't necessarily be conflated, but there are solutions and ideological shifts that folks in either country can make in order to make our world more livable.
On the academic side of things, I find that this book was well-sourced, well-argued, and well-cited. They bring in interesting concepts such as consumerism, surrogate mothers, Chernobyl, and more in order to make their point: there is something we can all do for each other, and something we can all do for this earth, despite what billionaires may have us believe.
Most shocking to me, however, is that I'm personally still making the same arguments today, despite this book being published in 1993. It's older than I am, yet so few people understand the very real and necessary individual actions we need to make in order to become a collective. It only goes to show that this book is as important as ever, and hugely necessary in the world of ecofeminism and environmental justice.
Review cross-listed here!
Read
June 30, 2020Ecofeminismo es un libro apasionado y apasionante que trata un tema necesario y que a mí personalmente me interesa. Mies y Shiva pueden pareecer excesivas y demasiado radicales para quien no las haya seguido previamente. Sin duda lo son y eso hace necesario tomar precauciones, pero a la vez las vuelve tremendamente originales y destacables. No comparto a pies juntillas sus tesis, sobre todo en temas de páxis científica. Aun así, sus críticas me parecen oportunas, lúcidas y en muchos casos de una belleza inmensa. La obra recalca la importancia de un feminismo inclusivo, ecologista, no eurocéntrico y decididamente partidario de la vida en todas sus dimensiones. Ese mensaje principal es con el que me quedo con la ilusión de materializarlo.
December 22, 2021
Such an important read!
Dense, and worth the commitment.
Dense, and worth the commitment.
Read
August 7, 2025最早的生态女权作品，玛丽亚米斯的《父权制与资本积累》我挺喜欢的，这本稍晚一些，能看出她思想的延续和发展；Vandana Shiva居然是物理学家，好厉害。前言提到欧洲+印度的作者是这本书需要的，我非常认同。比较学术的一本书，不知道算不算很好的入门选择。主要的观点是人类男性对自然的剥削与性别/种族/阶级压迫相似且相交，要放在一起看；不应该用经济发展掩盖社会不平等，经济发展/资本主义不会消灭不平等；不能以人的健康/幸福为代价来发展科技。挺感动中间偏后提到了上野千鹤子，比较喜欢第3章和第8～9章，很多实在没有认真读（希望未来有机会重读）。
September 25, 2025
I found this book to be a little bit over the top when the authors denounced the Pentagon's plan to create synthetic immortal beings who would work 24/7 weeks for minimum wages, which is what they plan "to do with us!" (Shocking and fainting, I fall back on her characterization of all the research in bio-engineering for the human sciences to be similar to the handicapped psychology required for nuclear physicists, both being targeted as 'emotionally crippled' and 'compartmentally divestible'.)
June 26, 2024
TWO PROMINENT AUTHORS/ACTIVISTS EXPRESS THEIR COMMON CONCERNS & IDEAS
Maria Mies (born 1931) is a German professor of sociology at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences; she has written other books such as Patriarchy and Accumulation on a World Scale; Women: The Last Colony; Lace Makers of Narsapur;, etc. Vandana Shiva (born 1952) is an Indian scholar, environmental activist, and recipient of the 1993 Right Livelihood Award; she has written other books such as Who Really Feeds the World?: The Failures of Agribusiness and the Promise of Agroecology; Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution, and Profit; Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace; The Violence of the Green Revolution: Third World Agriculture, Ecology, and Politics, etc.
They wrote in the Introduction to this 1993 book, “we share common concerns that emerge from an invisible global politics in which women worldwide are enmeshed in their everyday life, and a convergence of thinking arising from our participation in the efforts of women to keep alive the processes that sustain us. These shared thoughts and concerns aim not to demonstrate uniformity and homogeneity but rather a creative transference of our differences… [We also wish] to make visible the ‘other’ global processes that are becoming increasingly invisible as a new world order emerges based on the control of people and resources worldwide for the sake of capital accumulation.” (Pg. 2)
They continue, “We discovered that our own active involvement in the women’s and ecology movements had coincidentally let us to a shared analysis and perspective. The search for answers had led us to similar theories, to similar authors for clarification and eventually to each other… [This] revealed a spontaneous convergence of thought arising out of objective conditions to which we had each responded as women.” (Pg. 3)
They explain, “An ecofeminist perspective propounds the need for a new cosmology and a new anthropology which recognizes that life in nature (which includes human beings) is maintained by means of co-operation, and mutual care and love. Only in this way can we be enabled to respect and preserve the diversity of all life forms, including their cultural expressions, as true sources of our well-being and happiness. To this end ecofeminists use metaphors like ‘reweaving the world,’ ‘healing the wounds,’ and re-connecting and interconnecting the ‘web.’ This effort to create a holistic, all-life embracing cosmology and anthropology, must necessarily imply a concept of freedom different from that used since the Enlightenment.” (Pg. 6)
Later, they add, “Ecofeminism is about connectedness and wholeness of theory and practice… We see the devastation of the earth and her beings by the corporate warriors, and the threat of nuclear annihilation by the military warriors, as feminist concerns. It is the same masculinist mentality which would deny us our right to our own bodies and our own sexuality, and which depends on multiple systems of dominance and state power to have its way. Wherever women acted against ecological destruction or/and the threat of atomic annihilation, they immediately became aware of the connection between patriarchal violence against women, other people and nature, and that: In defying this patriarchy we are loyal to future generations and to life and this planet itself. We have a deep and particular understanding of this both through our natures and our experience as women.” (Pg. 14)
They assert, “If we take our responsibility towards life, children, the future, Mother Earth and our own human dignity seriously, we must first clearly state that THIS science is IRRESPONSIBLE, amoral, immoral, and second, that we no longer want to go along with this game of a double moral standard---one set for the laboratory, another for private or political life. What the scientist would not do to HIMSELF, neither should he do to any other being.” (Pg. 51)
They point out, “Progress, since the time of Enlightenment… means a GOING AWAY from Nature… this going away… from Nature has been considered a necessary precondition for emancipation… as a step from Nature to Culture, from the realm of necessity to the realm of freedom… This concept… ignores the fact that even modern man is born of woman, that he must eat food that comes from the earth, and that he will die; and further that he can be alive, healthy and achieve fulfillment only as long as he retains an organic connection with Nature’s symbioses… Only if Nature is again recognized as a living being with whom we must co-operate in a LOVING manner, and not regard as a source of raw material to be exploited for commodity production, can we hope to end the war against Nature and against ourselves.” (Pg. 156)
They suggest, “While the ethical aspect of the ecological crisis can be traced to the white man’s self-perceived burden as the only species with rights… simultaneous with a pervasive Eurocentric assumption … is a blindness to the diminution and alienation of nature’s rights at deeper levels than ever before, and a shrinkage or poor people’s right to survival… And since the ethics based on the democracy of all life makes no difference between rights of nature and rights of human communities, this new violation of the rights of nature is intimately linked to the violation of rights of farmers, tribals and women as knowers, and users of biodiversity.” (Pg. 267)
They ask in conclusion, “But the question is: can we conceive of a perspective for a better future society by concentrating only on women, or by building all-women islands within a capitalist-patriarchal ocean?... it would be quite inconsistent to exclude men from this network of responsibility for the creation and continuation of life. Ecofeminism does not mean, as some would argue, that women will clean up the ecological mess which capitalist-patriarchal men have caused… Therefore, a subsistence perspective necessarily means men begin to share, IN PRACTICE, the responsibility for the creation and preservation of life on this planet. Therefore, men must start a movement to redefine their identity. They must give up their involvement in destructive commodity production for the same of accumulation and begin to share women’s work for the preservation of life.” (Pg. 321)
This is an excellent book, that will be of great interest to those with concerns for the environment.
Maria Mies (born 1931) is a German professor of sociology at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences; she has written other books such as Patriarchy and Accumulation on a World Scale; Women: The Last Colony; Lace Makers of Narsapur;, etc. Vandana Shiva (born 1952) is an Indian scholar, environmental activist, and recipient of the 1993 Right Livelihood Award; she has written other books such as Who Really Feeds the World?: The Failures of Agribusiness and the Promise of Agroecology; Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution, and Profit; Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace; The Violence of the Green Revolution: Third World Agriculture, Ecology, and Politics, etc.
They wrote in the Introduction to this 1993 book, “we share common concerns that emerge from an invisible global politics in which women worldwide are enmeshed in their everyday life, and a convergence of thinking arising from our participation in the efforts of women to keep alive the processes that sustain us. These shared thoughts and concerns aim not to demonstrate uniformity and homogeneity but rather a creative transference of our differences… [We also wish] to make visible the ‘other’ global processes that are becoming increasingly invisible as a new world order emerges based on the control of people and resources worldwide for the sake of capital accumulation.” (Pg. 2)
They continue, “We discovered that our own active involvement in the women’s and ecology movements had coincidentally let us to a shared analysis and perspective. The search for answers had led us to similar theories, to similar authors for clarification and eventually to each other… [This] revealed a spontaneous convergence of thought arising out of objective conditions to which we had each responded as women.” (Pg. 3)
They explain, “An ecofeminist perspective propounds the need for a new cosmology and a new anthropology which recognizes that life in nature (which includes human beings) is maintained by means of co-operation, and mutual care and love. Only in this way can we be enabled to respect and preserve the diversity of all life forms, including their cultural expressions, as true sources of our well-being and happiness. To this end ecofeminists use metaphors like ‘reweaving the world,’ ‘healing the wounds,’ and re-connecting and interconnecting the ‘web.’ This effort to create a holistic, all-life embracing cosmology and anthropology, must necessarily imply a concept of freedom different from that used since the Enlightenment.” (Pg. 6)
Later, they add, “Ecofeminism is about connectedness and wholeness of theory and practice… We see the devastation of the earth and her beings by the corporate warriors, and the threat of nuclear annihilation by the military warriors, as feminist concerns. It is the same masculinist mentality which would deny us our right to our own bodies and our own sexuality, and which depends on multiple systems of dominance and state power to have its way. Wherever women acted against ecological destruction or/and the threat of atomic annihilation, they immediately became aware of the connection between patriarchal violence against women, other people and nature, and that: In defying this patriarchy we are loyal to future generations and to life and this planet itself. We have a deep and particular understanding of this both through our natures and our experience as women.” (Pg. 14)
They assert, “If we take our responsibility towards life, children, the future, Mother Earth and our own human dignity seriously, we must first clearly state that THIS science is IRRESPONSIBLE, amoral, immoral, and second, that we no longer want to go along with this game of a double moral standard---one set for the laboratory, another for private or political life. What the scientist would not do to HIMSELF, neither should he do to any other being.” (Pg. 51)
They point out, “Progress, since the time of Enlightenment… means a GOING AWAY from Nature… this going away… from Nature has been considered a necessary precondition for emancipation… as a step from Nature to Culture, from the realm of necessity to the realm of freedom… This concept… ignores the fact that even modern man is born of woman, that he must eat food that comes from the earth, and that he will die; and further that he can be alive, healthy and achieve fulfillment only as long as he retains an organic connection with Nature’s symbioses… Only if Nature is again recognized as a living being with whom we must co-operate in a LOVING manner, and not regard as a source of raw material to be exploited for commodity production, can we hope to end the war against Nature and against ourselves.” (Pg. 156)
They suggest, “While the ethical aspect of the ecological crisis can be traced to the white man’s self-perceived burden as the only species with rights… simultaneous with a pervasive Eurocentric assumption … is a blindness to the diminution and alienation of nature’s rights at deeper levels than ever before, and a shrinkage or poor people’s right to survival… And since the ethics based on the democracy of all life makes no difference between rights of nature and rights of human communities, this new violation of the rights of nature is intimately linked to the violation of rights of farmers, tribals and women as knowers, and users of biodiversity.” (Pg. 267)
They ask in conclusion, “But the question is: can we conceive of a perspective for a better future society by concentrating only on women, or by building all-women islands within a capitalist-patriarchal ocean?... it would be quite inconsistent to exclude men from this network of responsibility for the creation and continuation of life. Ecofeminism does not mean, as some would argue, that women will clean up the ecological mess which capitalist-patriarchal men have caused… Therefore, a subsistence perspective necessarily means men begin to share, IN PRACTICE, the responsibility for the creation and preservation of life on this planet. Therefore, men must start a movement to redefine their identity. They must give up their involvement in destructive commodity production for the same of accumulation and begin to share women’s work for the preservation of life.” (Pg. 321)
This is an excellent book, that will be of great interest to those with concerns for the environment.
October 23, 2008
You. read. Now.
Why the co-author, Vandana Shiva isn't listed in this heading, I have no idea. Smacks of some problem, there.
Anyway, this is an awesome introduction to eco-feminism that avoids the new age crap of other anthologies and introductions. This is telling it straight, from an anarchist feminist from Germany and an indigenous activist from India. The global north-south perspectives provide a more rounded and view from the bottom-up than most eco-feminist books that tend to come solely from white, academic women in the U.S.
Highly recommended.
Why the co-author, Vandana Shiva isn't listed in this heading, I have no idea. Smacks of some problem, there.
Anyway, this is an awesome introduction to eco-feminism that avoids the new age crap of other anthologies and introductions. This is telling it straight, from an anarchist feminist from Germany and an indigenous activist from India. The global north-south perspectives provide a more rounded and view from the bottom-up than most eco-feminist books that tend to come solely from white, academic women in the U.S.
Highly recommended.
September 18, 2016
Eco-feminism draws important connections between feminism, racism, economic oppression and the environment rather than treating them as stand alone issues.
But it also makes intellectual leaps, such as to assume that violence against women has greatly increased, citing a 87% increase in rape cases in India between 1971 and 2011, without any mention or account of social changes that make it more likely that sexual assault will be reported rather than treated as normal or the politization of violence against women which has thrown it into sharper relief.
But it also makes intellectual leaps, such as to assume that violence against women has greatly increased, citing a 87% increase in rape cases in India between 1971 and 2011, without any mention or account of social changes that make it more likely that sexual assault will be reported rather than treated as normal or the politization of violence against women which has thrown it into sharper relief.
December 2, 2009
Recently I have read several books about Ecofeminism and this one has by far been my favorite. The book is a joint effort by Mies and Shiva, a Western and an Eastern, and I find the collaboration of this differing world views as essential to the book's attempt to present a whole picture of the issues within Ecofeminism.
October 1, 2011
In all honesty, this did not make a cohesive, comprehensive, compelling, convincing argument for ecofeminism - it was not well-enough written for that. But so many of the ideas were amazing, and, more importantly, genuinely new to me, that I have to say that I loved it.
February 27, 2019
Un poco repetitivo y meh, pero su gracia es que es uno de los pocos libros de ambas autoras en español.
March 14, 2025
I read this book in a book club with two brilliant women, so the fifth star goes to the discussions that were prompted by it. Although the book is at times outdated and at times resembles more of an ideological text, than an academic piece (especially in cases when arguments were backed by anecdotes), it gave me vocabulary and constructs to express what my intuition has been communicating to me for quite some time already but I couldn’t speak it out - progressive movement has failed women and nature. It also gave me a new lens so I started noticing evidence of this failure everywhere. And now, thanks to this book, I can respond ans engage with it.
July 15, 2023
This book explores the connections between patriarchy, capitalism, and the exploitation of nature. The book argues that the domination of women and the domination of nature are two sides of the same coin, and that both are rooted in a patriarchal worldview.
The authors discuss the impact of capitalism on the relationship between women and nature. They argue that capitalism has further commodified and exploited both women and nature, and that this has led to a number of environmental problems, such as climate change and deforestation.
Mies and Shiva conclude by offering a number of proposals as to how one can create a more ecofeminist world. They argue that we need to challenge the patriarchal worldview that underpins capitalism. The also emphasize the need to develop new ways of relating to women and nature - that are based on respect and reciprocity.
Ecofeminism is a challenging and thought-provoking book that offers a new way of understanding the relationship between women and nature. The book is well-argued and well-researched, and it provides a wealth of information on the history of patriarchy, capitalism, and environmentalism.
One of the strengths of the book is its interdisciplinary approach. Mies and Shiva draw on a wide range of disciplines, including economics, history, philosophy, and ecology, to make their case. This makes the book accessible to a wide audience, and it helps to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the issues.
In fact, I framed a syllabus for the Undergraduate classes of Stella Maris College Chennai – and my students enjoyed the course.
Overall, Ecofeminism is an important and timely book that offers a new way of thinking about the relationship between women and nature. The book is well-argued, well-researched, and accessible to a wide audience. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in environmentalism, feminism, or the intersection of these two fields.
The authors discuss the impact of capitalism on the relationship between women and nature. They argue that capitalism has further commodified and exploited both women and nature, and that this has led to a number of environmental problems, such as climate change and deforestation.
Mies and Shiva conclude by offering a number of proposals as to how one can create a more ecofeminist world. They argue that we need to challenge the patriarchal worldview that underpins capitalism. The also emphasize the need to develop new ways of relating to women and nature - that are based on respect and reciprocity.
Ecofeminism is a challenging and thought-provoking book that offers a new way of understanding the relationship between women and nature. The book is well-argued and well-researched, and it provides a wealth of information on the history of patriarchy, capitalism, and environmentalism.
One of the strengths of the book is its interdisciplinary approach. Mies and Shiva draw on a wide range of disciplines, including economics, history, philosophy, and ecology, to make their case. This makes the book accessible to a wide audience, and it helps to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the issues.
In fact, I framed a syllabus for the Undergraduate classes of Stella Maris College Chennai – and my students enjoyed the course.
Overall, Ecofeminism is an important and timely book that offers a new way of thinking about the relationship between women and nature. The book is well-argued, well-researched, and accessible to a wide audience. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in environmentalism, feminism, or the intersection of these two fields.
August 24, 2023
Interesting but, in my opinion, outdated book, which focuses on certain topics that are no longer pertinent or puts forward theories that have already been contradicted. There's a real critique of capitalism - which I appreciated - but the point of view remains very binary: men/women and colonizers/colonized. The writing is dense, making it hard to read.
March 8, 2024
muy bien todo hasta que se pone terfo
February 21, 2025
Luin tän yhtä kurssia varten ja oli kyl tosi mielenkiintoinen! Monia tosi tärkeitä juttuja, mut sit oli taas muutamia asioita joissa oon vähän eri mieltä. Joka tapauksessa opettavainen kirja!
April 8, 2023
How dense is this book? This isn't just an intersection of economy and feminism, this is about "the historical links between neoliberal capital, militarism, corporate science, worker alienation, domestic violence, reproductive technologies, sex tourism, child molestation, neocolonialism, Islamophobia, extractivism, nuclear weapons, industrial toxics, land and water grabs, deforestation, genetic engineering, and climate change."
Here are some ideas that came pouring out...
The Green Revolution is not what you think
Modernization–a euphemism for the conversion of technologies into profitable consumer items like
garden pesticides and nuclear energy.
The social decay of passive consumerism V. the social vitality of skillful, self-sufficient and
autonomous livelihood economies
The call is for "de-growth"
Species loss is endemic; peak water is on the way; and soils are losing organic integrity
The connections between the violence of unjust, non-sustainable economic systems and the
growing frequency and brutality of violence against women is most disturbing of all.
Society has traditionally had a bias against the girl child. But the epidemic of female feticide and the disappearance of 30 million unborn girls has taken that bias to new proportions and
our economic model focusing myopically on ‘growth’ begins with violence against women by discounting their contribution to the economy.
Here are some ideas that came pouring out...
The Green Revolution is not what you think
Modernization–a euphemism for the conversion of technologies into profitable consumer items like
garden pesticides and nuclear energy.
The social decay of passive consumerism V. the social vitality of skillful, self-sufficient and
autonomous livelihood economies
The call is for "de-growth"
Species loss is endemic; peak water is on the way; and soils are losing organic integrity
The connections between the violence of unjust, non-sustainable economic systems and the
growing frequency and brutality of violence against women is most disturbing of all.
Society has traditionally had a bias against the girl child. But the epidemic of female feticide and the disappearance of 30 million unborn girls has taken that bias to new proportions and
our economic model focusing myopically on ‘growth’ begins with violence against women by discounting their contribution to the economy.
May 15, 2019
Biri Kuzey diğeri Güney’den iki kadının perspektifinden; kadınlar, erkekler, kölelik, ırkçılık, sömürge, çevre sorunları, doğa ve insan katliamları, soya dayalı nüfus kontrolü, yeni üreme teknolojileri, tüketim çılgınlığı, ekonomi- siyaset genel başlıkları ve daha nicesi ile ilgili akademik bir kitap.
İçerdiği bilgiler açısından çok değerli, fakat yer yer içerik kendini tekrar ediyor ve bazı konularda sunduğu çözümler yeni dünya düzeninde biraz ütopik. Tabi ki mikro düzeyde dahi olsa üstümüze düşeni yapmak; azın çok olduğunu bilmek, kendi kendimizi idame konusunda bilinçlenmek, tüketimi sadece ve sadece ihtiyaç dahiline indirgemek, yaşamın yaratılması ve korunması konusunda erkeklerle sorumlulukları paylaşmak önemli.
Çevirisi geçtiğimiz yıl Sinek Sekiz yayınevi tarafından yapılan bu bilgi kaynağı için kendilerine çok teşekkürler. Çeviri çok akıcı ve okurken sıkmıyor. Türkçe literatüre girmesi açısından geç bile kalınmış bir kitap. Basıldığı 1993 yılından bugüne daha çok insana ilham kaynağı olabilirdi. Yine de hiçbir şey için geç değil. Okuma listesinde olanların en kısa zamanda başlaması ve sindirerek okuması önerisiyle...
İçerdiği bilgiler açısından çok değerli, fakat yer yer içerik kendini tekrar ediyor ve bazı konularda sunduğu çözümler yeni dünya düzeninde biraz ütopik. Tabi ki mikro düzeyde dahi olsa üstümüze düşeni yapmak; azın çok olduğunu bilmek, kendi kendimizi idame konusunda bilinçlenmek, tüketimi sadece ve sadece ihtiyaç dahiline indirgemek, yaşamın yaratılması ve korunması konusunda erkeklerle sorumlulukları paylaşmak önemli.
Çevirisi geçtiğimiz yıl Sinek Sekiz yayınevi tarafından yapılan bu bilgi kaynağı için kendilerine çok teşekkürler. Çeviri çok akıcı ve okurken sıkmıyor. Türkçe literatüre girmesi açısından geç bile kalınmış bir kitap. Basıldığı 1993 yılından bugüne daha çok insana ilham kaynağı olabilirdi. Yine de hiçbir şey için geç değil. Okuma listesinde olanların en kısa zamanda başlaması ve sindirerek okuması önerisiyle...
September 15, 2019
Extremely provocative, thorough and hopeful book. I don't know whether to hold onto it so I can reread or make sure I put it where others can read it.
I wish this was read more widely and that world-politics followed some of the suggestions in this book (we should hold them to it).
It's about everything that is wrong with the way we do politics and economics today and how capitalist patriarchy exploits the earth, women, and in general people from the global south. The wicked greed and dishonesty of some is presented as a problem but so is the ignorant over-consumption of most of us.
I feel called out. I didn't completely gel with all the stuff against first-world feminists but I do feel I should think about it more. The arguments are quite deep and nuanced, a lot of detail is given and there is compassion built into the directions for the future (though we can't keep our first world lifestyle)
I wish this was read more widely and that world-politics followed some of the suggestions in this book (we should hold them to it).
It's about everything that is wrong with the way we do politics and economics today and how capitalist patriarchy exploits the earth, women, and in general people from the global south. The wicked greed and dishonesty of some is presented as a problem but so is the ignorant over-consumption of most of us.
I feel called out. I didn't completely gel with all the stuff against first-world feminists but I do feel I should think about it more. The arguments are quite deep and nuanced, a lot of detail is given and there is compassion built into the directions for the future (though we can't keep our first world lifestyle)
April 18, 2021
Antiracist, anticolonialist, feminist examination of ecological activism and theory. So amazingly good.
You know how you're vaguely aware of how GATT and NAFTA and WTO and IMF all those alphabet groups/treaties aimed at "humanitarianism" and "progress" and "development" are kind of a scam? And how "green" consumption is also kind of a scam?This explains how those scams work. And who gets blamed when they don't achieve purported goals.
This also provides models of grassroots ecofeminist praxis that are based in local communities in contact with other communities. Because the problems are global, but the solutions are often local. It's not just woe and misery but also motivation and inspiration to do better.
My one warning for this, aside from the age, is that the authors don't seem to be aware of the existence of queer or trans people, and the two times Islam is mentioned are both yikes.
You know how you're vaguely aware of how GATT and NAFTA and WTO and IMF all those alphabet groups/treaties aimed at "humanitarianism" and "progress" and "development" are kind of a scam? And how "green" consumption is also kind of a scam?This explains how those scams work. And who gets blamed when they don't achieve purported goals.
This also provides models of grassroots ecofeminist praxis that are based in local communities in contact with other communities. Because the problems are global, but the solutions are often local. It's not just woe and misery but also motivation and inspiration to do better.
My one warning for this, aside from the age, is that the authors don't seem to be aware of the existence of queer or trans people, and the two times Islam is mentioned are both yikes.
February 6, 2023
Voy a darle un 4 porque coincido ideologicamente con lo descrito.
Pero se me ha hecho pesado, muy, muy repetitivo, y no me gusta la manera de expresarse/exponer sus ideas de Vandana Shiva, es más una crítica meramente en la forma. Sí creo que no hemos superado lo que dice este libro, la lucha se ha vuelto más crítica y como he dicho coincido en el planteamiento fuertemente.
A menos que tengas ganas de conocer de primera mano lo que dice Vandana Shiva en este libro, recomendaría leer sus ideas de/en otro formato.
El libro son capítulos independientes escritos cada uno por una de ellas.
La parte de sociología de Maria Ies me ha resultado densa pero mejor estructurada.
Pero se me ha hecho pesado, muy, muy repetitivo, y no me gusta la manera de expresarse/exponer sus ideas de Vandana Shiva, es más una crítica meramente en la forma. Sí creo que no hemos superado lo que dice este libro, la lucha se ha vuelto más crítica y como he dicho coincido en el planteamiento fuertemente.
A menos que tengas ganas de conocer de primera mano lo que dice Vandana Shiva en este libro, recomendaría leer sus ideas de/en otro formato.
El libro son capítulos independientes escritos cada uno por una de ellas.
La parte de sociología de Maria Ies me ha resultado densa pero mejor estructurada.
December 6, 2019
Eko-feminizm, kadınların yaşam alanlarını, kendi ve ailelerinin yaşamı yeniden üretmeye yarayan geçim kaynaklarını korumak için gösterdikleri çabanın üzerine kuruludur. Günümüzde uluslararası şirketlerin kendini idame olanaklarını ve doğal kaynakları yerle bir etmiştir. Eko-feminizm emeğin yabancılaştığı, eşitsizlik ve şiddetin arttığı böyle bir dönüşüme “gönüllü sadelik” ve “kendini idame etme” yollarını önerir. Bu yeni bir vizyon değildir, geçmişten bugüne devam etmektedir esasında.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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