Humans and Their Environment, Beyond the Nature/Culture Opposition
Humans and Their Environment, Beyond the Nature/Culture Opposition

Author(s): Claude Calame
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Anthropology, Social Sciences, Economy, Geography, Regional studies, Energy and Environmental Studies, Environmental Geography, History of Philosophy, Early Modern Philosophy, Environmental and Energy policy, Environmental interactions
Published by: Transnational Press London
Keywords: environment; humanities; environmentalism; posthumanism
Summary/Abstract: The modern concept of “nature” appeared during the 17th Century: nature as a mechanical object to be submitted to reason man. A long tradition refers to the concept of nature in the Greek phusis. It is referring to a dynamic process that engages in criticizing the modern paradigm of nature as opposed to culture.As it is, the principle of the domination and exploitation by humans of what we consider as nature is at the heart of the ideological, economic and financial models imposed by neoliberal capitalism. Based on the objective of growth, this model shapes and destroys human communities as well as the environment on which they rely and sustain.The climatic urgency as well as the limited capacity of the resources of the earth, require a transition towards an ecosocialism for another world. The anthropological confrontation with the Greek phusis invites to a break with capitalism based on a large scale and speedy use of technologies and with the only objective of financial gain. The result has been destructive productivism. Instead, we have to take into account the complexity of and interactions between human societies and their technical practices in their environment. The survival of one or the other is at stake. In sum, nature is culture.

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