Common factors theory

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_factors_theory

Common factors theory, a theory guiding some research in clinical psychology and counseling psychology, proposes that different approaches and evidence-based practices in psychotherapy and counseling share common factors that account for much of the effectiveness of a psychological treatment. This is in contrast to the view that the effectiveness of psychotherapy and counseling is best explained by specific or unique factors (notably, particular methods or procedures) that are suited to treatment of particular problems.

However, according to one review, "it is widely recognized that the debate between common and unique factors in psychotherapy represents a false dichotomy, and these factors must be integrated to maximize effectiveness." In other words, "therapists must engage in specific forms of therapy for common factors to have a medium through which to operate." Common factors is one route by which psychotherapy researchers have attempted to integrate psychotherapies.

History

Saul Rosenzweig started the conversation on common factors in an article published in 1936 that discussed some psychotherapies of his time. John Dollard and Neal E. Miller's 1950 book Personality and Psychotherapy emphasized that the psychological principles and social conditions of learning are the most important common factors. Sol Garfield (who would later go on to edit many editions of the Handbook of Psychotherapy and Behavior Change with Allen Bergin) included a 10-page discussion of common factors in his 1957 textbook Introductory Clinical Psychology.

In the same year, Carl Rogers published a paper outlining what he considered to be common factors (which he called "necessary and sufficient conditions") of successful therapeutic personality change, emphasizing the therapeutic relationship factors which would become central to the theory of person-centered therapy. He proposed the following conditions necessary for therapeutic change: psychological contact between the therapist and client, incongruence in the client, genuineness in the therapist, unconditional positive regard and empathic understanding from the therapist, and the client's perception of the therapist's unconditional positive regard and empathic understanding.

In 1961, Jerome Frank published Persuasion and Healing, a book entirely devoted to examining the common factors among psychotherapies and related healing approaches. Frank emphasized the importance of the expectation of help (a component of the placebo effect), the therapeutic relationship, a rationale or conceptual scheme that explains the given symptoms and prescribes a given ritual or procedure for resolving them, and the active participation of both patient and therapist in carrying out that ritual or procedure.

After Lester Luborsky and colleagues published a literature review of empirical studies of psychotherapy outcomes in 1975, the idea that all psychotherapies are effective became known as the Dodo bird verdict, referring to a scene from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland quoted by Rosenzweig in his 1936 article; in that scene, after the characters race and everyone wins, the Dodo bird says, "everybody has won, and all must have prizes." Luborsky's research was an attempt (and not the first attempt, nor the last one) to disprove Hans Eysenck's 1952 study on the efficacy of psychotherapy; Eysenck found that psychotherapy generally did not seem to lead to improved patient outcomes. A number of studies after 1975 presented more evidence in support of the general efficacy of psychotherapy, but the question of how common and specific factors could enhance or thwart therapy effectiveness in particular cases continued to fuel theoretical and empirical research over the following decades.

The landmark 1982 book Converging Themes in Psychotherapy gathered a number of chapters by different authors promoting common factors, including an introduction by Marvin R. Goldfried and Wendy Padawer, a reprint of Rosenzweig's 1936 article, and further chapters (some of them reprints) by John Dollard and Neal E. Miller, Franz Alexander, Jerome Frank, Arnold Lazarus, Hans Herrman Strupp, Sol Garfield, John Paul Brady, Judd Marmor, Paul L. Wachtel, Abraham Maslow, Arnold P. Goldstein, Anthony Ryle, and others. The chapter by Goldfried and Padawer distinguished between three levels of intervention in therapy:

1. theories of change (therapists' theories about how change occurs);
2. principles or strategies of change;
3. therapy techniques (interventions that therapists suppose will be effective).

Goldfried and Padawer argued that while therapists may talk about their theories using very different jargon, there is more commonality among skilled therapists at the (intermediate) level of principles or strategies. Goldfried and Padawer's emphasis on principles or strategies of change was an important contribution to common factors theory because they clearly showed how principles or strategies can be considered common factors (they are shared by therapists who may espouse different theories of change) and specific factors (they are manifested in particular ways within different approaches) at the same time. Around the same time, James O. Prochaska and colleagues, who were developing the transtheoretical model of change, proposed ten "processes of change" that categorized "multiple techniques, methods, and interventions traditionally associated with disparate theoretical orientations," and they stated that their processes of change corresponded to Goldfried and Padawer's level of common principles of change.

In 1986, David Orlinsky and Kenneth Howard presented their generic model of psychotherapy, which proposed that five process variables are active in any psychotherapy: the therapeutic contract, therapeutic interventions, the therapeutic bond between therapist and patient, the patient's and therapist's states of self-relatedness, and therapeutic realization.

In 1990, Lisa Grencavage and John C. Norcross reviewed accounts of common factors in 50 publications, with 89 common factors in all, from which Grencavage and Norcross selected the 35 most common factors and grouped them into five areas: client characteristics, therapist qualities, change processes, treatment structure, and therapeutic relationship. In the same year, Larry E. Beutler and colleagues published their systematic treatment selection model, which attempted to integrate common and specific factors into a single model that therapists could use to guide treatment, considering variables of patient dimensions, environments, settings, therapist dimensions, and treatment types. Beutler and colleagues would later describe their approach as "identifying common and differential principles of change".

In 1992, Michael J. Lambert summarized psychotherapy outcome research and grouped the factors of successful therapy into four areas, ordered by hypothesized percent of change in clients as a function of therapeutic factors: first, extratherapeutic change (40%), those factors that are qualities of the client or qualities of his or her environment and that aid in recovery regardless of his or her participation in therapy; second, common factors (30%) that are found in a variety of therapy approaches, such as empathy and the therapeutic relationship; third, expectancy (15%), the portion of improvement that results from the client's expectation of help or belief in the rationale or effectiveness of therapy; fourth, techniques (15%), those factors unique to specific therapies and tailored to treatment of specific problems. Lambert's research later inspired a book on common factors theory in the practice of therapy titled The Heart and Soul of Change.

In the mid-1990s, as managed care in mental health services became more widespread in the United States, more researchers began to investigate the efficacy of psychotherapy in terms of empirically supported treatments (ESTs) for particular problems, emphasizing randomized controlled trials as the gold standard of empirical support for a treatment. In 1995, the American Psychological Association's Division 12 (clinical psychology) formed a task force that developed lists of empirically supported treatments for particular problems such as agoraphobia, blood-injection-injury type phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, panic disorder, etc. In 2001, Bruce Wampold published The Great Psychotherapy Debate, a book that criticized what he considered to be an overemphasis on ESTs for particular problems, and he called for continued research in common factors theory.

In the 2000s, more research began to be published on common factors in couples therapy and family therapy.

In 2014, a series of ten articles on common factors theory was published in the APA journal Psychotherapy. The articles emphasized the compatibility between ESTs and common factors theory, highlighted the importance of multiple variables in psychotherapy effectiveness, called for more empirical research on common factors (especially client and therapist variables), and argued that individual therapists can do much to improve the quality of therapy by rigorously using feedback measures (during treatment) and outcome measures (after termination of treatment). The article by Stefan G. Hofmann and David H. Barlow, two prominent researchers in cognitive behavioral therapy, pointed out how their recent shift in emphasis from distinct procedures for different diagnoses to a transdiagnostic approach was increasingly similar to common factors theory.

Models

There are many models of common factors in successful psychotherapy process and outcome. Already in 1990, Grencavage and Norcross identified 89 common factors in a literature review, which showed the diversity of models of common factors. To be useful for purposes of psychotherapy practice and training, most models reduce the number of common factors to a handful, typically around five. Frank listed six common factors in 1971 and explained their interaction. Goldfried and Padawer listed five common strategies or principles in 1982: corrective experiences and new behaviors, feedback from the therapist to the client promoting new understanding in the client, expectation that psychotherapy will be helpful, establishment of the desired therapeutic relationship, and ongoing reality testing by the client. Grencavage and Norcross grouped common factors into five areas in 1990. Lambert formulated four groups of therapeutic factors in 1992. Joel Weinberger and Cristina Rasco listed five common factors in 2007 and reviewed the empirical support for each factor: the therapeutic relationship, expectations of treatment effectiveness, confronting or facing the problem (exposure), mastery or control experiences, and patients' attributions of successful outcome to internal or external causes.

Terence Tracy and colleagues modified the common factors of Grencavage and Norcross, and used them to develop a questionnaire which they provided to 16 board certified psychologists and 5 experienced psychotherapy researchers; then they analyzed the responses and published the results in 2003. Their multidimensional scaling analysis represented the results on a two-dimensional graph, with one dimension representing hot processing versus cool processing (roughly, closeness and emotional experience versus technical information and persuasion) and the other dimension representing therapeutic activity. Their cluster analysis represented the results as three clusters: the first related to bond (roughly, therapeutic alliance), the second related to information (roughly, the meanings communicated between therapist and client), and the third related to role (roughly, a logical structure so that clients can make sense of the therapy process).

In addition to these models that incorporate multiple common factors, a number of theorists have proposed and investigated single common factors, common principles, and common mechanisms of change, such as learning. In one example, at least three independent groups have converged on the conclusion that a wide variety of different psychotherapies can be integrated via their common ability to trigger the neurobiological mechanism of memory reconsolidation. For further examples, see § Further reading, below.

Empirical research

Research by Laska et al. (2014)

Factor	% of Variability in Outcome
COMMON FACTORS
Goal consensus / collaboration	11.5%
Empathy	9.0%
Alliance	7.5%
Positive regard / affirmation	7.3%
Congruence / genuineness	5.7%
Therapist differences	5.0%
SPECIFIC INGREDIENTS
Treatment differences	< 1.0%

While many models of common factors have been proposed, they have not all received the same amount of empirical research. There is general consensus on the importance of a good therapeutic relationship in all forms of psychotherapy and counseling.

A review of common factors research in 2008 suggested that 30% to 70% of the variance in therapy outcome was due to common factors. A summary of research in 2014 suggested that 11.5% of variance in therapy outcome was due to the common factor of goal consensus/collaboration, 9% was due to empathy, 7.5% was due to therapeutic alliance, 6.3% was due to positive regard/affirmation, 5.7% was due to congruence/genuineness, and 5% was due to therapist factors. In contrast, treatment method accounted for roughly 1% of outcome variance.

Alan E. Kazdin has argued that psychotherapy researchers must not only find statistical evidence that certain factors contribute to successful outcomes; they must also be able to formulate evidence-based explanations for how and why those factors contribute to successful outcomes, that is, the mechanisms through which successful psychotherapy leads to change. Common factors theory has been dominated by research on psychotherapy process and outcome variables, and there is a need for further work explaining the mechanisms of psychotherapy common factors in terms of emerging theoretical and empirical research in the neurosciences and social sciences, just as earlier works (such as Dollard and Miller's Personality and Psychotherapy or Frank's Persuasion and Healing) explained psychotherapy common factors in terms of the sciences of their time.

One frontier for future research on common factors is automated computational analysis of clinical big data.

Criticisms

There are several criticisms of common factors theory, for example:

• that common factors theory dismisses the need for specific therapeutic techniques or procedures,
• that common factors are nothing more than a good therapeutic relationship, and
• that common factors theory is not scientific.

Some common factors theorists have argued against these criticisms. They state that:

• the criticisms are based on a limited knowledge of the common factors literature,
• a thorough review of the literature shows that a coherent treatment procedure is a crucial medium for the common factors to operate,
• most models of common factors define interactions between multiple variables (including but not limited to therapeutic relationship variables), and
• some models of common factors provide evidence-based explanations for the mechanisms of the proposed common factors.

Indigenous American philosophy

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_American_philosophy

Indigenous American philosophy is the philosophy of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. An Indigenous philosopher is an Indigenous American person who practices philosophy and draws upon the history, culture, language, and traditions of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. Many different traditions of philosophy exist in the Americas, and have from Precolumbian times.

Indigenous-American philosophical thought consists of a wide variety of beliefs and traditions among different American cultures. Among some of U.S. Native American communities, there is a belief in a metaphysical principle called the 'Great Spirit' (Siouan: wakȟáŋ tȟáŋka; Algonquian: gitche manitou). Another widely shared concept was that of orenda ('spiritual power'). According to Whiteley (1998), for the Native Americans, "mind is critically informed by transcendental experience (dreams, visions and so on) as well as by reason." The practices to access these transcendental experiences are termed shamanism. Another feature of the indigenous American worldviews was their extension of ethics to non-human animals and plants.

Epistemology and Science

The study of knowledge, belief, and the ways in which people acquire and process information (aka epistemology) in Indigenous cultures can be somewhat different than in mainstream Western philosophy. Native American epistemology is also found in ceremonies, community traditions and observation of nature and natural symbolism, in addition to more common academic approaches. Emphasis on Indigenous language and culture is a vital component of Native American epistemology, with language seen as essential to understanding psychology and different states of consciousness.

Hester and Cheney have written about the strong link between nature and the interpretation of knowledge within Native American cultures. They believe that the mind interacts with the environment in a very active, conscious way.

Ontology of gender

Anne Waters has described a "nondiscrete ontology of being" in the context of gender.

Regional traditions

North America

In North America, Indigenous groups North of Mesoamerica often lack pre-colonial written histories. However, some oral traditions survived colonization. A common symbol for these groups were the six directions. Many considered the directions east, west, north, south, up, and down to be sacred to their understanding of the world. Some believe that this symbol cements a sense of place among the Indigenous groups who share it.

Among the Hopi, there is a concept known as hopivotskwani, translating roughly to "the Hopi path of life". It entails behaving with a peaceful disposition, cooperation, humility, and respect. Hopi philosophy teaches that life is a journey, to be lived in harmony with the natural world. Thus, the Hopi believe that following hopivotskwani will lead to positive outcomes not only in interpersonal relationships, but also in interactions with nature, for example ensuring sufficient rainfall and a good harvest.

As a rule, contemporary Pueblo peoples are very reluctant to share their traditional philosophical and spiritual worldviews with outsiders. This can be attributed to several factors, among them abuse of trust by early anthropologists and colonial Spanish intolerance for traditional Puebloan religions.

Central America

Perhaps the best documented philosophical tradition of the Precolumbian and early colonial era is that of the Aztecs, a Nahuatl-speaking people who established a large and sophisticated empire in central Mexico prior to being conquered by the Spanish. Mesoamerican thought and philosophy is notable for its extensive usage of metaphor to explain abstract concepts.

The Aztecs thought of philosophy in more or less pragmatic and practical terms. A central feature of Aztec philosophy was the concept of teotl, a Nahuatl term for the animating force of the cosmos and an ever-acting and dynamic mover. Teotl in theological terms could also symbolize a type of pantheism.

Nahua philosophy was an intellectual tradition developed by individuals called tlamatini ('those who know something') and its ideas are preserved in various Aztec codices and fragmentary texts. Some of these philosophers are known by name, such as Nezahualcoyotl, Aquiauhtzin, Xayacamach, Tochihuitzin coyolchiuhqui and Cuauhtencoztli. These authors were also poets and some of their work has survived in the original Nahuatl.

Aztec philosophers developed theories of metaphysics, epistemology, values, and aesthetics. Aztec ethics was focused on seeking tlamatiliztli ('knowledge', 'wisdom') which was based on moderation and balance in all actions as in the Nahua proverb "the middle good is necessary". The Nahua worldview posited the concept of an ultimate universal energy or force called Ōmeteōtl ('Dual Cosmic Energy') which sought a way to live in balance with a constantly changing, "slippery" world. The theory of Teotl can be seen as a form of Pantheism. According to James Maffie, Nahua metaphysics posited that teotl is "a single, vital, dynamic, vivifying, eternally self-generating and self-conceiving as well as self-regenerating and self-reconceiving sacred energy or force". This force was seen as the all-encompassing life force of the universe and as the universe itself.

South America

The Inca civilization also had an elite class of philosopher-scholars termed the amawtakuna or amautas who were important in the Inca education system as teachers of philosophy, theology, astronomy, poetry, law, music, morality and history. Young Inca nobles were educated in these disciplines at the state college of Yacha-huasi in Cuzco, where they also learned the art of the quipu. Incan philosophy (as well as the broader category of Andean thought) held that the universe is animated by a single dynamic life force (sometimes termed camaquen or camac, as well as upani and amaya). This singular force also arises as a set of dual complementary yet opposite forces. These "complementary opposites" are called yanantin and masintin. They are expressed as various polarities or dualities (such as male–female, dark–light, life and death, above and below) which interdependently contribute to the harmonious whole that is the universe through the process of reciprocity and mutual exchange called ayni. The Inca worldview also included the belief in a creator God (Viracocha) and reincarnation.

Coyote tales

Academic Brian Yazzie Burkhart shares this story of Coyote:

Coyote is wandering around in his usual way when he comes upon a prairie dog town. The prairie dogs laugh and curse at him. Coyote gets angry and wants revenge. The sun is high in the sky. Coyote decides that he wants clouds to come. He is starting to hate the prairie dogs and so thinks about rain. Just then a cloud appears.

Coyote says, "I wish it would rain on me." And that is what happened.

Coyote says, "I wish there were rain at my feet." And that is what happened.

"I want the rain up to my knees," Coyote says. And that is what happened.

"I want the rain up to my waist," he then says. And that is what happened.

Eventually, the entire land is flooded. Coyote's mistake is not letting what is right guide his actions, but instead acting entirely on his own motivations. This is a reminder that one must be careful about what one desires, and must keep in mind the things around us and how we relate to them. Burkhart terms this the principle of relatedness.

Ecospirituality

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecospirituality

Ecospirituality connects the science of ecology with spirituality. It brings together religion and environmental activism. Ecospirituality has been defined as "a manifestation of the spiritual connection between human beings and the environment." The new millennium and the modern ecological crisis has created a need for environmentally based religion and spirituality. Ecospirituality is understood by some practitioners and scholars as one result of people wanting to free themselves from a consumeristic and materialistic society. Ecospirituality has been critiqued for being an umbrella term for concepts such as deep ecology, ecofeminism, and nature religion.

Proponents may come from a range of faiths including: Islam; Jainism; Christianity (Catholicism, Evangelicalism and Orthodox Christianity); Judaism; Hinduism; Buddhism and Indigenous traditions. Although many of their practices and beliefs may differ, a central claim is that there is "a spiritual dimension to our present ecological crisis." According to the environmentalist Sister Virginia Jones, "Eco-spirituality is about helping people experience 'the holy' in the natural world and to recognize their relationship as human beings to all creation.

Ecospirituality has been influenced by the ideas of deep ecology, which is characterized by "recognition of the inherent value of all living beings and the use of this view in shaping environmental policies" Similarly to ecopsychology, it refers to the connections between the science of ecology and the study of psychology. 'Earth-based' spirituality is another term related to ecospirituality; it is associated with pagan religious traditions and the work of prominent ecofeminist, Starhawk. Ecospirituality refers to the intertwining of intuition and bodily awareness pertaining to a relational view between human beings and the planet.

Origins

Ecospirituality finds its history in the relationship between spirituality and the environment. Some scholars say it "flows from an understanding of cosmology or the story of the origin of the universe." There are multiple origin stories about how the spiritual relationship with people and the environment began. In Native America philosophy, there are many unique stories of how spirituality came to be. A common theme in a number of them is the discussion of a Great Spirit that lives within the universe and the earth represents its presence.

Ecospirituality has also sprung from a reaction to the Western world's materialism and consumerism, characterized by ecotheologian Thomas Berry as a "crisis of cosmology." Scholars have argued that "the modern perspective is based on science and focused on the human self with everything else being outside, resulting in the demise of the metaphysical world and the disenchantment with the cosmos." Therefore, ecospirituality originates as a rebuttal to the emphasis on the material as well as Western separation from the environment, where the environment is regarded as a set of material resources with primarily instrumental value.

Ecological crisis

Ecospirituality became popularized due to a need for a reconceptualization of the human relationship with the environment. Terms such as environmental crisis, ecological crisis, climate change, global warming all refer to an ongoing global issue that needs to be addressed. Generally the ecological crisis is referring to the destruction of the earth's ecosystem. What this encompasses is a highly controversial debate in scientific and political spheres. Globally we are faced with pollution of our basic needs (air, and water) as well as the depletion of important resources, most notably food resources.

Annette Van Schalkwyk refers to the environmental crisis as “man-made”. It is arguably the result of a “mechanistic and capitalistic world view”. Whether it is man-made, or as some argue, a natural occurrence, humans are not helping. Pollution and depletion of resources play a major role in the ecological crisis. Bringing religion into the ecological crisis is controversial due to the divide between religion and science. Ecospirituality is prepared to acknowledge science, and work in tandem with religion to frame the environment as a sacred entity in need of protection.

Mary Evelyn Tucker notes the importance of religion and ecology connecting with sustainability. Due to the environmental crisis, perceptions of sustainability are changing. Religion and ecology, and the way people experience ecospirituality, could contribute to this changing definition of sustainability.

Research on ecospirituality

Ecospirituality has been studied by academics in order to understand a clearer definition of what individuals label as ecospirituality and the framework in which they create this definition. One study focused on holistic nurses, who themselves characterize their profession as having a fundamentally spiritual nature and a sense of the importance of the environment. Researchers performed a phenomenological study where they assessed the nurses' ecospiritual consciousness. For the purpose of their study, they defined ecospiritual consciousness as "accessing a deep awareness of one's ecospiritual relationship." They then narrowed down their findings to the five principles of ecospiritual consciousness, which are: tending, dwelling, reverence, connectedness, and sentience.

1. Tending was defined as "being awake and conscious," with "deep, inner self-reflection."
2. Dwelling was defined as "a process of being with the seen and the unseen."
3. Reverence was defined as "rediscovering the mystery present present in all creation and is embodied sense of the sacred," focusing on the earth.
4. Connectedness was defined as an "organic relationship with the universe."
5. Sentience was defined as "a sense of knowing."

Another study looked at medical effects of ecospirituality by having patients with cardiovascular disease practice "environmental meditation" and log regular journal entries about their experiences. Researchers started out with the research question of, "What is the essence of the experience of ecospirituality meditation in patients with CVD?" CVD is an acronym for cardiovascular disease. From analyzing journal entries of participants, researchers abstracted four major themes of ecospirituality meditation: entering a new time zone, environmental reawakening, finding a new rhythm, and the creation of a healing environment.

1. Entering a new time zone was described by researchers as "the expansion of time during meditation."
2. Environmental Reawakening was described by researchers as "opened participants’ eyes to vistas not previously noticed"
3. Finding a new rhythm was described by the researchers as "enhanced relationships with their family, friends, coworkers, and even their pets."
4. The creation of a healing environment was described by the researchers as "With raised consciousnesses, they became aware of the choices they had regarding what types of intentions and energy that wanted to put out in their environment"

This research was driven by the goal of raising awareness among healthcare professionals about ecospirituality and the medical importance of both self and environmental consciousness. Anecdotal evidence showed a decrease in blood pressure. However, the psychological benefits of environmental meditation were the main focus for the researchers.

Dark Green Religion

Dark Green Religion is one way in which people, both secular and religious, connect with nature on a spiritual level. Bron Taylor defines Dark Green Religion as "religion that considers nature to be sacred, imbued by intrinsic value, and worthy of reverent care" in his book Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future. Nature religion is an overarching term of which Dark Green Religion is a part of. A key part of Dark Green Religion is the "depth of its consideration of nature." Dark Green Religion differs from Green Religion. Green Religion claims that it is a religious obligation for humans to be environmental stewards, while Dark Green Religion is a movement that simply holds nature as valuable and sacred. Spiritual types of Dark Green Religion include Naturalistic and Supernaturalistic forms of Animism and of Gaianism. The diverse views within Dark Green Religion are not without the idea that the earth is sacred and worthy of care. The perceptions of Dark Green Religion are global and flexible. Taylor's use of the word 'Dark' gestures toward these negative possibilities. According to Taylor, Dark Green Religion has the possibility to "inspire the emergence of a global, civic, earth religion." Dark Green, Green and Nature Religions are arguably all a part of ecospirituality. The term ecospirituality is versatile and overarching.

Ecofeminism and spirituality

The umbrella term "ecospirituality" covers the feminist theology called Ecofeminism. The term ecofeminism was first coined by the French writer Françoise D'Eaubonne in her book, Le Féminisme ou la Mort in order to name the connection between the patriarchal subjugation of women and the destruction of nature. In it, she argues that women have different ways of seeing and relating to the world than men. These differences can give rise alternative insights on interactions between humans and the natural world when women's perspectives are considered. The suppression and control of woman and the natural world are connected. On the ecofeminist view, women are controlled because they are thought to be closer to primitive nature. By understanding the connection between femininity and nature and by exploring feminine ways of seeing and relating, ecofeminism asserts that humans can realize positive ways of interacting with the natural world and with each other.

Ecofeminism and Christianity on the ecological crisis

A significant figure in Christian ecofeminism is Rosemary Radford Ruether. Ruether argues that feminism and ecology share a common vision, even though they use different languages. In her work, Gaia and God: An Ecofeminist Theology of Earth Healing Ruether provides three recommendations on ways to move forward with repairing and "healing" the ecological crisis. The first recommendation is that "the ecological crisis needs to be seen not just as a crisis in the health of nonhuman ecosystems, polluted water, contaminated skies, threatened climate change, deforestation, extinction of species, important as all these realities are. Rather one needs to see the interconnections between the impoverishment of the earth and the impoverishment of human groups, even as others are enriching themselves to excess." The second recommendation is that "a healed ecosystem – humans, animals, land, air, and water together – needs to be understood as requiring a new way of life, not just a few adjustments here and there." The third and final recommendation is that the need for a new vision is necessary: "one needs to nurture the emergence of a new planetary vision and communal ethic that can knit together people across religions and cultures. There is rightly much dismay at the role that religions are playing in right-wing politics and even internecine violence today. But we need also to recognize the emergence of new configurations of inter-religious relations."

Ecofeminism and Christianity in liberation theology

According to Ivone Gebara, in Latin America, particularly in Christian Churches in Brazil, it is difficult to be a feminist, but more difficult to be an ecofeminist. Gebara explains ecology as one of the "deepest concerns of feminism and ecology as having a deep resonance or a political and anthropolocial consequence from a feminist perspective." Gebara believes that it is the task of different groups of Latin American women to "provide a new order of meaning including marginalized people." This task is both challenging and political. Gebara says: "We can choose the life of the planet and the respect of all living beings or we choose to die by our own bad decisions."

World religions and ecospirituality

Ecospirituality and paganism

Paganism is a nature-based religion that exists in a multitude of forms. There is no official doctrine or sacred text that structures its practice. Due to its lack of structure, many Pagans believe that it should be used as a tool to combat the current ecological crisis because it is flexible and can adapt to the environment's needs. Ecospirituality advocates contend that an ecology-based religion that focuses on the nurturing and healing of the earth is necessary in modernity. As paganism is already based in nature worship, many believe it would be a useful starting point for ecospirituality. In fact, neopagan revivals have seen the emergence of pagan communities that are more earth-focused. They may build their rituals around advocacy for a sustainable lifestyle and emphasize complete interconnectedness with the earth. Paganism understands divine figures to exist not as transcendent beings, but as immanent beings in the present realm, meaning that their divine figures exist within each of us, and within nature. Many pagans believe in interconnectedness among all living beings, which allows them to foster moments of self-reflection before acting. These pagan ideals coincide with ecospirituality because pagans understand the environment to be part of the divine realm and part of their inner self. Therefore, in their view, harming the environment directly affects their wellbeing. Pagans have already recognized the importance of incorporating environmental ideologies with their own religious beliefs. The Dragon Environmental Network is a pagan community based in the UK. They are committed to practicing "eco-magic" with the intention of recognizing the earth as sacred and divine. Their four goals are as follows:

1. Increase general awareness of the sacredness of the Earth.
2. Encourage pagans to become involved in conservation work.
3. Encourage pagans to become involved in environmental campaigns.
4. Develop the principles and practice of magical and spiritual action for the environment.

Paganism combines religion with environmental activism. Pagans organize protests, campaigns, and petitions with the environment in mind while staying true to their religious beliefs. Bron Taylor, argues that their core Pagan beliefs greatly improves their environmental activism. Additionally, the Pagan community has recently released a statement on the ecological crisis. It explains that Pagans lead lives that foster “harmony with the rhythms of our great Earth" and that they view the Earth as their equal in stating “we are neither above nor separate from the rest of nature”. It states that we are part of a web of life, and are fully interconnected with the biosphere. This connection to all living beings is seen as spiritual and sacred. And in turn it provides a framework that Pagans can use to combine their religious beliefs with environmental activism. It calls for a return to ancient understandings of the earth by listening to ancient wisdom. It asks Pagans to practice their religion in all aspects of their lives in order to give the Earth room to heal. The statement concludes by stating “building a truly sustainable culture means transforming the systems of domination and exploitation that threaten our future into systems of symbiotic partnership that support our ecosystems”.

Ecospirituality and Christianity

Most Christian theology has centered on the doctrine of creation. According to Elizabeth Johnson, in recent years, this has led to growing ecological awareness among Christians. The logic of this stance is rooted in the theological idea that since God created the world freely, it has an intrinsic value and is worthy of our respect and care. In 1990, Pope John Paul II wrote a letter on ecological issues. He concluded the letter with a discussion of Christian belief and how it should lead to ethical care of the earth. He ended the letter with the principle "respect for life and the dignity of human person must extend also to the rest of creation."

The doctrines of Christ that Christians follow also have the potential for ecological spirituality for they support interpretations that are consistent with ecospirituality. According to Elizabeth Johnson, Jesus' view of the Kingdom of God included earthly wellbeing. According to Thomas Berry, Christians recognize a need for an Earth Ethic. The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, leader of the Greek Orthodox Church, has organized major religion and science symposia on water issues across Europe, the Amazon River and Greenland. He has issued statements – including a joint statement with John Paul II in 2002 – calling destruction of the environment "ecological sin." Bishop Malone, president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops has said: "The Church stands in need of a new symbolic and affective system through which to proclaim the Gospel to the modern world." In the ecotheology of the late Thomas Berry, he argues that Christians often fail to realize that both their social and religious wellbeing depend on the wellbeing of Earth. Earth provides sustenance for physical, imaginative and emotions, and religious wellbeing. In Thomas Berry's view, the Christian future will depend on the ability of Christians to assume their responsibility for Earth's fate. An example of such responsibility-taking can be seen in the founding of an association called "Sisters of Earth," which is made up of nuns and laywomen. This network of women from diverse religious communities is significant, both for the movement of general concern for the natural world and for the religious life in Christian contexts.

Ecospirituality and Hinduism

Many teachings in Hinduism are intertwined with the ethics of ecospirituality in their stress on environmental wellbeing. The Hindu text called the Taittariya Upanishad refers to creation as offspring of the Supreme Power, paramatman. Thus, the environment is related to something that is divine and therefore deserves respect. Since the late 1980s when the negative effects of mass industrialization were becoming popularized, India instituted administrative policies to deal with environmental conservation. These policies were rooted in the ways that the Hindu religion is tied to the land.

In the Hindu text Yajurveda (32.10), God is described as being present in all living things, further reinforcing the need to show respect for creation. Passages such as this lead some Hindus to become vegetarian and to affirm a broader type of ecospiritual connection to the Earth. Vishnu Purana 3.8.15. states that, "God, Kesava, is pleased with a person who does not harm or destroy other non-speaking creatures or animals." This notion is tied in with the Hindu concept of karma. Karma means that the pain caused to other living things will come back to you through the process of reincarnation.

Ecospirituality can also be seen in the Prithivi Sukta which is a "Hymn to Mother Earth." In this text, the Earth is humanized into a spiritual being to which humans have familial ties. Through ecospirituality, the notion of praising and viewing the Earth in this way brings about its strong connections to Hinduism.

Ecospirituality and Jainism

Contemporary Jaina faith is "inherently ecofriendly". In terms of the ecological crisis, Jains are “quite self-conscious of the ecological implications of their core teachings.”

Jain teachings center on five vows that lead to reverse the flow of or release karma. One of these vows is ahimsa or non-violence. Ahimsa “is said to contain the key to advancement along the spiritual path (sreni). This requires abstaining from harm to any being that possesses more than one sense” The principles of the Jaina tradition are rooted in environmental practices. The Jaina connection to nature is conducive to ecospirituality.

Ecospirituality and Islam

Some scholars argue that while looking at the scriptural sources of Islam, you can see it is an ecologically orientated religion. Looking at textual sources of Islam, the shari'a preach a number of environmentally focused guidelines to push environmentalism, in particular, "maintenance of preserves, distribution of water, and the development of virgin lands." Much of Muslim environmentalism is a result of the Qur'anic stress of stewardship which is explained through the Arabic concept khilafa. A quote translated from the hadith states, "Verily, this world is sweet and appealing, and Allah placed you as vice-regents therein! He will see what you do." Within the Islamic faith, there is a set importance to following the messages set forth in scripture, therefore the environmentalism spoken through them has led to a spirituality around the environment. This spirituality can also be seen with Qur'anic concept of tawhid, which translates to unity. Many Muslim environmentalists see this meaning spiritually as "all-inclusive" when in relation to the Earth.

A majority of Muslim writers draw attention to the environmental crisis as a direct result of social injustice. Many argue that the problem is not that, "humans as a species are destroying the balance of nation, but rather that some humans are taking more than their share." Muslim environmentalists such as Fazlun Khalid, Yasin Dutton, Omar Vadillo, and Hashim Dockrat have drawn a correlation between the capitalist nature of the global economy to being un-Islamic and essentiality leading to ecological crisis.

The issues of environmental degradation are especially important to Muslims as majority of Muslims live in developing countries where they see the effects of the ecological crisis on a daily basis. This has led to conferences discussing Islam and the environment to take place in Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as the introduction of environmental nongovernmental organizations.

Ecospirituality and Buddhism

Buddhism was founded in ancient India between the 6th and 4th century BCE. However, with modern concerns on issues such as global warming, many Buddhist scholars have looked back at what Buddhist teaching has to say about the environmental crisis and developed what is called Green Buddhism. One of the key players in this introduction was Gary Snyder who brought to light where Buddhist practice and ecological thinking intertwine. Green Buddhism made waves in the 1980s when they publicly addressed the ecological crisis to create awareness and in 1989 when the Dalai Lama won a Nobel Peace Prize for the proposed introduction of Tibet as an ecological reserve. Buddhism has been open to working with other world religions to combat the environmental crisis seen at an international conference for Buddhist-Christian studies that addressed the environment. Although Green Buddhism has not commented much on technical issues such as air and water pollution, they use their spirituality to focus heavily on "rich resources for immediate application in food ethics, animal rights, and consumerism."

Spiritual ecology

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritual_ecology

Spiritual ecology is an emerging field in religion, conservation, and academia that proposes that there is a spiritual facet to all issues related to conservation, environmentalism, and earth stewardship. Proponents of spiritual ecology assert a need for contemporary nature conservation work to include spiritual elements and for contemporary religion and spirituality to include awareness of and engagement in ecological issues.

Introduction

Contributors in the field of spiritual ecology contend there are spiritual elements at the root of environmental issues. Those working in the arena of spiritual ecology further suggest that there is a critical need to recognize and address the spiritual dynamics at the root of environmental degradation.

The field is largely emerging through three individual streams of formal study and activity: science and academia, religion and spirituality, and ecological sustainability.

Despite the disparate arenas of study and practice, the principles of spiritual ecology are simple: In order to resolve such environmental issues as depletion of species, global warming, and over-consumption, humanity must examine and reassess our underlying attitudes and beliefs about the earth, and our spiritual responsibilities toward the planet. U.S. advisor on climate change, James Gustave Speth, said:

I used to think that top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation.

Thus, it is argued, ecological renewal and sustainability necessarily depends upon spiritual awareness and an attitude of responsibility. Spiritual ecologists concur that this includes both the recognition of creation as sacred and behaviors that honor that sacredness.

Recent written and spoken contributions of Pope Francis, particularly his May 2015 Encyclical, Laudato si', as well as unprecedented involvement of faith leaders at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris reflect a growing popularity of this emerging view. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated on December 4, 2015, that

Faith communities are vital for global efforts to address the climate challenge. They remind us of the moral dimensions of climate change, and of our obligation to care for both the Earth's fragile environment and our neighbours in need.

History

Spiritual ecologists have identified the Scientific Revolution—beginning the 16th century, and continuing through the Age of Enlightenment to the Industrial Revolution—as contributing to a critical shift in human understanding with reverberating effects on the environment. The radical expansion of collective consciousness into the era of rational science included a collective change from experiencing nature as a living, spiritual presence to a utilitarian means to an end.

During the modern age, reason became valued over faith, tradition, and revelation. Industrialized society replaced agricultural societies and the old ways of relating to seasons and cycles. Furthermore, it is argued that the growing predominance of a global, mechanized and commercialized worldview, a collective sense of the sacred was severed and replaced with an insatiable drive for scientific progress and material prosperity without any sense of limits or responsibility.

Some in spiritual ecology argue that a pervasive patriarchal competitive world-view, and a monotheistic religious orientation towards a transcendent divinity, is largely responsible for destructive attitudes about the earth, body, and the sacred nature of creation. Thus, many identify the wisdom of indigenous cultures, for whom the physical world is still regarded as sacred, as holding a key to our current ecological predicament.

Spiritual ecology is a response to the values and socio-political structures of recent centuries with their trajectory away from intimacy with the earth and its sacred essence. It has been forming and developing as an intellectual and practice-oriented discipline for nearly a century.

Spiritual ecology includes a vast array of people and practices that intertwine spiritual and environmental experience and understanding. Additionally, within the tradition itself resides a deep, developing spiritual vision of a collective human/earth/divine evolution that is expanding consciousness beyond the dualities of human/other, human/earth, heaven/earth, mind/body. This belongs to the contemporary movement that recognizes the unity and interrelationship, or "interbeing", the interconnectedness of all of that is creation.

Spiritual visionaries carrying this thread include Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) who founded the spiritual movement of anthroposophy, and described a "co-evolution of spirituality and nature" and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881–1955), a French Jesuit and paleontologist who spoke of a transition in collective awareness toward a consciousness of the divinity within every particle of life, even the most dense mineral. This shift includes the necessary dissolution of divisions between fields of study as mentioned above. "Science, philosophy and religion are bound to converge as they draw nearer to the whole", said Teilhard.

Thomas Berry (1914–2009), the American Passionist priest known a 'geologian', has been one of the most influential figures in this developing movement, with his stress on returning to a sense of wonder and reverence for the natural world. He shared and furthered many of Teilhard de Chardin's views, including the understanding that humanity is not at the center of the universe, but integrated into a divine whole with its own evolutionary path. This view compels a re-thinking of the earth/human relationship: "The present urgency is to begin thinking within the context of the whole planet, the integral earth community with all its human and other-than-human components."

Leaders in Buddhism including the Engaged Buddhism movement, historically identify a need to return to a sense ones innate inborn nature that is part of the Earth. Joanna Macy describes a collective shift – referred to as the "Great Turning" – taking humanity into a new consciousness in which the earth is not experienced as separate. Sufi teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee similarly grounds his spiritual ecology work in the context of a collective evolutionary expansion towards oneness, bringing us all toward an experience of earth and humanity – all life – as interdependent. In the vision and experience of oneness, the term "spiritual ecology" becomes, itself, redundant. What is earth-sustaining is spiritual; that which is spiritual honors a sacred earth.

An important element in the work of these contemporary teachers is the call for humanity's full acceptance of responsibility for what we have done – physically and spiritually – to the earth. Only through accepting responsibility will healing and transformation occur.

Including the need for a spiritual response to the environmental crisis, Charles, Prince of Wales in his 2010 book Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World, writes: "A specifically mechanistic science has only recently assumed a position of such authority in the world... (and) not only has it prevented us from considering the world philosophically any more, our predominantly mechanistic way of looking at the world has also excluded our spiritual relationship with Nature. Any such concerns get short shrift in the mainstream debate about what we do to the Earth." Prince Charles, who has promoted environmental awareness since the 1980s, continues:

... by continuing to deny ourselves this profound, ancient, intimate relationship with Nature, I fear we are compounding our subconscious sense of alienation and disintegration, which is mirrored in the fragmentation and disruption of harmony we are bringing about in the world around us. At the moment we are disrupting the teeming diversity of life and the 'ecosystems' that sustain it—the forests and prairies, the woodland, moorland and fens, the oceans, rivers and streams. And this all adds up to the degree of 'disease' we are causing to the intricate balance that regulates the planet's climate, on which we so intimately depend.

In May 2015 Pope Francis's Encyclical, "Laudato Si': On Care for our Common Home", endorsed the need for a spiritual and moral response to our environmental crisis, and thus implicitly brings the subject of spiritual ecology to the forefront of our present ecological debate. This encyclical recognizes that "The ecological crisis is essentially a spiritual problem", in line with the ideas of this developing field. American environmentalist, author, and journalist Bill McKibben who has written extensively on the impact of global warming, says that Pope Francis has "brought the full weight of the spiritual order to bear on the global threat posed by climate change, and in so doing joined its power with the scientific order".

Scientist, environmentalist, and a leader in sustainable ecology David Suzuki also expresses the importance of including the sacred in addressing the ecological crisis:

The way we see the world shapes the way we treat it. If a mountain is a deity, not a pile of ore; if a river is one of the veins of the land, not potential irrigation water; if a forest is a sacred grove, not timber; if other species are biological kin, not resources; or if the planet is our mother, not an opportunity—then we will treat each other with greater respect. Thus is the challenge, to look at the world from a different perspective.

A Catholic nun interviewed by Sarah MacFarland Taylor, author of the 2009 book, Green Sisters: Spiritual Ecology, articulates this perspective of unity: "There is no division between planting new fields and prayer."

Indigenous wisdom

Many in the field of spiritual ecology agree that a distinct stream of experience threading throughout history that has at its heart a lived understanding of the principles, values and attitudes of spiritual ecology: indigenous wisdom. The term "indigenous" in this context refers to that which is native, original, and resident to a place, more specifically to societies who share and preserve ways of knowing the world in relationship to the land. For many Native traditions, the earth is the central spiritual context. This principle condition reflects an attitude and way of being in the world that is rooted in land and embedded in place. Spiritual ecology directs us to look to revered holders of these traditions in order to understand the source of our current ecological and spiritual crisis and find guidance to move into a state of balance.

Features of many indigenous teachings include life as a continual act of prayer and thanksgiving, knowledge and symbiotic relationship with an animate nature, and being aware of one's actions on future generations. Such understanding necessarily implies a mutuality and reciprocity between people, earth and the cosmos.

The above historical trajectory is located predominantly in a Judeo-Christian European context, for it is within this context that humanity experienced the loss of the sacred nature of creation, with its devastating consequences. For example, with colonization, indigenous spiritual ecology was historically replaced by an imposed Western belief that land and the environment are commodities to be used and exploited, with exploitation of natural resources in the name of socio-economic evolution. This perspective "... tended to remove any spiritual value of the land, with regard only given for economic value, and this served to further distance communities from intimate relationships with their environments", often with "devastating consequences for indigenous people and nature around the world". Research on early prehistoric human activity in the Quaternary extinction event, shows overhunting megafauna well before European colonization in North America, South America and Australia. While this might cast doubt upon the view of indigenous wisdom and the sacred relationship to land and environment throughout the entirety of human history, it this does not negate the more recent devastating effects as referenced.

Along with the basic principles and behaviors advocated by spiritual ecology, some indigenous traditions hold the same evolutionary view articulated by the Western spiritual teachers listed above. The understanding of humanity evolving toward a state of unity and harmony with the earth after a period of discord and suffering is described in a number of prophecies around the globe. These include the White Buffalo prophecy of the Plains Indians, the prophecy of the Eagle and Condor from the people of the Andes, and the Onondaga prophecies held and retold by Oren Lyons.

Current trends

Spiritual ecology is developing largely in three arenas identified above: science and academia, religion and spirituality, and environmental conservation.

Science and academia

Among scholars contributing to spiritual ecology, five stand out: Steven Clark Rockefeller, Mary Evelyn Tucker, John Grim, Bron Taylor and Roger S. Gottlieb.

Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim are the co-ordinators of the Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology, an international multi-religious project exploring religious world-views, texts ethics and practices in order to broaden understanding of the complex nature of current environmental concerns.

Steven C. Rockefeller is an author of numerous books about religion and the environment, and is professor emeritus of religion at Middlebury College. He played a leading role in the drafting of the Earth Charter.

Roger S. Gottlieb is a professor of Philosophy at Worcester Polytechnic Institute is author of over 100 articles and 16 books on environmentalism, religious life, contemporary spirituality, political philosophy, ethics, feminism, and the Holocaust.

Bron Taylor at the University of Florida coined the term "Dark Green Religion" to describe a set of beliefs and practices centered on the conviction that nature is sacred.

Other leaders in the field include: Leslie E. Sponsel at the University of Hawaiʻi, Sarah McFarland Taylor at Northwestern University, Mitchell Thomashow at Antioch University New England and the Schumacher College Programs.

Within the field of science, spiritual ecology is emerging in arenas including physics, biology (e.g. Ursula Goodenough), consciousness studies (e.g. Brian Swimme at California Institute of Integral Studies), systems theory (e.g. David Loy), and the Gaia hypothesis, which was first articulated by James Lovelock and Lynn Margulis in the 1970s.

Another example is scientist and author Diana Beresford-Kroeger, world recognized expert on how trees chemically affect the environment, who brings together the fields of ethnobotany, horticulture, ecology, and spirituality in relation to the current ecological crisis and stewardship of the natural world. She says, "... the world, the gift of this world is fantastic and phenomenal. The molecular working of the world is extraordinary, the mathematics of the world is extraordinary ... sacred and science go together."

Religion and ecology

Within many faiths, environmentalism is becoming an area of study and advocacy. Pope Francis's May 2015 encyclical, Laudato si', offered a strong confirmation of spiritual ecology and its principles from within the Catholic Church. Additionally, over 150 leaders from various faiths signed a letter to the UN Climate Summit in Paris 2015 recognizing the earth as "a gift" from God and calling for climate action.

Christian environmentalists emphasize the ecological responsibilities of all Christians as stewards of God's earth, while contemporary Muslim religious ecology is inspired by Qur'anic themes, such as mankind being khalifa, or trustee of God on earth (2:30). There is also a Jewish ecological perspective based upon the Bible and Torah, for example the laws of bal tashchit (neither to destroy wantonly, nor waste resources unnecessarily). Engaged Buddhism applies Buddhist principles and teachings to social and environmental issues. A collection of Buddhist responses to global warming can be seen at Ecological Buddhism.

In addition to Pope Francis, other world traditions currently seem to include a subset of leaders committed to an ecological perspective. The "Green Patriarch" Bartholomew I, the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church, has worked since the late nineties to bring together scientists, environmentalists, religious leaders and policy makers to address the ecological crisis, and says protecting the planet is a "sacred task and a common vocation ... Global warming is a moral crisis and a moral challenge." The Islamic Foundation For Ecology And Environmental Sciences (IFEES) were one of the sponsors of the International Islamic Climate Change Symposium held in Istanbul in August 2015, which resulted in "The Islamic Declaration on Global Climate Change"—a declaration endorsed by religious leaders, noted Islamic scholars and teachers from 20 countries. In October, 2015, 425 rabbis signed "A Rabbinic Letter on the Climate Crisis", calling for vigorous action to prevent worsening climate disruption and to seek eco-social justice. Hindu scriptures also allude strongly and often to the connection between humans and nature, and these texts form the foundation of the Hindu Declaration on Climate Change, presented at a 2009 meeting of the Parliament of World Religions. Many world faith and religious leaders, such as the 14th Dalai Lama, were present at the 2015 Climate Change Conference, and shared the view that: "Saving the planet is not just a political duty, but also a moral one." The Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, has also stated, "The environmental emergency that we face is not just a scientific issue, nor is it just a political issue—it is also a moral issue."

These religious approaches to ecology also have a growing interfaith expression, for example in the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development where world religious leaders speak out on climate change and sustainability. And at their gathering in Fall 2015, the Parliament of World Religions created a declaration for Interfaith Action on Climate Change, and "brought together more than 10,000 activists, professors, clergy, and global leaders from 73 countries and 50 faiths to confront climate change".

Earth-based traditions and earth spirituality

Care for and respect to earth as sacred—as Mother Earth (Mother Nature)—who provides life and nourishment, is one form of Earth-based spirituality. PaGaian Cosmology is a tradition within such Earth-based spirituality. Glenys Livingstone describes it in her book as

an ecospirituality grounded in indigenous Western religious celebration of the Earth-Sun annual cycle. By linking to story of the unfolding universe this practice can be deepened. And a sense of the Triple Goddess—central to the cycle and known in ancient cultures—may be developed as a dynamic innate to all being. The ritual scripts and the process of ritual events presented here, may be a journey into self-knowledge through personal, communal and ecological story: the self to be known is one that is integral with place.

Spirituality and ecology

While religiously-oriented environmentalism is grounded in scripture and theology, there is a movement that articulates the need for an ecological approach founded on spiritual awareness rather than religious belief. The individuals articulating this approach may have a religious background, but their ecological vision comes from their own lived spiritual experience. The difference between this spiritually-oriented ecology and a religious approach to ecology can be seen as analogous to how the Inter-spiritual Movement moves beyond interfaith and interreligious dialogue to focus on the actual experience of spiritual principles and practices. Spiritual ecology similarly explores the importance of this experiential spiritual dimension in relation to the present ecological crisis.

The Engaged Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh spoke of the importance of mindfulness in taking care of our Mother Earth, and how the highest form of prayer is real communion with the Earth. Franciscan friar Richard Rohr emphasizes the need to experience the whole world as a divine incarnation. Sufi mystic Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee directs our attention not just to the suffering of the physical world, but also its interior spiritual self, or anima mundi (world soul). Pir Zia Inayat Khan of the Inayati Sufi Order, regards the current ecological crisis as “a unique and compelling factor in contemporary mysticism,” and that the spiritual answer to the ecological crisis lies in the acknowledgment of the sacredness of nature and of the environment.

Cultural ecologist and geophilosopher David Abram, who coined the phrase "the more-than-human world" (in order to describe nature as a realm that thoroughly includes humankind with all our culture yet also necessarily exceeds human creativity and culture) aims the careful language of his writing and speaking toward a reenchantment of matter. He was the first philosopher to call for an attentive reappraisal of "animism" as a uniquely ecological way of perceiving, speaking, and thinking; his writings are now associated with a broad movement, among both academics and environmental activists, often termed the "new animism" 

Environmental conservation

Main article: Conservation movement

The environmental conservation field has been informed, shaped, and led by individuals who have reported profound experiences of nature's sacredness and have fought to protect it.

Robin Wall Kimmerer, Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology at the State University of New York, has founded the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment which bridges scientific based study of ecology and the environment with traditional ecological knowledge, which includes spirituality. As she wrote in BioScience:

Traditional ecological knowledge is increasingly being sought by academics, agency scientists, and policymakers as a potential source of ideas for emerging models of ecosystem management, conservation biology, and ecological restoration. It has been recognized as complementary and equivalent to scientific knowledge... Traditional ecological knowledge is not unique to Native American culture but exists all over the world, independent of ethnicity. It is born of long intimacy and attentiveness to a homeland and can arise wherever people are materially and spiritually integrated with their landscape.

The World Wide Fund for Nature has developed "Sacred Earth: Faiths for Conservation", a program to collaborate with spiritual leaders and faith communities from all different spiritual traditions around the world, to face environmental issues including deforestation, pollution, unsustainable extraction, melting glaciers and rising sea levels. The Sacred Earth program works with faith-based leaders and communities, who "best articulate ethical and spiritual ideals around the sacred value of Earth and its diversity, and are committed to protecting it".

One of the conservation projects developed from the WWF Sacred Earth program is Khoryug, based in the Eastern Himalayas, which is an association of several Tibetan Buddhist monasteries that works on environmental protection of the Himalayan region through apply the values of compassion and interdependence towards the Earth and all living beings that dwell here. Organized under the auspices of the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, the Khoryug project resulted in the publication of environmental guidelines for Buddhists and "more than 55 monastery-led projects to address forest degradation, water loss, wildlife trade, waste, pollution and climate change".

Krishna Kant Shukla, a physicist and musician, is noted for his lectures on "Indian villages as models of sustainable development" and his work in establishing Saha Astitva, a model ecovillage and organic farm in tribal Maharashtra, India.

Women have shown a unique commitment and capacity to protect the earth's resources, as illustrated by the lives of Wangari Maathai, founder of Africa's Green Belt Movement, which was initially made up of women planting trees; Jane Goodall, innovator of local sustainable programs in Africa, many of which are designed to empower girls and women; and Vandana Shiva, the Indian feminist activist working on a variety of issues including seed saving, protecting small farms in India and protesting agri-business.

Other contemporary inter-disciplinary environmentalists include Wendell Berry, a farmer, poet, and academic living in Kentucky, who fights for small farms and criticizes agri-business; and Satish Kumar, a former Jain monk and founder of Schumacher College, a center for ecological studies.

Opposing views

Although the May 2015 Encyclical from Pope Francis brought the importance of the subject spiritual ecology to the fore of mainstream contemporary culture, it is a point of view that is not widely used in the work of mainstream environmentalists and ecologists. Academic research on the subject has also generated some criticism.

Ken Wilber has criticized spiritual ecology, suggesting that "spiritually oriented deep ecologists" fail to acknowledge the transcendent aspect of the divine, or hierarchical cosmologies, and thus exclude an important aspect of spirituality, as well as presenting what Wilber calls a one-dimensional "flat land" ontology in which the sacred in nature is wholly immanent. But Wilber's views are also criticized as not including an in-depth understanding of indigenous spirituality.