(source:
David Rothenberg; "Is
it painful to think? Conversations with Arne Naess")
(kilde: David Rothenberg; ”Arne Næss – gjør det vondt å tenke?”)
"Deep
ecology" is a branch of ecological philosophy that encourages us to
raise fundamental questions about the place of our species in nature,
hoping that a more in-depth questioning will lead to more profound
solutions in regard to the increasing environmental crisis we are
facing today. Unlike "shallow ecology", which only controverts
pollution in rich countries, deep ecology is searching the underlying
causes of the environmental problems in the structures of societies
and cultures all over the world. These are the eight principles of
deep ecology, formulated by Arne Næss and George Sessions in Death
Valley in 1984.
-
The
well-being and flourishing of human and nonhuman life on Earth have
value in themselves. These values are independent of the usefulness
of the nonhuman world for human purposes.
- Richness
and diversity of life forms contribute to the realization of these
values and are also values in themselves.
- Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity except to
satisfy vital human needs.
- The
flourishing of human life and cultures is compatible with a
substantial decrease of the human population. The flourishing of
nonhuman life requires such a decrease.
- Present
human interference with the nonhuman world is excessive, and the
situation is rapidly worsening.
- Policies
must therefore be changed. These policies affect basic economic,
technological, and ideological structures. The resulting state of
affairs will be deeply different from the present.
- The
ideological change in prosperous countries is mainly that of
appreciating life quality (dwelling in situations of inherent value)
rather than adhering to an increasingly higher standard of living.
Thus a fundament for global long-term ecological development will be
established.
- Those who subscribe to the foregoing points have an obligation
directly or indirectly to try to implement the necessary changes.
