Ecological Civilization

Definition

Institute for Ecological Civilization:

"EcoCiv understands a civilization to be a way that humans pattern their lives together; it encompasses values, institutions, beliefs, cultures, and actions. To live ecologically is to recognize that all living things are members of ecosystems, and then to act to “to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community” (Aldo Leopold). In promoting ecological civilization, EcoCiv works towards the development of human societies that are structured to promote a cooperative relationship between the planet’s human inhabitants and the biosphere they inhabit."

(https://ecociv.org/our-mission/)

Description

1. John Thackara:

"Sustainable Development, it turns out, has modified – but not transformed – a global economic system that has to grow in order to survive.

Despite three decades of SD, we are experiencing more extraction today, more destruction of biodiversity, than ever before.

A more transformative vision is needed. The concept of an [Ecological Civilization]] (EC) provides us with such a vision. For the first time, it describes a path that transforms the economy and society for good – rather than just tinker at the edges, with symptoms.

For the world of design, EC is transformative In three profound ways:

• 1 In an EC, care for place takes priority over ever-growing production and communication;

• 2 EC defines value creation in terms of healthy soils, and ecological restoration;

• 3 EC gives priority to social relationships, and institutional innovation.

For design, an EC means that urban and rural are no longer separate domains.

Cities, in fact, have much to gain from village revitalization.

Some critics complain that Ecological Civilisation has produced far more research, than practical action. And it’s true, that the growth of EC research has been impressive!

But in design, the key principles of EC are evident in many thousands of practical grassroots projects around the world – even if the language used to describe them is diverse."

(http://thackara.com/notopic/in-an-ecological-civilization-place-is-our-professor/2/)

2. From the Wikipedia:

"Ecological civilization is the hypothetical concept that describes the alleged final goal of social and environmental reform within a given society. It implies that the changes required in response to global climate disruption and social injustices are so extensive as to require another form of human civilization, one based on ecological principles. Broadly construed, ecological civilization involves a synthesis of economic, educational, political, agricultural, and other societal reforms toward sustainability.

Although the term was first coined in the 1980s, it did not see widespread use until 2007, when “ecological civilization” became an explicit goal of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).In April 2014, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and the International Ecological Safety Collaborative Organization founded a sub-committee on ecological civilization. Proponents of ecological civilization agree with Pope Francis who writes, "We are faced not with two separate crises, one environmental and the other social, but rather with one complex crisis which is both social and environmental. Strategies for a solution demand an integrated approach to combating poverty, restoring dignity to the excluded, and at the same time protecting nature." As such, ecological civilization emphasizes the need for major environmental and social reforms that are both long-term and systemic in orientation."

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_civilization)

Principles

Jeremy Lent:

(from the book: Ecocivilization)

"Principles of an Ecocivilization If the dominant civilization is structured around extraction, what would a civilization structured around flourishing look like at its foundations? An ecocivilization takes its inspiration from the design principles of life itself. Without human disruption, ecosystems can thrive in rich abundance for millions of years, remaining resilient in the face of adversity. What would it mean to organize human society according to nature’s own design principles?

Three core principles emerge from the logic of living systems. The first is mutually beneficial symbiosis. Life’s great evolutionary leaps have been driven not primarily by competition and conquest but by symbiosis: relationships in which each party offers something the other needs, creating a whole greater than the sum of its parts. An ecocivilization would organize human society around this same principle—not merely minimizing harm to other beings and systems, but actively contributing to their flourishing.

The second is fractal flourishing. Ecologies are themselves fractal: cells nested in organisms, organisms within populations, populations within ecosystems, ecosystems within the living Earth. In a healthy fractal system, the wellbeing of the whole depends on the flourishing of each part. An ecocivilization would embody this principle: creating the conditions in which each person’s flourishing naturally contributes to—rather than diminishes—the wellbeing of the larger systems in which we are all embedded.

The third is integration—unity with differentiation. A flourishing ecosystem is diverse and differentiated, and precisely because of that diversity, more resilient and generative than any monoculture could be. An ecocivilization would honor and embrace the diverse ways in which cultures and individuals pursue their own forms of wellbeing, weaving that diversity into a richer whole.

These principles contrast significantly with those underlying the dominant civilization.

In place of the dominant culture’s human supremacy, claiming innate superiority over nonhuman nature and granting moral license to destroy ecosystems, an ecocivilization would recognize the intrinsic value of all life. Where the economy now gives primacy to the proliferation of capital above all else, an ecocivilization gives primacy to the essential dignity of all people and their right to flourish. Whereas global capitalism drives commodification and homogenization—monocrop agriculture and standardization of food, education, and cities—an ecocivilization supports heterogeneity. Where the wealth pump relies on hierarchical structures to centralize power, an ecocivilization would devolve decision-making through the principle of subsidiarity. Rather than the structural inequality of the dominant system, an ecocivilization aims at structural equity—equivalent opportunity for each person to fulfill their unique potential. And where today’s system motivates selfish behavior from childhood onward, rewarding it with wealth, status, and power, an ecocivilization would be built on core design principles for successful cooperation aligned with our evolutionary inheritance.

These principles are already being enacted, in partial and emergent form, by communities, organizations, and movements around the world. The book draws on myriad examples to show that the building blocks of a different civilization already exist. What are frequently referred to as “small islands of coherence in a sea of chaos” that have “the capacity to lift the entire system to a higher order” are already here. The task is to recognize them, connect them, and create the structural conditions for them to scale."

(https://gtcampaign.org/gtc-forum/ecociv-lent/)

History

From the Wikipedia:

"In 1984, former Soviet Union environment experts proposed the term “Ecological Civilization” in an article entitled “Ways of Training Individual Ecological Civilization under Mature Socialist Conditions,” which was published in the Scientific Communism, Moscow, vol. 2.

Three years later, the concept of ecological civilization (Chinese: 生态文明; pinyin: shēngtài wénmíng) was picked up in China, and was first used by Qianji Ye (1909―2017), an agricultural economist, in 1987.[6] Professor Ye defined ecological civilization by drawing from the ecological sciences and environmental philosophy.

The first time the phrase “ecological civilization” was used as a technical term in an English-language book was in 1995 by Roy Morrison in his book Ecological Democracy.

The term is found more extensively in Chinese discussions beginning in 2007. In 2012, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) included the goal of achieving an ecological civilization in its constitution, and it also featured in its five-year plan.[1][9] In the Chinese context, the term generally presupposes the framework of a “constructive postmodernism,” as opposed to an extension of modernist practices or a “deconstructive postmodernism,” which stems from the deconstruction of Jacques Derrida.

Both “ecological civilization” and “constructive postmodernism” have been associated with the process philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead. David Ray Griffin, a process philosopher and professor at Claremont School of Theology, first used the term “constructive postmodernism” in his 1989 book, Varieties of Postmodern Theology. A more secular theme that flowed out of Whitehead's process philosophy has been from the Australian environmental philosopher Arran Gare in his book called The Philosophical Foundations of Ecological Civilization: A Manifesto for the Future.

The largest international conference held on the theme “ecological civilization” (Seizing an Alternative: Toward an Ecological Civilization) took place at Pomona College in June 2015, bringing together roughly 2,000 participants from around the world and featuring such leaders in the environmental movement as Bill McKibben, Vandana Shiva, John B. Cobb, Jr., Wes Jackson, and Sheri Liao. This was held in conjunction with the 9th International Forum on Ecological Civilization--an annual conference series in Claremont, CA established in 2006.

Out of the Seizing an Alternative conference, Philip Clayton and Wm. Andrew Schwartz co-founded the Institute for Ecological Civilization (EcoCiv), and co-authored the book What is Ecological Civilization: Crisis, Hope, and the Future of the Planet,[15] which was published in 2019.

Since 2015, the Chinese discussion of ecological civilization is increasingly associated with an “organic” form of Marxism. “Organic Marxism” was first used by Philip Clayton and Justin Heinzekehr in their 2014 book, Organic Marxism: An Alternative to Capitalism and Ecological Catastrophe. The book, which was translated into Chinese and published by the People’s Press in 2015, describes ecological civilization as an orienting goal for the global ecological movement."

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_civilization)

Examples

"Apps that enable urban people be part-time farmers.

Streaming platforms that connect farmers directly to the city

Tools that enable citizen participation in ecological agriculture.

Above all, making things in an EC, and leaving the land healthier, are a single process.

The algae lab that produces 3d cups out of bioplastics is about ecology, not just production.

Or in textiles: EC means the soil- friendliness of regionally-grown fibre is measured, tested and monitored by everyone involved."

(http://thackara.com/notopic/in-an-ecological-civilization-place-is-our-professor/2/)

Policy

China

Zhang Chun:

"China is launching a wide-ranging set of ecological reforms in a bid to develop what the government calls an “ecological civilization.”

The reforms address many of the country’s major environmental issues. Proposals cover protection of natural resource rights; establishment of a national parks system; better and stricter systems for protection of arable land and water resources management; establishment of a green financing system; and improvement of environmental compensation mechanisms.

Twelve departments of both the Central Committee and the State Council contributed to the initiative. Given the numerous interests involved, the Central Leading Group on Financial and Economic Affairs, which had no direct stake in the proposals, led the process.

The “ecological civilization” concept first appeared in 2007, in a report to the 17th National People’s Congress. At the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee in 2013, Xi stressed that China would implement “ecological civilization reforms” – reforms to reconcile contradictions between economic development and the environment. In April this year, the plan was restated, with the release of a document outlining the acceleration of moves to establish an ecological civilization."

(https://thediplomat.com/2015/09/chinas-new-blueprint-for-an-ecological-civilization/)

See: Ecological Civilization - Chinese Policy

Discussion

The Role of China

John Thackara:

"Seen through this lens of grassroots activity, China is playing a leading role in Ecological Civilization design.

The revitalization of rural villages, for example, is a policy priority.

And China takes the health of small farms seriously. Designers, using the latest co-operation platforms, can help millions of small farmers can co-exist with the the city on equal terms.

Many designers are ready to reconnect with nature and rural life. But they need new skills. And a respect for rural culture is missing from their education.

Where designers learn, and how, in an EC, matters almost more than what. In an EC, place is their professor.

The good news is that examples of place-based learning for designers are beginning to emerge.

But there is potential is for designers to make a much bigger contribution to the emergence of an EC.

A proposal being developed for an ecological design training platform for designers in China."

(http://thackara.com/notopic/in-an-ecological-civilization-place-is-our-professor/2/)

Ecological Civilization as the Utopia we need for our future

Arran Gare:

"Against this background, it is now possible to see the importance and viability of seeing ‘ecological civilization’ as the utopian vision that is required to unite people and mobilize the whole of humanity against the forces for global ecological destruction. It upholds a vision of a global civilization oriented to augmenting the conditions for life, including augmenting the life of the multiplicity of communities of which people are part, including nations and subordinate civilizations (Gare, 2016). My claim is that it has the potential to overcome the difficulties standing in the way of reviving the genuine utopian components of the social imaginary by unifying world politics, as Ricoeur put it (Kearny, 1985, 30), ‘mediating between the polycentricity of our everyday political practice and the utopian horizon of a universally liberated humanity, while providing the means to chart paths to realizing this utopia’. The notion of ‘Ecological civilization’ had its origins in the notion of ‘ecological culture’ promoted in the Soviet Union among radical environmental scientists. This was translated as ‘ecological civilization’ by Chinese environmentalists (Gare, 2019b). These Chinese environmentalists persuaded the Chinese government to accept this vision of the future. Various thinkers and social movements in Western nations have since embraced this quest for ecological civilization. There is no final agreement on what ecological civilization means, however, debates on this issue along with efforts to develop the notion are indications of the healthy state of efforts to promote this vision of the future. The fruitfulness derives for the most part from the fecundity of work in ecology."

(https://cosmosandhistory.org/index.php/journal/article/view/1061/1691)

Key Book to Read

• Ecocivilization: Making a World that Works for All. By Jeremy Lent. Melville House, 2026 [1]

More information

* Book: What Is Ecological Civilization?. Philip Clayton and Wm. Andrew Schwartz. Process Century Press,

URL = https://processcenturypress.com/what-is-ecological-civilization/

"The present trajectory of life on this planet is unsustainable, and the underlying causes of our environmental crisis are inseparable from our social and economic systems. The massive inequality between the rich and the poor is not separate from our systems of unlimited growth, the depletion of natural resources, the extinction of species, or global warming.

As climate predictions continue to exceed projections, it is clear that hopelessness is rapidly becoming our worst enemy. What is needed—urgently—is a new vision for the flourishing of life on this planet, a vision the authors are calling an ecological civilization. Along the way they have learned that this term brings hope unlike any other. It reminds us that humans have gone through many civilizations in the past, and the end of a particular civilization does not necessarily mean the end of humanity, much less the end of all life on the planet. It is not hard for us to conceive of a society after the fall of modernity, in which humans live in an equitable and sustainable way with one another and the planet.

This book explores the idea of ecological civilization by asking eight key questions about it and drawing answers from relational philosophies, the ecological sciences, systems thinking and network theory, and the world’s religious and spiritual traditions. It concludes that a genuinely ecological civilization is not a utopian ideal, but a practical way to live. To recognize this, and to begin to take steps to establish it, is the foundation for realistic hope."

Bibliography

Arran Gare

Gare, Arran. 2010. ‘Toward an Ecological Civilization: The Science, Ethics, and Politics of Eco-Poiesis’, Process Studies, 39(1): 5-38.

Gare, Arran. 2017b. The Philosophical Foundations of Ecological Civilization: A Manifesto for the Future. London: Routledge.

Gare, Arran. 2019b. ‘The Ecosocialist Roots of Ecological Civilization’, Capitalism, Nature, Socialism, 32(1): 37-55