While it is undeniable that nature connection and ecotherapeutic interventions can have positive effects in terms of wellbeing and promoting environmental awareness and pro-environmental action, they are limited if the social and economic inequalities within which they take place, are not highlighted and especially placed in the context of the planetary emergency. Ecofeminism strives to highlight the inequitable and harmful forces that impact social and environmental relationships through the critical lens of patriarchal capitalism. Based on in-depth qualitative interviews with 23 people living in Northern Ireland together with a critical review of relevant psychological, political and political economy literature, this thesis argues that environmental activism and self-care are forms of labour that are fundamental for keeping people and the planet healthy in an era marked by environmental devastation and climate collapse. In this era – which some have called the Capitalocene - health is not guaranteed and wealth and privilege strongly influence the relationships people have with the natural world, particularly in capitalist countries that prioritise economic growth as a marker of success. While Nature Connection and Ecotherapy practices appear to be becoming increasingly popular, there is a gap in the existing academic literature that analyses them from explicitly political perspectives that consider the influence of intersectional injustices (class, race, gender), and the wider socio-economic and socio-ecological contexts of ecocidal capitalism. Capitalism and the Capitalocene are terms used to describe the forces that exist where production, profit, consumerism and capital accumulation dominate politics, culture and the media, and also the everyday lives and choices that most people make. What we do for a living and how our lives are organised will impact how we structure our schedule and what we spend our free time doing and how much we enjoy our lives. Nature experiences, wellness activities and ecotherapeutic practices can serve as locations where people heal, find a sense of flow and pleasure and maintain balance in their lives or they can be perceived as spaces that represent freedom or an escape from the pressures of everyday, modern living. In this study the findings draw attention to how gender, age and income impact how individuals use nature experiences for mental health purposes and how they find fulfillment and contentment in their day to day lives. This work argues that to stay well in this era we must reframe and reconsider how we understand self-care and activism and how they are both important for maintaining wellbeing and staying healthy during the climate crisis. To live a good life where there is balance and harmony in a time of increasing ecological and climate breakdown requires new ways of existing and thinking about health, joy, pleasure, love, life and connection. For nature connection and environmental behaviours to be most beneficial to more people in the Capitalocene, the economic, ideological and governance structures and practices that create and maintain socio and economic inequalities, compel individuals to seek formal employment, and cause ‘actually existing unsustainability’, must be identified, addressed and transformed. We also need to consider and prioritise practices that bring happiness, pleasure and contentment into our daily lives and relationships.
Date of Award | Jul 2023 |
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Original language | English |
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Awarding Institution | - Queen's University Belfast
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Sponsors | Northern Ireland Department for the Economy |
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Supervisor | John Barry (Supervisor), Peter Doran (Supervisor), Paul Best (Supervisor) & Gavin Davidson (Supervisor) |
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- Nature
- ecotherapy
- nature connection
- soul
- love
- community
- climate crisis
- mental health
- ecofeminism
- health
- wellbeing
An ecofeminist critical analysis of work, nature experiences and mental health in the capitalocene.
Taylor, L. (Author). Jul 2023
Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis › Doctor of Philosophy