My Green Maryland - What is Ecofeminism?

Gree(n)tings everyone!!!

I hope you and yours are doing well. I'm doing well, thanks be to God! In today's edition of My Green Maryland, I'll be talking about ecofeminism. As some of you may know, I graduated with a mining engineering degree from Virginia Tech but my minor was Women's Studies Leadership. Therefore, women's issues are very important to me as a woman and feminist. Being part of the Miss Earth organization and having this title as Maryland's Earth Ambassador, it has opened my eyes to so many things about life and I'm learning so much; this title is truly more than a sash and crown, it it is empowering me to live the Beauties for a Cause motto and lighting more fire under me to enlighten myself.

Miss Earth Maryland 2015 Ruby B. Johnson

Ecofeminism embraces the idea that the oppression of women and the oppression or destruction of nature are closely connected. Elements of the feminist movement, the peace movement and the environmentalist and green movements can be seen in ecofeminism. The term was coined in 1974 from the French feminist Francoise d'Eaubonne's work, "Le féminisme ou la mort." Ecofeminists address issues like water pollution, deforestation, toxic waste dumping, agricultural development and sustainability, animal rights and nuclear weapons policies. Feminism can be defined as the thought and movement toward the political, economic and social equality of women and men. Ecology is the study of the relationship between human groups and their physical and social environments.

Woman + Nature = Ecofeminism

Some people credit the German zoologist Ernst Haeckel as the founder of the science of ecology. Others believe that the real founder of ecology was a woman -- Ellen Swallow. A renowned industrial and environmental chemist, Swallow was the first female student admitted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the institution's first female instructor. As a teacher and active ecologist, Swallow concerned herself with educating women about the environment in relation to their homes or homemaking while focusing on monitoring the quality of their water, air and nutrition.
In ecofeminist literature, ecofeminism is often described as the belief that environmentalism and feminism are intrinsically connected. Another definition suggests that discrimination and oppression based on gender, race and class are directly related to the exploitation and destruction of the environment.

Rachel Carson
American Biologist and Conservationist

Throughout many cultures, women have historically held the role of primary food, fuel and water gatherer for their families and communities. Because of this, they have also had a major interest in trying to prevent or undo the effects of deforestation, desertification and water pollution. The ecofeminist movement quickly gained momentum in the U.S. Ynestra King and activist Grace Paley were among the women who organized the "Women and Life on Earth" conference at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1980. After the success of a conference at Sonoma State University the following year, a group of eight women formed the first national ecofeminist organization, WomanEarth.

Dr. Wangari Muta Maathai
Ecofeminist, 2004 Nobel Laureate, and The Green Belt Movement Founder 

The Green Belt (Kenya), Chipko Movements (Himalayas and Northern India), and Love Canal (United States) all have one thing in common -- the leadership and activism of strong and persistent women. The study of ecofeminism started informally at conferences in the U.S., U.K. and Germany and though grassroots efforts in India and Africa. Today, courses and programs on ecofeminism are taught at universities and colleges worldwide.

Ruby B. Johnson,

Your Miss Earth Maryland 2015

Continuing the legacy of beauty and responsibility

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