Expanded new edition of a classic examination of the psychological roots of our ecological crisis.

Expanded new edition of a classic examination of the psychological roots of our ecological crisis.

Personal in its style yet radical in its vision, Radical Ecopsychology offers an original introduction to ecopsychology—an emerging field that ties the human mind to the natural world. In order for ecopsychology to be a force for social change, Andy Fisher insists it must become a more comprehensive and critical undertaking. Drawing masterfully from humanistic psychology, hermeneutics, phenomenology, radical ecology, nature writing, and critical theory, he develops a compelling account of how the human psyche still belongs to nature. This daring and innovative book proposes a psychology that will serve all life, providing a solid base not only for ecopsychological practice, but also for a critical theory of modern society.

An ecopsychology that integrates our totemic selves—our kinship with a more than human world—with our technological selves. We need nature for our physical and psychological well-being. Our actions reflect this when we turn to beloved pets for companionship, vacation in spots of natural splendor, or spend hours working in the garden. Yet we are also a technological species and have been since we fashioned tools out of stone. Thus one of this century's central challenges is to embrace our kinship with a more-than-human world—"our totemic self"—and integrate that kinship with our scientific culture and technological selves. This book takes on that challenge and proposes a reenvisioned ecopsychology. Contributors consider such topics as the innate tendency for people to bond with local place; a meaningful nature language; the epidemiological evidence for the health benefits of nature interaction; the theory and practice of ecotherapy; Gaia theory; ecovillages; the neuroscience of perceiving natural beauty; and sacred geography. Taken together, the essays offer a vision for human flourishing and for a more grounded and realistic environmental psychology.

What is the bond between the human psyche and the living planet that nurtured us, and all of life, into existence? What is the link between our own mental health and the health of the greater biosphere? In this "bold, ambitious, philosophical essay" (Publishers Weekly), historian and cultural critic Roszak explores the relationships between psychology, ecology, and new scientific insights into systems in nature. Drawing on our understanding of the evolutionary, self-organizing universe, Roszak illuminates our rootedness in the greater web of life and explores the relationship between our own sanity and the larger-than-human world. The Voice of the Earth seeks to bridge the centuries-old split between the psychological and the ecological with a paradigm which sees the needs of the planet and the needs of the person as a continuum. The Earth's cry for rescue from the punishing weight of the industrial system we have created is our own cry for a scale and quality of life that will free us to become whole and healthy. This second edition contains a new afterword by the author.

This volume examines the challenges weighing on the future of education in the face of globalization in the twenty-first century. Bringing together eleven authors who explore the paradox of an “after” to the future of education, each chapter in this book targets three important areas: ecology as understood in the broader framework of globalization and pedagogy; curriculum concerns which impact learning; and the pervasiveness of technology in education today.

In western culture, the separation of humans from nature has contributed to a schism between the conscious reason and the unconscious dreaming psyche, or internal human "nature." Our increasing lack of intimacy with the land has led to a decreased capacity to access parts of the psyche not normally valued in a capitalist culture. In Out of the Shadow: Ecopsychology, Story, and Encounters with the Land, Rinda West uses Jung's idea of the shadow to explore how this divorce results in alienation, projection, and often breakdown. Bringing together ideas from analytical psychology, environmental thought, and literary studies, West explores a variety of literary texts--including several by contemporary American Indian writers--to show, through a sort of geography of the psyche, how alienation from nature reflects a parallel separation from the "nature" that constitutes the unconscious. Through her analysis of narratives that offer images of people confronting shadow, reconnecting with nature, and growing psychologically and ethically, West reveals that when characters enter into relationship with the natural world, they are better able to confront and reclaim shadow. By writing "from the shadows," West argues that contemporary writers are exploring ways of being human that have the potential for creating more just and honorable relationships with nature, and more sustainable communities. For ecocritics, conservation activists, scholars and students of environmental studies and American Indian studies, and ecopsychologists, Out of the Shadow offers hope for humans wishing to reconcile with themselves, with nature, and with community.