The term "deep ecology" was invented by the Norwegian philosopher Arne Næss. Deep ecology centers around seeing the connections between all living things, and between our own lives and nature. One important aspect of this philosophy is that humans are no more important than other creatures, and that all living things have the same right to live on this planet undisturbed. Despite this, humans have lived as if they are superior for ages, and have not always treated nature with the respect that they should.
We find many examples of how humans have mistreated nature in the texts we read about pollution and wildlife on pages 214-216 in Searching 10. For instance, poisonous gases from factories have risen into the air and turned acid rain into a common issue, a result of man's industrialization. Another example is how humans nearly hunted the buffalo in North America to extinction. Deep ecology focuses on putting ourselves in the place of all the creatures we are hurting, and to only intervene with nature when it absolutely necessary in order to meet our needs for survival. We are clearly not doing that. Only by recycling the Sunday edition of the New York Times, 75,000 trees could be saved each week, and yet so many people simply throw it in the trash. It is only a matter of caring enough to put it in a recycling bin instead. Deep ecology says we need to stop and think about how our actions will affect nature, something many people do not take the time to do.
Deep ecology is all about preserving our planet and to remember that we are no more important than all the other species that exist on Earth. Through our current way of life, we are seriously endangering nature. Pollution, hunting, and destroying animal habitats are threatening wildlife, and we are causing damage to the earth that could eventually become a threat to humans. We need to start to think more along the lines of deep ecology, and not put such a strain on our planet.
Sources: Searching 10
Horisonter 10
