An Examination of Deep Ecological Principles
In 1973 , Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess introduced the term Deep Ecology into the environmental movement . Naess ' s new view offered a new way to critique the environmental degradation by corporations and government industry . For Naess , the main cause of the environmental crisis was anthropocentrism . Basically , the idea that nature is there for man to use . Naess surveyed his own experiences in Norway , as well as environmental literature by Aldo Leopold , John Muir , and Rachel Carson and came to the conclusion that mankind ' s myopic view was the reason for environmental crisis . He settled upon the Gaia Hypothesis which argued that an ecocentric or biocentric view , where humans and nature have equal value and interact as a complex , regulatory system to help maintain life on Earth , could help rethink the way societies all around the world view the natural environment . To encapsulate his early ecosophy , Naess developed the ideas of Deep Ecology and Shallow Philosophy in his seminal 1973 essay , “ The Shallow and the Deep , Long Range Ecology Movement .” In the essay , Naess differentiates the ideas of Shallow Ecology as a consumeroriented , anthropocentric view of the ecosystems of Earth , while Deep Ecology de-centers humans , developing a ecocentric , living system for looking at ecology .
The main tenets of Deep Ecology expressed by Devall and Sessions articulate the systematic philosophy of Naess :
1 . The well-being and flourishing of human and nonhuman life on Earth have value in themselves ( synonyms : intrinsic value , inherent value ). These values are
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