Val Plumwood

Val Plumwood was born in Australia in 1939 and continued her studies in philosophy. She spent a significant part of her academic career at the Australian National University and in the field of environmental philosophy, becoming one of the important theorists linking feminist philosophy, environmental ethics, and critiques of anthropocentrism.

In her works, especially Feminism and the Mastery of Nature (1993) and Environmental Culture: The Ecological Crisis of Reason (2002), Plumwood examined the philosophical roots of the separation of humans from nature. She argued that many Western systems of thought, by creating hierarchies between human and nature, mind and body, and culture and nature, have contributed to various forms of domination.

One of the central concepts in Plumwood’s thought is her critique of anthropocentrism and her emphasis on humans as beings dependent on and entangled with ecological networks. She argued that humans should not see themselves as separate from and dominant over the natural world, but should establish an ethical and responsible relationship with other beings.

Plumwood also criticized simplistic theories about the human-environment relationship and emphasized the complexity of ecological relations. Her personal experience of surviving a crocodile attack in 1985 was reflected in her writings on human vulnerability and humanity’s place in the more-than-human world. Her ideas have had a significant influence on environmental philosophy, ecofeminism, and contemporary theories of the relationship between humans and nature.