Feminism, in all its waves, has experienced evolutions and resurgences
since it formally began in the mid-1800s. As climate change awareness and
subsequent activism rose in recent decades, feminists began to identify
the ways in which the movement for gender equality and the movement for
environmental protection are related.
The term "ecofeminism" was coined by French feminist
Françoise d'Eaubonne
in 1974. According to her, the disenfranchisement and oppression of women,
people of color, and the poor are intrinsically linked to the degradation
of the natural world, as both arose as a result of patriarchal dominance.
Over the years, many more have explored the sentiment behind
ecofeminism—and begun advocating for it. Women such as Vandana Shiva,
founder of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Ecology,
and Carolyn Merchant, author of Death of Nature: Women, Ecology, and the
Scientific Revolution, are just two prominent names within this movement
since its inception. Some other names of note include
Val Blumwood,
Greta Gaard, and
Susan Griffin, just to name a few.
It's been nearly 50 years since ecofeminism was formally introduced.
Nowadays, even where the word itself is not used, the principles of
ecofeminism are interwoven into the modern-day climate change movement
among those who actively advocate for equitable change for people and the
environment.