Environmental Justice: From the Bifocal Lens of Restorative Justice and the Feminist Approach

Abstract

The inter-disciplinary approach to resolve issues baffling humankind has proven to be extremely beneficial. It allows a deeper understanding of the problems leading to better designing of solutions. It enables the researchers to have multiple perspectives around the same problem. In this direction, environmental harms, wrongs, and crimes were no more a problem only related to the nature. They also constituted a human rights issue. In the same vein, the human rights activists must be credited for the protection of human rights embedded in the enjoyment of a healthy environment.

Likewise, when feminism emerged as a means for the emancipation of women, protection of their rights and their empowerment, it swayed upon various other fields of study as well. This led to the generation of ecofeminism. Ecofeminism travelled through different phases just like the idea of feminism did. The oppression of women and exploitation of environment because of domination by ‘man’ and patriarchal thinking led to various theories leading to the proposition that these two entities share a lot of commonalities. Hence, there came up different waves of ecofeminism.

The need of sustainable solutions for the protection of environment also acted as an impetus to the use of restorative approach and philosophy. The restorative approach shares some essential ingredients with the feminist approach. This paper will discuss the triad of feminist approach, restorative approach, and the environment protection with the vision to make environmental protection sounder and more efficacious.