Is nationalism relevant to environmental issues?
Nationalism is a quasi-organic conception of society: a nation has metaphorical roots, in history and in the soil, and it grows and changes while preserving its identity. The special connection of a people to its land, and the analogy between the people and a living organism, have particular significance for environmental issues. In modern times, there are two rival views on the relation of man to nature. On the one hand there is the materialist view, which regards nature as a mass of resources to be exploited for human benefit. On the other hand there is the eco-radical and pantheist view, which regards nature as sacred and man as an unnatural pest. Both set man apart from and against nature. The alternatives are stark: the world is either to be strip-mined and paved over, or returned to wilderness. The ugliness of modern civilization, which vividly contrasts with the beauty of nature, perhaps explains some of the revulsion in favor of wilderness; but man cannot live in wilderness. Th
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- Is nationalism relevant to environmental issues?
