“…it is impossible, within patriarchy, to suppress a market economy. And it is impossible, in a market system, to not devastate the planet. It is up to women, now, to reclaim the voice of humanity…” (d’Eaubonne, [1990]1997, p. 4).

The poignant quote above, from one of the mothers of ecofeminism, outlines what this form of feminism is about. It is a distinctive position to feminist research that, unlike many other approaches, tries to speak to everyone, women, indigenous people and ethnic minorities, those suffering discrimination because of their social class, speciesism, etc. It does so by focusing on the critique of capitalism and the environmental destruction capitalism inevitably brings, regardless of what proponents of the so-called green capitalism say (Topić, 2021), but it puts women at the centre of ecological struggle and also, tackles technology as an issue in environmental protection. In addition to that, ecofeminism speaks of speciesism which is seen as part of the masculine ideology where humanity dominates the planet first through speciesism and this discrimination then cascades down to enforce the domination of genders, races and classes through anthropocentrism (Topić, 2021, Warren, 1990, Alloun, 2015, Mayer, 2006, Iovino, 2013, Bahofen, 1990, Holy, 2007). In a nutshell, ecofeminism tackles -isms: racism, sexism, and speciesism and it is an anti-capitalist critique of economic and social conditions that lead to the inequality of races, species, and women (Salleh, 2000). In that, ecofeminism celebrates women’s role in preserving the environment and there are many studies outlining the historical role of women in the environmentalist movement (Mallory, 2006, Brownhill and Turner, 2019, Goldstein, 2006, Holy, 2007, Leahy, 2003, McStay and Dunlap, 1983).

However, another aspect of ecofeminism, which is not always tackled in other forms of feminism, is inequality that derives from social class. Ecofeminism is an anti-capitalist movement which looks at various forms of oppression that also including the issue of class inequality that goes together with patriarchal domination and oppression of women (Brownhill & Turner 2020). Ecofeminists have thus looked at the struggles of women across the world including, for example, women in Nigeria who shouted ‘fish, not oil’ in their protests against environmental degradation but also the struggles of women whose inequality is linked to city streets and white- and blue-collar workplaces. Ecofeminism looks at the global economic system and inequality that derives from the market economy deepening tensions between class, race, gender, and species since one-fifth of the world controls four-fifths of all resources, which derives from masculine and patriarchal system centred on free trade policies, competition in exporting all of which had an impact on the environment.

This talk will thus speak about the market economy and inequality that derives from it, focusing particularly on social class as an issue that should have a prominent place in feminist and intersectionality debates but often does not. In that, the talk will speak about this issue from an ecofeminist perspective arguing that the most pressing inequalities, which are at the root of all inequalities, are the way we treat the environment, speciesism and social class, thus arguing that poverty needs to be addressed first, whenever and wherever we can find it and that a harmony with the environment is needed before we can resolve other inequalities.