Ecofeminism is an approach to cultural theory that articulates the ways that Western culture’s androcentrism (male-centeredness) contributes to sexism, racism, classism, homophobia on one hand and to the domination of nature on the other. Ecofeminism evolved from may different forms of political activity, including the women’s rights movement, anti-war protests, labor movements, environmentalism, and animal rights activism. The basic premise of ecofeminism is, to quote Greta Gaard, “that the ideology which authorizes oppressions such as those based on race, class, gender, sexuality, physical disabilities, and species is the same ideology which sanctions the oppression of nature” (Ecofeminism 1). Ecofeminists, therefore, see attempts to liberate women and other oppressed groups as fruitless without also attempting to end the domination of nature.

Since the increasing popularity of ecocriticism and environmental literature within the academy, serious attention has been paid to the relationship between gender and ecology. Not all of these inquiries can be considered “ecofeminist.” Nonetheless, they owe a great deal to this theoretical approach.

(see also Ecocriticism; see also Cyborg)