A class approach to ecological crisis

Abstract

Humanity is inextricably linked to the natural world on which we depend. We are facing environmental issues that threaten human development. Sustainable economics are not about sustainable profits for the few, they are about what is best for all humankind. Environmental issues are also class issues – struggles over political and economic power, control, and decision-making. The working class has a crucial role to play in the fight to save the earth's capacity to provide the essentials of life. Socialists must address the new challenges posed by the latest ecological science, by the limits on growth required by nature's limits.

Keywords:

• environment
• class struggle
• socialism

Notes

¹In CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll conducted in March 2008, 68% respondents opposed the Iraq War; in the Gallup poll conducted in April 2008, 63% respondents believed that going to war in Iraq was a mistake; in the CBS poll conducted in February 2009, 55% respondents believed that United States should have stayed out of Iraq; in the CBS poll conducted in August 2010, 59% respondents believed that going to war in Iraq was a mistake; in the Gallup poll conducted in November 2011, 75% respondents approved Obama's decision to withdraw US troops.