Greetings everyone!
My name is Holly Williams. Today is the first day of my last semester as a Marine Biology undergraduate! I am excited to take on this ecofeminism blog because I have always wanted to create a travel/nature blog. This will be a great introduction to the process.
A few things about myself:
- Devoted vegetarian and animal rights advocate.
- Deep love for nature, conservation, and animals.
- Reading, yoga, running, traveling, and puzzles.
- Snuggles with my rescue pets.
My values are rooted with the ideals of individuals such as Aldo Leopold and John Muir. I believe that all living things are connected no matter how large or small. More importantly, all things have value and no organism is more superior. We are all trying to find our place in the world and we are all on our own journey. Obviously my journey is significantly different compared to that of a Sloth or a Bee! I understand from an anthropomorphic point of view this idea may sound bizarre, but you get the idea though, right? I am digging the idea of ecofeminism since it builds on Leopold’s philosophy that all life is interconnected and their needs to be balance in order to maintain a healthy world. This would mean that humans would need to accept that we are not the hierarchical species. The ecofeminism approach takes this idea further but has a significant twist. It’s approach transforms relationships of domination and removes hierarchical thinking. It also focuses on “looking at our relationship with the environment through a feminist perspective” (professor’s notes).
I searched through a collection of blogs to find one that could act as a model for what I have envisioned mine to be like. Obvi, We’re The Ladies on Feedspot appears to be an empowering and positive place to share ideas about feminism. Their Philosophy is as follows: “We work to inspire others, of all genders, to become more educated on how gender inequality affects everyday life”. I like that they welcome women of different backgrounds and origins. They claim to stand with women no matter what their beliefs are which is pretty cool. It’s a place for all women to feel connected and safe. I’d like my blog to be inviting and warm like this one. Mine needs to be a positive outlet to talk about important issues, explore ideas, and discover solutions to environmental issues. This blog obviously will not model my blog in regards to the human induced environmental issues that we see all around us today.
For instance, who likes candy? Especially MARS chocolate like M&Ms and Snickers? I know I do! But I have been boycotting it for years because of an unhealthy and environmentally unfriendly ingredient called Palm Oil. This ingredient can be found in almost all candy, sweets, chips, shampoos, soaps, and even toothpaste! It’s in everything! Harvesting this ingredient has lead to a human induced extinction event in one of the most intelligent animals on the planet: the Orangutan also known as the Spirit of the Forest. Deforestation and habitat degradation is the number one threat these animals are faced with. Their habitats are destroyed in order to build palm oil plantations and large corporations exploit poor countries for their own selfish capital gains while amazing wildlife disappears in the background. I urge everyone to make an informed decision to boycott products with palm oil and share this knowledge with everyone.
Palm oil has an indirect relevance to where I live because its literally on every isle in the grocery store…I can’t escape it. When grocery shopping, I have to check the ingredients of every new item for traces palm oil. In response to consumers doing this, companies have hidden palm oil under many different names.
For more information on the effects of palm oil:
For alternatives to palm oil:
Finally! A Viable Palm Oil Alternative That Can Save Orangutans and the Rainforests
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If drastic changes are not implemented the three species of Orangutans will face extinction within the next 50 years. We can prevent this outcome by making the pledge to say NO to palm oil. Lets show companies that we don’t want this dirty ingredient in our products.