Rethinking Religious Environmentalism

FAIN: HB-268153-20

Amanda Joelle Baugh
California State University, Northridge (Northridge, CA 91330-0001)

Research and writing leading to a book about the environmental values of Latinx Catholics in Los Angeles and the history of American environmentalism.

This project examines the environmental values of Latinx Catholics in order to decenter dominant narratives of religious environmentalism. Through ethnographic research among Latinx churchgoing Catholics in Los Angeles, I have uncovered an ethic of living lightly on the earth that is grounded in an immanent, relational worldview in which God is present in the material, and the human-nature boundary is porous. I call this ethic nepantla environmentalism. I argue that the study of religion and environment in the United States has been limited by the categories that environmentalists have used, instead of critically examining those categories for who and what they are excluding. Focusing on the ecological values of Latinx Catholics expands the definition of environmentalism by recognizing that there are different ways of conceiving of and engaging in eco-friendly activities. In other words, there are different ways of being a religious environmentalist.

Associated Products

Latinx Catholic Enviornmentalisms (this working title will likely change during production) (Book)
Title: Latinx Catholic Enviornmentalisms (this working title will likely change during production)
Author: Amanda J. Baugh
Abstract: Latinx Catholics are more likely to be concerned about climate change than any other group in the United States, including unaffiliated Americans and the general U.S. population. Yet American environmentalism continues to be associated with secular, white activists. To the extent that communities of color are acknowledged, it is almost always in the context of environmental racism and injustice. This results in a dichotomy where white activists can actively love and care for the planet, while communities of color can relate to the earth only as victims of environmental problems. How do our understandings of environmentalism change when we focus on the perspectives of Latinx Catholics? Through ethnographic research among Spanish-speaking churchgoers in Los Angeles, Latinx Catholic Environmentalisms demonstrates that Spanish-speaking Catholics in the United States participate in their own distinct environmental traditions that combine Catholic sensibilities with nostalgic memories and cultural values grounded in Latin America. Their environmental values and behaviors have been hidden in plain sight, because they do not conform to the expectations of mainstream, white environmentalism.
Year: 2024
Access Model: This will be a book published by NYU Press
Publisher: NYU Press
Type: Single author monograph
ISBN: forthcoming
Copy sent to NEH?: No

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