NASARA JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY

There are so many contradictory approaches to eco-justice in environmental philosophy. These approaches includes anthropocentrism, sentientism, biocentrism, ecocentrism, union of beings, eco-bio-communitarianism, radical ecology, eco-feminism, eco-spirituality among others. Despites these proposed solutions to ecological crisis, the problem of environmental degradation via human activities is on the increase. Thus, this paper submits that Edo ecothought which can be tagged “eco-bio-conversationalism” should be considered as an alternative solution to the various contradictory approaches in Western environmental philosophy. While assuming that the plethora of natural forces in Edo ontology could serve as a solution to ecological crisis and sustainable ecosystem for future generation, this article uses the method of hermeneutics to aver that in Edo worldview, nature, a living organism, ranks higher than man in the hierarchy of beings because it is a deity which man revered and it serves as a mediator between man and the Supreme Being. This unique hierarchy and novel understanding of eco-spirituality as exemplified in Edo eco-thought could be harnessed as a veritable tool for ecological justice. Furthermore, this work contends that spirits animates natural objects and this force theory can be seen in the sacredness and symbolism of some natural phenomenon such as mountains, trees, rivers, animals and occurrences such as floods, earthquakes etc.

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