Wed, Apr 20, 2011
This episode of The Green Interview features David Orton, a highly-regarded proponent of "deep ecology," a perspective that sees all life forms - man, moose or microbe - as having an equal right to survive and flourish. The philosopher made a remarkable effort to live in accordance with his beliefs, minimizing his ecological footprint by subsisting on a small hill farm in Nova Scotia, which he and his wife, Helga Hoffmann-Orton, deliberately allowed to return to forest. Through activism and writing he strove to create a philosophical position called "left biocentrism," blending social justice with the tenets of deep ecology. His environmental interests were wide-ranging, encompassing forestry, wildlife, pesticides, fisheries and seals, energy and climate change, aboriginal relationships, Green Party politics and more. (65 minutes)