During this week we address the single most influential thesis that has shaped American views of religion and the environment, the famous 1967 address by UCLA historian Lynn White Jr., who argued that Western, biblical traditions were especially responsible for creating an attitude of disregard for nature in the West. Even though this critique has proven somewhat misguided, no other idea has had as much impact on scholarship about religion and ecology, so we will closely examine White’s claims and key responses that have shaped the development of religious environmental thinking.
