ABSTRACT
Ecologists study the relationships between organisms and their environments. Environmentalists seek (among other things) to use the knowledge generated by ecologists to modify the relationships between organisms and their environments, in such a way as to minimize environmental damage. One of the reasons why an environmental discourse has emerged as a public, political phenom enon, rather than remaining an esoteric interest of ecologists, is that human activities have increasingly been identified as major sources of environmental damage. The understanding that, if environmental damage is to be curtailed or reduced, human activi ties must be changed, has turned ecology into a social commitment and led environmental activists to seek alternative models for the organization of human society. This much is clear, but is worth stating since it forms the starting point for the argument that cultural theory can help us to understand environmental issues. This argument also hinges on the assumption that culture has something to do with the relationship between human beings and their environment.
