an eco feminist analysis of environmentally sensitive women using qualitative methodology (jstor)

8/2/2019 An Eco Feminist Analysis of Environmentally Sensitive Women Using Qualitative Methodology (Jstor)

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An Ecofeminist Analysis of Environmentally Sensitive Women Using QualitativeMethodology: The Emancipatory Potential of an Ecological LifeAuthor(s): Susan Dobscha and Julie L. OzanneSource: Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, Vol. 20, No. 2 (Fall, 2001), pp. 201-214Published by: American Marketing AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30000588 .

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A n Ecofeminist A n a l y s i s o f Environmentallye n s i t i v eW o m e n U s i n g Qualitative Methodology:h eEmancipatoryo t e n t i a l o f a n Ecological L i f e

SusanDobschaandJulieL. OzanneUsing depthinterviewsand observations,the authorsempiricallyexamine marketactivitiesof women who care deeplyaboutnature.Interpretedn the lightof ecofeministtheory,thedata suggest that these women areforging an ecological self thataffects their view ofconsumptionand the marketplace.Leadingecological lives, the womenchallengetraditionalnotionsoffeminine consumptionand are a force for change in theirrelationshipswith amily, friends, the workplace,and thecommunity.These data disputeconventionalnotionsof environmentalism ndgreen consumption; hey supportand extendan ecofeministnotion of the ecological self as a nondominating ath of change. The authorsoutline implications or relevantstakeholders.

"Consumeess"maybecome hefinal rontier f theconsumer-rebel,the consumerwho does not merelyseek living spacewithin hepresent ystemor usetheproductsf thesystem oexpressdisaffection ndprotest,but decides that"enoughsenough,"hatanythingess thana frontal ssaulton the coreassumptionf consumerisms inadequate.-Gabriel andLang1995,p. 149The goalof thisarticle s toexplore group f womenwho protestconsumerist ociety by consuming ess toaffirm theirrelationshipo the earth.Withinconsumerresearch, interestin consumer rebellion is growing. SincePefialozaand Price(1993) firstpresented heirgeneraltypol-ogy of consumerresistance,researchers ave examined con-sumer resistanceto marketing Dobscha 1997; Ritson andDobscha 1998), advertising Elliottand Ritson 1997), tech-nology (Mick and Fournier1998), and fashion (Thompsonand Haytko 1997).These studiesprimarilyview consumers'resistance as acts of defiance andreappropriationsf controlfrom a marketplace hat is not designedfor these particularconsumers (de Certeau 1984). In general,researcherscon-clude that these defiant consumerscan be broughtbackintothe fold of the marketplacef their needsaretrulymet.The women in this study affirmtheir relationship o thenatural environment within the marketplace.Meeting theneeds of these women, unlike those of otherresistors,wouldrequireradicalchanges in the marketplace.The green mar-keting literature,however, emphasizes a managerial per-spective on the relationshipbetween consumers and theenvironment(e.g., Scherhorn1993; Schwepkerand Corn-well 1991) and primarilystudies this relationshipfrom a

logical empiricist paradigm e.g., Aaker andBagozzi 1982;Shrum,McCarty,and Lowrey 1995;Zikmundand Stanton1971). This approachholds thatgreen consumerscan meettheir needs in the currentmarketplace.KilbourneandBeck-man (1998, p. 524) suggest that such an approach hasyielded "marginalprogressaftertwenty-five years"and callfor a new paradigm.This article breaks from traditionalresearchand uses afeministapproach o examine theroleof consumption n thelives of people who deeply regardnature. n particular,weuse the ecofeminist paradigm o investigatethe emancipa-tory potentialof affirmingone's relationship o natureandthe impact this relationshiphas on consumption.We firstexplore the philosophicalconnection between women andnature o betterunderstand ow this link influencesbehav-ior,both inside and outside themarketplace.Next, we exam-ine a groupof women who caredeeplyaboutnature,and wetrace the impactof thisrelationship n theirsense of self andsocial connections.Finally,we outlineimplicationsfor fourmajor stakeholders: regulators, environmental actiongroups,consumers,andmarketers.Althoughwe acknowledgethatrace,class, and national-ity are strong mediatorsof the human-nature ink (Bryantand Mohai 1992;Bullard1990; Krauss1993), for practicalreasons, we chose to limit our studyto white women eventhough other groups warrantattention.Similarly,althoughmen's relationship o nature s certainlyof interest,womenare often found at the forefront of environmental move-ments.Many differentgroupsof women are protestingtheenvironmentaldegradationhat is endemicin theireverydaylives: rural Himalayanwomen successfully challenging amultinationalcorporation(i.e., the Chipko tree-huggingmovement), Micronesian women fighting against atmos-pheric nuclearweapons testing, English women protestingin Greenham Common against storing nuclear missiles,Native Americanwomenresearching oxicity in their breastmilk from local produce,and ruralKenyanwomenplantingmillions of trees to conserve soil and water,to name but afew examples (Krauss 1993; Merchant 1992). Some

SUSAN OBSCHAs Associate Professorof Marketing,BentleyCol-lege. JULIE . OZANNEs Associate Professor,R.B. PamplinCol-lege of Business, Virginia PolytechnicInstituteand State Univer-sity. The authorsworked as partnersand thankthe women whoparticipated n the study for their generous sharingof time andinsight. The authorsalso thank the anonymousJPP&M reviewers,as well as the following colleagues: Stephen Brown, DeborahEvers, Carol Benson Holst, Pierre McDonagh, and Jeff Murray.CharlesRay Taylorserved as editor for this article.

Vol. 20 (2)Fall 2001, 201-214 Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 201


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202 EcofeministAnalysisof EnvironmentallyensitiveWomenresearcherssuggest that, in part, women engage in localactivism becausewomen and children are"ecologicalmark-ers"and show signs of disease first(i.e., childrenbecauseoftheir low body weight and women because theirbodies areunhealthyenvironmentsfor their unborninfants).Womenare also the primaryorganizersand maintainersof house-holds,and therefore hey maybe morelikely to see the detri-mentaleffects of pollutionand toxic materialson the healthof their families (Gibbs 1982; Pettus 1997). Moreover,women still performthe vast majorityof household shop-ping (Yankelovich MarketingResearch Group 1993) andare arguablythe decision makers with great potential forimpactin the marketplace.We initially chose to explore women's connection tonature to discern how this link influences their productchoices, consumption,and disposal. Yet as the study pro-gressed, we broadened he focus to explore this connectionas it exists throughout he women's daily lives, in whichconsumptionplays a modest,yet complicatedrole. Ecofem-inism, which we discuss next, offers a theoretical frame-work from which to view the women's everydayactivities.We then describe the feminist methodology employed inthis study. Finally,we organizethe substantive indingsintothree sections, which presentthe women's relationshiptonature,their marketplacebehaviors, and the changes thatarise in the women and their communitiesbecause of theirconnection to nature. nconclusion,we discuss implicationsfor fourrelevantstakeholders.EcofeminismEcofeminism, first described by d'Eaubonne in 1974,encompasses the work of academics and activists andincludesresearchersworking n fields as diverse asphiloso-phy, politics, history,and literary analysis (Warren1990).Just as no single version of feminism exists (Bristorand Fis-cher 1993),no single authoritative pproach o ecofeminismcan be found, and at times, the differences among variousecofeministsare vast (Lahar1991;Merchant1992;Warren1987). Nevertheless,most ecofeminists still agree with thethesis of the germinalwork of RosemaryRuether(1975),who suggested that the social structures that dominatewomen are the same structures hat dominatenature.There-fore, women should align themselves with natureto trans-form a system that devalues and potentially harms themboth.

The ecofeminist paradigmstands at the intersection offeminist and ecological thought.Feminists firstarguedthatpatriarchal hierarchies, which were implicated in theoppressionof women, also played a role in the dominationof nature.Whereasfeminists first used the analysisof philo-sophical dualism to understandoppression, ecofeministshave used these same analysesof oppressionto understandthe dominationof nature.Statedbriefly, philosophicaldual-ism is when differences, such as the differences betweenmasculine and feminine,are treated as a hierarchyand oneside of the dualism is valued over the other side (e.g., mas-culine traits are valued over feminine traits).Sets of thesedualisms form ideological systems that are interconnected(e.g., men/culture/public), einforcingdomains that are val-ued over the undersideof the dualisms(e.g., women/nature/private). But most important, hese interconnectedhierar-

chies shape social practices.Ecofeminist theorists believethat this logic of domination s used to devalueboth womenand nature(for an analysis of the logic of domination,seePlumwood 1993, Warren1990).Beyond this basic position, ecofeminists diverge (for acollection of positions, see Diamondand Orenstein1990).For example, historical examinations trace the roots of

philosophical dualism to Greek philosophy (Plumwood1993) and the ascension of Baconian science (Merchant1980) and arguethata causal link exists between dualisticthinkingand the exploitationof women and nature(Spret-nak 1990; Warren1990). Sociolinguisticwork investigatesthe way that language structuresrelationships betweenwomen andnature Roach 1991).Ethicalapproaches eek todevelop differentethical bases for practicesthataffect bothwomen andnature WarrenandCheney 1991).Moreover,the theoreticalpositions in ecofeminism mir-ror those foundin feminism(Bristorand Fischer 1993;Jag-gar 1983;Merchant1992;Warren1987). For example, lib-eral ecofeminists seek to work within the existing socialorder to make laws and practices more environmentallyfriendly (e.g., the legal protectionof endangeredanimals).Cultural cofeministssuggestthatwomen are different frommen both biologically and socially. However, problemsarise when the feminine andnatureare devalued.They seekto celebratewomen and natureandhighlightissues such asthe influence of environmentaldegradationon women'sreproductive ystems (Merchant1992). More radical formsof ecofeminism attack both of these approachesbecausethey both shore up the statusquo and leave the dualisticstructures n place (i.e., privilegingthe feminine over themasculine is still oppressive).Radical ecofeminists seek todismantle the patriarchal systems that subjugate bothwomen and nature (Daly 1978). Finally, Third Worldecofeministsfocus on how theglobal economic shifts influ-ence the everydaylives of indigenouswomen (Shiva 1989).Ecofeminism is just one of many environmental dis-courses-such as ecology, reformenvironmentalism,anddeep ecology-that differ in their basic assumptionsandtheir substantive emphases. For example, the works ofThoreau,Emerson,Marsh,andMuirsparked he first ecol-ogy movement in modern Western society (Shrivastava1994). These writers were naturalistswho viewed the con-ception of the human community as anthropocentricandarguedthat preservingnaturewas essential for preservinghumancommunity.Ecology then arose as a branchof biol-ogy that dealt with the interdependenceof organisms andmade central the "whole systems" ideology.Reformenvironmentalism hiftedthe focus toward ndus-trialism and the pollutioncreatedby the widespreaduse ofchemicals and pesticides (WorldCommission on Environ-ment andDevelopment1987).This discourse was fueled byRachel Carson's influentialstudy of environmentalpollu-tion and forced policymakersto enact new environmentalregulations (Carson 1962). Deep ecology developed inoppositionto these mainstream nvironmentalmovements.Deep ecologists rejectanthropocentrism,he idea that natureexists strictly for humanwelfare, and espouse the idea ofecological egalitarianism.Nature is assumed to have thesame rightsto exist andflourish as humanshave (Ehrenfeld1978;Naess 1987).


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Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 203Ecofeminists build on this critiqueof anthropocentrismandemphasizethe interdependency f the social andnaturalworlds. Ecofeminists differ from deep ecologists by cri-tiquingtheconceptof "vitalhumanneeds"as possibly beingjustified by the values of patriarchal ulture. Ecofeministsseek nondominatingrelationshipsamong all living things.Nature exists not as an abstractconcept but rather n the

everydaylived experiencesof every human.McDonaghandProthero 1997) firstdelineatedecofemi-nism within marketingand suggestedthat it had importantimplicationsfor marketingpractices. Although many ver-sions of ecofeminism exist, our approach most closelyaligns with criticalecofeminists such as Warren 1990) andPlumwood (1993). To date, no empiricalresearch in mar-keting or ecofeminism examines whether nondominatingrelationships o naturespecificallylead to different market-place behaviors. We examined the relationshipbetween agroup of women, who care deeply about nature,and theirmarketplacebehaviors. After describingthe methodology,we articulate he informants'relationship o natureand thenexplore how this relationshipaffects theirconsumptionandlife morebroadly.MethodologyBecause the goal of this researchis to understandcertainwomen's lives and personal relationships to the naturalenvironment(DeVault 1991; Sherwin 1992; Smith 1987),we used a feministmethodology.Across two phasesof datacollection, we used three qualitativemethods:(1) partici-pant observation, (2) multiple interviewee-guided inter-views, and (3) autoelicitation using photographs (Belk,Sherry,and Wallendorf1988;Heisley andLevy 1991).Feministresearchers mploy manyof the samedata-gath-ering techniquesas are used in positivisticand interpretiveparadigms.However, these techniquesare embedded in afeminist paradigm,and thereforethe data-gathering ech-niques change. Moreover,whereas the goal of the interpre-tive paradigm s to seek understandingHudsonandOzanne1988), for the feminist, understandings the penultimategoal; the ultimategoal is social change guided by theory(i.e., praxis).As Reinharz 1992, p. 240) states,"Feminismis a perspective,not a method....Feminist researchaims tocreate social change, representhumandiversity, ncludes theresearcheras person,and attemptsto develop special rela-tions with the people studied."In additionto differentgoals, these approachesmake dif-ferentassumptions.Forexample, like all researchers, emi-nists worryabout the qualityof theirdata;however, femi-nists assume that data quality often improves when theresearchrelationship mprovesand when the voices of theinformantsareused throughout he researchprocess.There-fore, consistent with feminism, we attemptedto hear andpreserve the participants'voices during all stages of datacollection and analysis (Bristorand Fischer 1993; Hudsonand Ozanne 1988), minimize power relations betweenresearcherandparticipantHirschman1993),andbuild trustthrough multipleinterviewsand the free exchangeof infor-mation(Oakley 1981). The details of this approach ollow.The firstphaseof the data collectionconsisted of the firstauthorconductinga participantobservationof a local envi-ronmentalactiongroup.This experience provideda crucial

understanding f local environmental ssues and access to anetwork of environmentalists.We learned the group's lan-guage and the local threats membersencountered,and wemet the people who were most willing to vocalize theirstrong connection to the environment. Over a yearlongperiod, field notes were taken at eight differentmeetings.The size of the meetingsaveragedapproximately 0 people;the participantswere white, the vast majoritywere women,and theirages ranged rom 30 to 70 yearsof age. Initialcon-tact was made with several of the women who eventuallyparticipatedn this study(see Table 1).During the second phase of the data collection process,we conductedinterviewee-guided nterviews,observations,and autoelicitationwith nine women. Feminist researchersoften rely on open-ended nterviews,becausethis approachgives the participants he power to structure heir feelingsandthoughts Reinharz1992).Giving participantsontrolinthe interview s consistent with the feministgoal of attempt-ing to minimizepower imbalancesbetweenresearchersandparticipantsHirschman1993). In addition, nterviewswereusuallyconducted n the women's homes, wherethey mightfeel mostat ease. Conducting hreeseparate nterviewswitheach woman had a range of benefits: Initial themes wereexplored at greater length, additional data were collected,feedback from the participantswas received,and misunder-standings were corrected. Three interviews gave moreopportunity or rapport o develop within the researchrela-tionship. In some cases, this increased intimacy led to alevel of confidence in which personaland privateinforma-tion was shared.Some feministssuggestthatthequalityanddepth of data improve when trust and intimacy existbetween the researcher and the informant(Oakley 1981;Reinharz1992). Although the informantswere assuredofconfidentialityandtold the purposeof thestudy,no tangibleincentives were given for participation.Participantswereallowed full access to the notes, recordedinterviews,andresults.Identification f respondentsbeganwith a yearlongpartic-ipantobservationof a local environmental ctiongroup.Theprincipalresearchergained access to several women whoserved on the boardof this group,andin turn hey providedthe researcherwithnames of otherwomenin thecommunitywho were involved in other environmentalgroups.Womenwere chosen solely if duringinitialcontactthey statedthattheirrelationshipo naturewas importanto them. All of thewomen were involved with the environmentthroughtheirjobs and/orparticipationn voluntaryorganizations.As recommendedby McCracken(1988), "grandtour"questionswere createdto introduce the broadtopic of thestudyto the participants.Examplesof thesegrand ourques-tions are, "What s your relationshipto the environment?""What are your thoughts about the environment?" and"Whendidyou start eeling/thinking hisway?"Theseques-tionsguidedthe first interview.The analysisof the text fromthe first interviewserved as a guide to the second interview,and emergentthemes from the first interactionwere clari-fied and validated. The third interview then served as aninformal conversation in which issues from the secondinterview were explored and any other topics deemedimportantor interestingby the participantwere attendedto


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204 Ecofeminist Analysis of Environmentally Sensitive Women

Table 1. Profilesof Women n StudyName Demographicnformation AffiliationRobin White,ate30s,married Member, ationalwomen's ssociationCurrently orkingn thehome Coordinator,oint meeting f nationalwomen'sorganizationndTwoyoung hildren localenvironmentalroup

Collegedegreen environmentalngineeringLaura White,mid-40s,married Boardmember,ocalenvironmentalroupWorks or ocalnatural istorymuseum Volunteer,ocalbird-watchinglubNo children Volunteer,tream-watchinglubCollegedegreennaturalcienceTerry White, arly40s,married Founder ndcoordinator,ecycling o-opWorks orregional ecycling o-opTwo adult hildren ot ivingat homeHigh chooldegreeAnn White, arly50s,single Member nd ormer resident,ational nvironmentalrganizationWorks s researchertuniversity Member,ocal environmentalroupTwoadult hildren ot ivingat home

CollegedegreeHelen White, arly70s,married Member,ocalbird-watchinglubSeveral dult hildren ot ivingat home Contributor,ewsletteror childrenwithdisabilitiesCollegedegreenbiologyMargaret White,ate60s,divorced Formermember, ationalnvironmentalrganizationWorks t bookpublishingompanySeveral dult hildren ot ivingat homeCollegedegreeRachel White,mid-30s,married Growsandsellsorganic roduce t local armer'smarketWorks sorganicarmer ndcookforvegetarianestaurantCollegedegreeCathy White, arly50s,divorced Member, ational nvironmentalrganizationWorks t a researchlearinghouse Member,ocalenvironmentalroupTwo adult hildren ot ivingat home Member, ahaiFaithCollegedegreeDana White,mid-20s,married Coordinatorndeducator,ounty ecycling enterWorks s coordinatororrecyclingenter Member,ocalenvironmentalroupTwoyoungchildrenCollegedegree

in depth. The women's comments on the transcriptswereincorporatednto the final analysis.The women were encouragedto tell their stories in anymannerthey chose, and questionsof elaborationor clarifi-cationwere asked. No attemptwas made to stop digressions(i.e., when women seemed to go off the topic), and these

digressions often yielded valuable information n light oflateranalyses.Finally,autodrivingwas employed,in whichphotographswere used as projectivestimuliduringthe interview(Heis-

ley and Levy 1991). Participantsor the researcherpho-tographedareas in the women's homes or possessions thatwere related to their environmentalconcerns. Typically,photographswere taken during the second interview andthen discussedduringthe third nterview.

Eachwomanwas interviewed hreetimes for one to threehours. Each interview was taped on a hand-held cassetterecorder and transcribedverbatim.Field notes were takenafter each interview to recordthe researcher'sobservationsthatwere notcaptured n the interviews.A total of 38 hoursof interview data was transcribednto 715 pages of text. Inaddition,more than 50 pagesof field notes werealso taken,transcribed,andincluded in the dataanalysis.We analyzedthe datausing a hermeneuticaland feministmethod. First, we created a text around each participant.Duringthis firststageof analysis,each woman was consid-ered an individual, and the analysis was driven by herwords.Second, we analyzedthe data as a whole. The goal atthis stage was to make connectionsamongthe women andcreate an interpretation hat transcended the individualwomen's stories without losing the women's voices. The


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Journalof PublicPolicy& Marketing 205interpretations an amalgamof the data.In the analysis,weattempt o maintain he voices of the participantswhile cre-ating a new, integrativetext that is more illuminatingthanthe nine separatevoices.EmergentThemes and InterpretationsPriorgreen marketingresearchhas focused on determiningthe characteristicsof the socially conscious consumer(e.g.,Anderson and Cunningham 1972); assessing consumers'perceptionsof business(e.g., Scherhorn1993);and measur-ing the influenceof perception,attitudes,and incentives ongreen consumption (e.g., McCarty and Shrum 1994).Guidedby logical empiricistmethods,this research s gen-erallybased on threeassumptions: 1) Greenconsumersuseprimarily rational decision processes to make productchoices (e.g., Ellen 1994), (2) consumers are generallyhomogeneous in their response to environmental-basedproductclaims dependingon their socioeconomic status orrace(e.g., Shrum,McCarty,andLowrey 1995), and(3) con-sumers'productchoices can be understoodn isolation fromthe rest of theirdaily lives (e.g., GranzinandOlsen 1991).Ourstudyfollows Fisk's (1973) notion thatconsumptioncontributesto rather than solves the problem of environ-mental degradation(Kilbourne 1995; Kilbourne,McDon-agh, and Prothero 1997; McDonagh and Prothero 1997;Thogersonand Grunert-Beckman 996).Ourstudysuggestsa vision of the environmental onsumer that resonateswithFisk's conjecture.The breadthand depth of the women'sgreen living indeedaffected their action within the market-place. Nevertheless, green living does not center on greenconsuming-instead, the women seek to live outside themarketplace and reluctantly enter the marketplaceonlywhen other nonmarketoptions are exhausted. These con-sumers live, shop, and buy on the basis of a complex andstrongrelationship o nature,a relationship hatleads themto questionthe problem-solvingabilityof the marketplace.The oppositional nature of the women's relationshiptothe marketacts as a relief againstwhichwe explorethe eco-logical self. We investigatehow the ecological self is main-tained within the ecological life that the women create forthemselves and their families. Then, we discuss how theecological life stands as a forceforchangein publicandpri-vate domains.The Ecological Self"I Am Not a Consumer"The women refuse to be defined as consumers,and thereforewe respectfullyno longerrefer to them as consumers.Con-sistentwith its original meaning, "consuming"s viewed asusing up, squandering, ndwasting(GabrielandLang1995).In the following passage, Terrymakes thepointthatdefiningpeople as consumersamplifiesenvironmentalproblems:

Soconsumerism,hethert'sgreen,purple, rown, ryellow,Ithink s an issue thatneeds o beconfronted,atherhan implyrepainted. ndIthink, define,obviouslywhenyou buysome-thingandyouuseit, youhaveconsumed.But I think he con-ceptof humans sconsumers,r Americansnanycase as con-sumers,s somethinghatneeds o be dismantled.We are notconsumers.We shouldnot be consumers.We shouldusethingswhenwe need o usethem,butwe shouldquestionmuchmore

what xactlyt is we need ouse,andI thinkwe need ogetoutof theconsumerbuymore,buymore"mindset.The women's stances on consumptionare also consistentwith previousdefinitions of consumptionas a disease thatcauses sufferingand devours the body earth.Most of thewomen were disgusted by uncontrolleddevelopment that"devastated" he land (Ann) and "tore up" local habitats(Helen). The dominant consumer culture that encouragesacquisition,use, anddisposalis in opposition o the women'sviews, because this behaviortranslates nto environmental

degradation.This metaphorof consumptionas a diseasehada powerfulorienting orce on the women as they negotiatedthe marketplaceZaltman,LeMasters,andHeffring1982).The women do not see themselves or theirfriends as con-sumers;they are conservers:

They[friends]renot consumers....mean, couldgo throughmy cupboardsnd tell you, this bottleof this lastedme twoyears.And hishas astedme six months ndwill lastme more.Things hat used o use,the more learnand hemore thinkabout, think,well,Idon'treallyneed his.(Laura)The women create alternativevisions of themselvesas con-serversandattempt o protectthe local habitat hatsupportsthemby castingaside the materialclutter n theirlives.An InterconnectedNonhierarchical RelationshipThe women view humansand the naturalworld as partofone system, each part relying on the otherpartfor support.As Margaret ays, "You sort of feel like you are one withnature. You're a part of an ongoing life." Humans andnatureareinterdependent-theirfates areentangled.There-fore,dualisticideas,such as culture/naturer human/nature,in which one partof this systemdominatesanotherpart,areinconsistentwith these women's views:Well,my relationship ithnatures thatI ampart f it. I don'tsee anyseparationetweenwhatwe call the natural nviron-mentandhuman eingsexceptwe human eingshavebuiltonit.... There s unity hroughoutheentirecreation ndnothingexistsseparatelyrom hewhole....So I never ver hought nyotherway;I've never understoodhe idea thathumanshavedominion vernature.Cathy)

Similarto the riverguides in Arnouldand Price's (1993)study, the women commune with nature and believe thattheirphysicaland emotionalwell-being are tied to nature:ButI didnoticea kindof a lift when he suncameout.Whenspend imeoutdoors, always eel a lot different hanwhenIspenda lot of time ndoors. leepoutside rspenda lot of time,a wholeday,outside. t's a reallydifferenteelingthanwhenyoulive in the house. Robin)

Moreover,natureand culture are intertwined,and the expe-rience of nature often takes place as a cultural activity(Arnouldand Price 1993). Many of the women engage inbird-watchingexpeditions in which they take members ofthe local community o look at birds n their naturalhabitats.Theseoutingsare educational n scope andsocial inpurpose.Nature as Separate and HeterogeneousAlthough the women view themselves as interconnected,they also respect nature as a separate entity that does notmerelyexist for the needs andpleasuresof the women (this


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206 Ecofeminist Analysis of Environmentally Sensitive Womenview is in opposition to the anthropocentricassumptionsmadeby deep ecologists):

That ime n the woodsreallyopenedmymind o somethingsthat hadn't eallybeenaware, ndreallybasically,t was ustreally eeling ikeIneeded o learn o be a lotmore entlenmyrelationshipo the earth ndmuchmore onscious boutwhatdo withmy garbage ndwhat spentmy moneyon.Justhow Ilived,how I walked, ven howI walkedn thewoods.Whereputmy eet. I mean t isjusteverything. ffecteveryaspect, ndI felt sucha strong onnectiono theearthatthatpoint.And thasnever eallyeftme since hat ime. Rachel)The women recognize thatjust as naturedoes not exist toservethem,humanends and natural nds are notequivalent.Hurricanes,tornadoes, mudslides, and El Nifio all occurdespitetheculturallydominantbelief thatnature an becon-trolled for the good of society. The ecological self incorpo-rates this element in the form of reverence or deferencetothe unruly and unpredictablenatural world (ArnouldandPrice 1993).Nature s not viewed as monolithic.Quiteto thecontrary,nature s seen as diverse.Margaretnotestherichdiversityofnatureas well as the differentaccompanyingproblems:

Insomeways hedesert s more ragilehan hecoastorglades.Althoughdon'tknow f there s anythingmore ragilehan heglades.And then we hiked andtraveledn the Rockies, heCanadian ockies, nd hat'sadifferent indof fragile nviron-ment.So youjust becomeaware hatdifferent nvironmentshavedifferent roblems.Omnipresentand MultifacetedAll the womenspoke in varyingdegreesabout how the nat-ural world is ubiquitous n decisions as mundaneas "whatIdo with my garbage"and as importantas deliveringbabiesand worshipping.Moreover,their relationship o nature sone of the most central relationships n their lives. Cathyfinds herself in awe of natureandsees natureas a "miracleome.I mean,I ust revere t. I think t's absolutelywonderful."At first it is tempting to view nature as part of thewomen's extended self (Belk 1988). The concept of theextendedself maintainsthatpossessions act as a reflectionof a person's identity.In this case, naturecannot be consid-eredpartof the women's extendedself, becausethe womenbelieve that nature cannot be possessed and that natureserves its own ends that do not equateto humangoals. Fur-thermore,as is clearin the nextsection,the women maintainthe ecological self by minimizing their relationship togoods, in contrastwith Belk's notionof theextended self asbeing maintainedby goods.In summary,these women define the self as a "self-in-relationship,"which is consistent with Plumwood's (1993,p. 154) theoreticalconjecture hat a mutualor relational elfunderliesthe ecological self and influencesrelationships ootherliving organisms:

Theecological elf can be viewedas a typeof relationalelf,one which ncludes hegoalof theflourishingf earthothersand the earthcommunity mong ts own primarynds,andhencerespects r cares or heseothers or heir wn sake.Con-ceptsofcare, olidaritynd riendship resent lternativesotheinstrumental odewithin xistingiberal ocieties.

The women care deeply about natureand view themselvesas conserversof nature.However,they neitheroverly sepa-rate themselves from nature(i.e., the logic of domination)nor consider themselves in total continuity with nature.Hypercontinuity ontains its own pitfalls. People who per-ceive no separationbetween themselves and nature mayinaccuratelyperceivethat their needs and nature'sneedsareone and the same (Plumwood 1993). The women operatetowardnature as though it is different,yet they still traceinterconnections between themselves and nature. Thesewomen offer empirical support or the notion that a mutualself underliesa theoryof differencethat is nonhierarchicaland nondominatingGaard1993;Gruen1993).Living the Ecological LifeIf the needs of natureand humansare in conflict, these dif-ferent needs must be balanced.Therefore, he women regu-larlyquestionhow theybalance these needs. To remain rueto theirecological selves, their lives consist of an ongoingseries of critical moments n whichthe needs of humansandnature are negotiated.Nevertheless, their persistent ques-tioning is not aimed at finding"thesolution."They under-standthathuman ife, of necessity, negativelyaffectsnature.They use the available informationat hand and strike thebest possible balance.They dwell on weighty environmen-tal issues, regret the inadequatebalances, and savor theclever trade-offs. Unlike the traditional environmentallyconscious consumer who seeks to shop differently, thesewomen seek to live differently.This vision is fueledby theirprofoundskepticismof business andmarketingpractices.Cynicismof Business and MarketingAll the women distrustbusiness andmarketingpracticesandcould be labeled "marketing eretics" Ritsonand Dobscha1998). The intensityof the distrustrangesfromskepticismto hatred.Ann calls advertisingan "evil in our society."Cathy explicitly stateshercynicism:

Inparticularheplastic ompaniesavebeen, n myopinion,..veryabusive f thepublicrust.Theyhavebeenoffering lotofhalf nformationndhalf ruths. ndagainthat s why alwaystry to instill in people [the need to] question.Especiallywhen itcomesoutreally mooth nd lickand f theyhavean800 num-ber or ree,whyare heydoing hat?ftheyaredoing hat, hereis onlyonething, hate o sound ynical,buttheres onlyonething hat motivates nyindustry-thebottomine.(emphasisadded)Environmentalproductsand claims areparticularly cru-tinized. Laura s botheredby the improperuse of the"green"productsymbol. She states,"It ust bugs me thatpeople areusing, using the guise of being environmentally friendlywhen it really hasn't changed anything." Dana similarly

questionsthe environmental laims of companies:Becausea lot of companiesryto make hemselves ut to bethesegreencompanieswhen heyare not.Diapers, iodegrad-ablediaperswasa bigone.Andwhatweresomeothers?Yeah,likeasepticpackaging dvertising. ouknow,recycling dver-tising hatyouareseeingnow.Like hose ittle uiceboxesandhowtheyaregoingto be recyclable.t'scoming oon to yourlocality.That'sa crockof bull!


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Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 207Occasionally, the women take joy in the marketplacewhenbuyingsomethingsecondhandat a garagesale orfind-ing a productthat meets their strict criteria:"Well, what Iuse in the laundryroom is Searsdetergent....Itdoesn'thavedyes, perfumes,and it doesn't have bleach"(Robin).Marketplacedecisions may appearto be these women'schief concerns,but thesedecisions aremerelya few of myr-

iads of daily trade-offs. Decisions about whether to drive,walk, or takepublictransportationmaybe low involvementfor mostpeople, but thesewomen consider the environmen-tal impactof these choices. Cathyrelatesher dilemma thisway: "Infact, I hatedriving.I would like to have no car if Icould, but I find it inconvenient n this country.And that'swhat bothers me too. I don't know why more people don'twalk." Similarly, Robin complains about the trade-offbetween countryliving thatbringsher closer to natureandthe relatedtransportation roblems:And also deciding o live out here wasa difficult decision]environmentallyecause f coursewe use ourcarsa lot more.Mycar s, Idrivea lotandI liketodriveandwedrivewhenwetravel.Andourcar s the worst hatwe do to theenvironment.Foronethingwebuy t.Godknows,whathappenedotheenvi-ronmentwhile ourcar wasmanufactured,robably lot. Andthen, drive nto own hree r four imesaday.When lived ntowntherewould be a lot of timeswhereI wouldchoose towalk.AndwhenI did[drive], wouldn't ave odriveas far.Helen handles the issue of drivingby bundlingas manyerrands as possible into one trip.Rachel discusses the bal-ance she strikes betweenher needs and nature's:Wehaveshitty oldandscratched]ars....[Cars] rereallynota good deabecause thinkpeople houldbe,weshouldhaveawayof protesting;hat s,just buyusedcarsandhardly rive.Driveas littleaspossible.Andmake hecars astaslongaspos-sible. Andnotspenda lotof moneyon them.Wetryto spendtheleastamount f money n cars.Wechangeheoilourselvesandas muchof therepairswedoourselves. do,actually,mostof theworkon thecars. took omeautomechanic lasseswhenI wasyounger.

Thus, Rachel seeks to usecarsthatalreadyexist, ignoresthesurface patina, maintainsthe car herself, and uses the carinfrequently.All the women complain that driving is anactivity in which a good balance is difficult to achieve.Many of the women blame society (e.g., governmentnotbeing dedicated to public transportation), ut othersblametheirown laziness orrelianceon thismode of transportation.The women's views stand in starkcontrastto the dominantsocial meanings of the car as sign of freedom and control(Kunstler 1996).

Cleaning is another domain of questioning.The womenwith childrenare concerned aboutenvironmentalcontami-nants thatmightcome in contact with their childrenor oth-erwise compromise their immature systems. Robin andDana describethe dilemma:If I'm toilet raining,hisalwayshappenswhenI'm toilet rain-ing a child,you don't want o sit theirbottomon a toilet seatthat'sustbeencleanedwithLysol. Robin)Well,you'vegotlittlekidsaround. ndyoustarthinkingboutthose fumes.Youknow,whenyouhave all thesewarningsnthereabout heventilation eeded.You'renthebathroom ith

no window.You start o, thereare health oncerns here oo.Ithink hat s whywomenare muchmoreconnectedo it thatway.Well,I thinkwomenaremoreconnectedo theenviron-ment ngeneralhanmenare. Dana)As the primary aregivers,the women questionthe riskthathousehold products introduce into the household. Socialnorms areconsistentlyviolatedas the women challenge thedominantnotionsof cleanlinessandhousekeeping.Dismantling the ConsumerOur informantsmake consumptionless centralby shiftingtheir household consumption patterns. They do withoutmany of the conveniences thataverageconsumers take forgranted.For example, Robin avoids all flea and tick prod-ucts for her animals. Rachel, Laura,Cathy, Margaret,andHelen do not use chemical pesticidesor fertilizersfor theirlawns. Lauraand Rachel never eat at restaurantswhere theleftovers arepackagedin Styrofoam.Dana andTerryneverbuy prepackagedvegetables that are covered in nonrecy-clable shrink-wrap.The women eschew products ike dryersheets and do not use a dryerin the warmermonths.Theyalso avoid many paper products (e.g., cups, plates, towels,napkins). Although the average consumer may engage insome of these activities, these women were perhapsmoreconsistent and intense in their avoidance.

Althoughsome of the refusals createhardship,our infor-mantsalso believe thatgoods such as pantyhose,junk food(e.g., Cheez Whiz), garbagedisposals, and paper productsare useless and easily forgone:"I always hear about thesenew gadgets like ... voice-activatedphone cards and stuffthat I don't really see. Stuff like that I don't really under-standwhy is that so great?" Terry).Similarly,Laurastates,"Whydo we buy so many things in oursociety that we justdon't really need?"When the women cannot do without aproduct, hey simply use less:

Forinstance, f I boughta can of environmentallyriendlycleanser hatcleanssinksand ubs,I mean wouldusea can ayear. clean he kitchen inkeverydaybutyou ustneeda tinysprinkle.t literallyasts me a year,samewithdishdetergent.Um,I probably uya 22 ouncebottleof dishdetergent year,maybewo ayear.AndI'll watch therpeoplewash heirdishesandI'll betyou theybuyoneevery wo weeks. Laura)Anotherreasonablealternativeo avoidance s to buy sec-ondhandgoods, as Terrystates:"All theclothesI buy, I buyat the thriftstore.PartlybecauseI am a cheapskateandpar-tiallybecause the clothesalreadyexist andtheyareperfectly

good stuff. I don't need to buy new ones, which make ademand for more to be made." Helen creates collage lightswitch covers from picturesin magazinesand newspapersand constructs clothing out of unused clothing: "Then Idecided I would use theties, like this is a tie, that's a tie, andthen I had some kerchiefs that I liked thatI never use any-more. So I decided I would use them.... So that's a recycledcoat that'sgettinga recycled lining."The needs of the earthplace limits on the women. Theyavoid certainproducts,use products paringly,andpurchasegoods secondhand if possible. In Pefialoza and Price's(1993) frameworkof resistance,radicalacts involve alteringproductmeaning, but the women here are more radical intheirdesire to avoid and limit marketplace olutions. These


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208 EcofeministAnalysisof EnvironmentallyensitiveWomenacts arepartof a largerpatternof living. For these women,living the ecological life means that natureplays a force inthe way they define themselves and their relations o others.The Ecological Life as a Force of ChangeChanging One's SelfIn the marketplace,merchants acilitateconsumption:con-venient retail locations and hours;one-stop shopping;lay-away plans; easy creditterms;shoppingby mail,television,or computer;and so forth. For those seeking to build anenvironmentally sensitive life, less scaffolding exists.Therefore,living the ecological life requires many acts ofcreating, building, and foraging.Terrychronicles her owntransformation rocess:

I rememberelevision hows thatI watchedwhenI was a kidthat tuckwithme.Thathadaneffect, ikeSwissFamilyRobin-sontypeshowswhere heydealtwith what heyneeded.Nor-mally, naturally. heyneededa wash basin.Well,there s agiantseashelldownby the shore o bring t upand set it up.Theyneeded o move water.Well therewas a springuphill.They got bamboopipesandtheyfit them ogether nd ran tdown.And thatattractedme....So, mechanization,echnologythatdid notrelyonflipping switchand hings hatdidencour-ageingenuityndcreativityimplyalwaysattracted e.The women become inventors. For example, Terrycre-atedher own grain grinder rom discardedpieces of machin-ery andpartsshe purchased econdhand thusnot contribut-ing to overall increases in production):This s one of mymad cientist rojects.For heseprojects]myminds occupiedmostof thetimeandeveryonce na whilemybodygetsto be occupied. t's an exercisebikethatI gotat theThriftStore.Couldn'tbeat theprice.Rightnow the wheel ismountedo a graingrindero thatyoucan sitcomfortablyndpedalandwith wopulleybelts twilltransfer hatyouareped-alingupto thewheelon thegrain rindero youcanbepouringthegrainnand twillbegrindingt into lourand twillbeveryeasyasopposedodoing tbyhandwhich s quite edious.

Terrysolved her grain-grindingproblemand makes home-made bread with the flour (again avoiding the purchaseofprocessed bread).Living the ecological life means that thewomen develop theircreativityand ingenuitywhen viablealternatives o theirproblemsdo not exist.Rachel's inventiveness is demonstratedn her knack forforaging. Foragingis a way of life for people living on theeconomic fringes of a wealthy, postindustrial ociety (HillandStamey 1990).However,Rachel and her husbanddo notforage for survival;they forage to sustain themselves with-out contributingto a consumeristsociety. Foraging com-bines thewily andscrappycraftinessof a thief with theorig-inality of an inventor (Ritson and Dobscha 2001). Here,Rachel describeswhy she engages in "dumpster iving":

We are kind of like scavengers;hat'sone wayof puttingt.That'sonethingyoucandointhiscountry. ecause his s sucha fatcountry,heres so much hatyoucan ive off thepickingsthat are] eft over.So that s onething hatwe do.A good instance of Rachel's ingenuity is found on herorganic farm. She and her husband constructed a passivesolar greenhouse using only materials found in people'sgarbage. The door to the greenhouse is from a bathroom

shower, and the wood is refuse from people's homeimprovement projects. Two-liter soda bottles that theyfoundin recyclingbinsaround own containwater hatheatsthe greenhouse.Ann uses dog food bags forgarbage bags andCathyusesjars for glasses. Rachel and her husbandmake their ownbeer, wine, andsoap.Robin andDana use trashas raw mate-rials for their children's school and artprojects:

Well,milkugswe reusealot;we use them orwateringansorstoragecans.Projects,ike, [myson] built a tornado....Weprobablyon'tendupthrowingwayanyof ourmilk ugsuntiltheyarepretty ilapidated.Robin)And[mydaughter's] encilholder, he madewithan old soupcan. Constructionaperaroundt, looks like an elephant....She'll do things ike thatallthe time. Beerbottleswith, ike awesternuyuniformn there rsomething.he'sreallygoodatreusing tuff.Shedoesn't ike to throw nything way. Cathy)Manyof the womenprecycle; hat s, they only buy goodsin packages that can be recycled efficiently. One of thewomen joined a group in order to buy in bulk. Althoughmany people reuse products,the intensitywith which thewomen reuse productsbears note. Laurasays, "I use alu-minum foil so manytimes thatI don't feel too guilty aboutthat and thenrecycle it when it's totally falling apart.I hadthe same roll of aluminum oil for about ten years."Simi-larly,Helenstates,"WhenI buy plastic bags, we wash themand reuse them.Don'tjust throw themout, which I used todo." She also used to buy padsof paperfor notes and lists;now she uses old papersthat were to be recycled. Cathyreuses envelopes by scratching out the old address andputtingin new ones.Although research exists on creativity in solving con-sumption-relatedproblems(Hirschman1980), the findingshere are consistent with Schau's(2000) suggestionthat con-sumer imagination s the transformation f goods into con-sumer identities. In this case, however, perhaps greatermanipulation,effort, and originality are needed to takerefuse and transform t into an object that affirms an eco-logical, conserver dentity.The women invent new solutionsand ways of consumingand disposingto affirm theirdeepconnection to nature. The domain of consumer creativityneeds to be expandedto include these inventionsthat occurthroughout he exchangeprocess.

Changing Feminine ConsumptionWomen are bombardedwith advertisementsdescribingtheessentialityof products o theirwell-being.Fromdeodorantto clothing, women are told that products can and doenhance the way they are regardedas women. In light oftheirrelationshipwith nature, he women in the studyhaverethought heir feminineconsumption.Instead of acceptingthe convenient, yet wasteful, femi-nine hygiene products (i.e., tampons and pads), Rachelemploys reusablecloths for hermenstruation:

Whydo we need that o muchwhenwhatwe reallyneed s away oconserve,o take areof ourplanet? hat eems o me obe most mportantnd t'shardormeto understandhy t isn'tto otherpeople. tdoesn't eem o be.Peoplewant o havecon-venience;heydon'twant o have to deal with theirmesses.


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Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 209They ustwantt allto[go away],agoodexampleorme s that,I don'tknow f this s goingto grossyouout ornot,but emi-nine hygiene productsike disposable emininenapkinsandtamponsndallthat-I don'tuse those. use clothsandI washthemout. I havebeendoing hat ora longtime and t's notabigdealto meanymore.justdon'teventhink wiceaboutt.So I go to the storeandI lookin the aislefullof all thatshit,wrappednplastic nd t reallykindof freaksme outthat his swhateverybodys usingand ts alljustgoing nto he andfill.

Rachel views humandisconnectionfromthe planet'shealthas synchronouswith the disconnectionpeople have fromtheir own personalwaste-whether bodilyor household.The women in this study also question feminine con-sumption in the area of housekeeping. Despite changingroles, housework s still generallyviewed as women's work(DeVault 1991).The goal of housework s to presenta pub-lic masterpieceof efficiency and cleanliness (Cowan 1987;DeVault 1987). This workof "keepinghouse"traditionallyrequiresthe use of chemical solutions to maintain he levelof cleanliness instilled in most women by their mothers.Cleaningofteninvolvescovering upnatureas manifestedbydirt,odors,bugs, andthe like (Gruen1993).Many of the women in this studysubstitutemorebenignalternatives e.g., bakingsoda, vinegar)for harsh andtoxiccleansers. Others,in a more radicalmove, challenge tradi-tional normsof cleanliness. Robinquestionsideasregardingcleanliness when she uses no pesticides:"Weputup with alot of spidersand ants."The women who were concernedabout water issues chose to shower less regularly.Laurastates, "Some people think they have to wash their sheetsevery week. Heck,we'refairlyclean when we get in them....Or my towels, I dry myself when I've just takena shower.Why would I have to wash my towel'?"Robin labels this asa new normof "letting hings go." She states,"LikeI'll usetoilet bowl cleaner not regularly,but when things start togrow."Cathysays:

I'll letthingsgo. Ihaven't leanedmytoiletallthe time.I'll letitgo. I havewell water ereand have ronbacteria,oIgetthisorangeill.And t is completely armless nd t doesn't mell.Imean here s absolutely o,youknow, t's not bad.So I'll letthatgo untilI can'tstandt,and henI squirtomeof that tuffon it andclean t, butratherhan verytime,causeevery imeyouclean t youhave o flush t, which s wastinga coupleofgallonsof water. o,Ijustdon'tdoit.And think,well, f some-body s botheredy myorangeoiletbowl,well,that's oobad.Robin and Cathy acknowledgethat this normcollides withtraditionalnorms,which is apparent rom the social disap-proval they receive from their mothers. Both Cathy andRobin's mothers are traditionalhousekeeperswith myriadchemicals in their arsenals.Here,Robin discusses hergrad-ual shift away from her mother'sstyle of cleaning:

Cleaning athroomsndbathtubsoncernedmerightaway hatI was,I used hesamechemicals asicallyhatmymother id,and t concernedme that wasgonnabebathingmychild n thebathtubhathadjust been cleanedwith Cloroxor Lysolorsomethingike that.So I tended o notcleanverymuch,ikefora longtimeIjustusedWindexbecause t waseasyandprettyinexpensivend t seemed o clean ustabout verything.Terry argues that manufacturers hould be proactive in

eliminatingchemicals from householdcleansers,thuscreat-

ing safer homes and a betterenvironment.Terrydiscussesthe contradictionsof bringing in hazardous materials toclean the home:Waita minute,household azardous aste, t's in thegrocerystore.It comes nto the town n a semi truck.Huge,big semitruck.Tons of stuff.And t's not a problem.t'sthere,on theshelf,on the backside f thebaby ood aisle. AndI cango inthereandI canbuyit. I canput t on the same ittleconveyorthings hatgoesacross helittle hing o the ittle aser cannersso that t cantellthepeoplewhat t is andkeep heir nventorystraight. ndI canbringt home,but heminute open tupandstartusingsomeof it, if I want o throw omeof it away, t'snow household azardous aste.Another traditionalareaof women's work is gift giving(Fischer and Arnould 1990; Sherry 1983). All the womenstated that heyreusewrappingpaper,even if it meansbeingteased by their friends and coworkers.Helen states,"But itjust seems like such a waste becausesome of it doesn't getwrinkled,soiled or whatever.You can press it." Likewise,Dana reuseswrappingpaper:"We save thingslike wrapping

paper and bags and ribbonsand all that wrappingsort ofstuff.... We reuse a lot of stuff like that."This activityenables the women to engage in gift giving while not creat-ing unnecessary waste. In addition, the women haverethoughtthe gifts they exchange. Dana used her gift as asocializing force (Otnes,Lowrey,and Kim 1993)when shegave her in-laws recycled note pads as stocking stuffers.These actions often evoke teasingfromfamily and friends:"Peopleused to laugh at me. In fact,one Christmas got abig box..., and it was everyone's papersacks ... because Ialways fold up my bag and take it back and use it again"(Helen).The women's tenacityin the face of this social dis-approval s additionalevidence of the strengthof theircon-nectionwith nature.Changing the CommunityA moderatelyhigh level of mainstream nvironmentalismcharacterizes he women's local community,butthe womenseek to extend these ideas. The most direct formof educa-tion and socialization occurs within the family. Margaretsuggests that f you cultivatesensitivityto the naturalworldin children,"theyaremorelikely to [protect heearth]whenthey grow up and are running their own households."Cathy's children did exactly what Margaret suggested:"Now my son is a biologist, andhe is going to be teachingbiology. So I passed it on. My daughteralso just loves ani-mals, nature.So I think that's an accomplishmentto mebecause I see so many kids who are unaware and carelessand I'm glad mine aren't."This socializationprimarilyookthe formof fosteringa deep love fornature n their children.In addition to socializing theirown families, the womenalso work for change in their local schools. Some of thewomen volunteerat the schools to presentmore alternativesto recyclingand a different view of nature.The women alsoengage in formal and informal adult education. Informalstrategiesinvolve teaching by example: "People say, 'Whyare you doing that?' and then you can explain..., and thatdoes have tremendousmaterialconsequences" Cathy).For-mal strategiesinvolve teaching structured lasses. In starkcontrast to the traditionalapproachthat more informationwill translate nto action (Cornwell and Schwepker 1995;


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210 EcofeministAnalysisof EnvironmentallyensitiveWomenPickett, Kangun, and Grove 1993), the women try todevelop people's connections to naturein hopes that thisapproachwill inspire change.Anotherway the women work to improvetheir commu-nities is by creating ecological spaces. Workspaces, forexample,raiseproblems or the women. Forexample,Lauraimplementeda program n which employees use both sidesof the paper n printingdrafts. Rachel instituteda compost-ing plan at the restaurantwhere she works and uses thewaste to enrichher farmland.The work of building ecological spaces began at homeand continued into the workplace,but it did not end there.The most challengingtask involved preserving public eco-logical spaces. In the eyes of the women, the ecologicalspaces over which they have least control-public land,national parks, and government-ownedland-are rapidlydeterioratingor disappearing.Helen describes the problem:

Imean,peopleare indinghat heywant ogooutandbeinthe,among reesand without lot of otherpeoplearound,withouthousesandeverything. nd hey ind hereareso fewplaces ogo that these placesare gettingcrowded.Like the nationalparks.Where reyougoing ogo tobe alone .. justbe inaweof thebeautyof the world,etc.? And therearegetting o befewerand ewerplaces ikethat,andI thinkpeoplearegettingupsetabouthat.Dana speaks of the loss of ecological space at the handsof human-madecatastrophes:"Justthinking about the oilspill. I think that was reallyupsetting.Feel a loss of the ani-mals and their habitat.... It's carelessness, stupid mistakesthat can have huge impacts.And createhuge losses."The women's communityaction extends into protectingthe environmentalhealth of public spaces. Robin and herfamily and Laura are actively involved in stream watch-

ing-adopting and caringfor a stretchof stream. And thewomen's concept of community extends to include thenational andglobal environmentalproblems:We believevery strongly hat thereare two very importantissues,most mportantssues oday, ndoneof themstheenvi-ronment ndthe otherone is overpopulation.ecausewe feelthat heoverpopulations affectinghe environmentegativelyand,of course,f theenvironmentoes,thennotonlydo wego,butall,youknow, heother pecies hatdepend nthatparticu-larenvironmentillbeaffected lso.(Helen)

An InterpretationThe conceptualizationof self that underliesthe relationshipbetween these women and natureis the mutual self; thisself-in-relation-to-nature s powerful and encompassing.The data indicate that this mutualself leads to nondominat-ing pathsand fosters a life of respectand constraint owardthe naturalworld.In whatBenjamin(1988) calls the "danceof interaction,"he "other"places constraintson the mutualself. Forexample, a parentseeks to have a child thrivebothfor the parent'ssake and for the child's sake. In much thesame way, the women seek to constrainthemselves so thatboth they and the earthcan flourish. The women live thisecological life, which includes questioning the taken-for-granted assumptions that underlie their daily decisions.Specifically, living the ecological life means makingcon-sumption a less central component of life. However, this

constrained onsumption s rarelya hardshipand is often thesource of satisfactionandliberation.The women enter the marketplacewhen they find bothproblems and opportunities. Marketplace perils includequestionable marketingtactics and wasteful practices,butsatisfaction is found in buying local organicproductsat aroadsidestand;purchasing hings secondhand;or finding aproductthat fits their strictcriteria or acquisition,use, anddisposal. Still, these women experience more frustrationwithin the marketplacehan within nature.Implications or RelevantStakeholdersImplications or MarketingManagersA challenge facing marketingmanagers s whether his con-sumer frustration an be translated nto empoweringacts. Itmay be in companies' enlightenedself-interest to respond(Murrayand Ozanne 1991). An ecologically friendly mar-ketplacewould include pricing that estimates the environ-mentalcosts, less packagingand the use of morerecyclablematerials, advertising that has environmentallyaccurateinformation, and bulk purchasing to reduce packaging.More radical forms of eco-marketswould encourage lessconsumption,local productsand markets,and systems ofbarter(e.g., Local Exchange Trading Systems, the Ecovil-lage) (see Gabriel andLang 1995).For marketers hat pursuethis unique yet growing seg-ment, establishing trust is a considerable obstacle. AsOttman(1997, p. 183, emphasis in original) states, "Thebacklash to marketers'questionablegreen-marketing ctiv-ities of the early 1990's taughtus a valuable lesson: con-sumers' environmental concerns cannot be exploited bymerely communicatingsuperficialproduct weaks andreg-ulatory-drivencorporate responses.... [I]t's not enough totalk green;companiesmust be green."A genuine greeningof internal operations and corporate culture requiresemployee participation; eassessment and improvementofmanufacturing rocesses;and a revision of marketingprac-tices such as labeling,packaging,andproductdevelopmentsthatreflectenvironmentalvalues.One way to constructtrustwith consumers is forcompa-nies to engage in environmentalaudits.Many companies,such as Texaco and Xerox, alreadyconduct external envi-ronmentalauditingandprovidedetailedreportsof the find-ings to their relevantstakeholders.These audits"assesscur-rent performance and set benchmarks upon which tomeasure progress" (Ottman 1997, p. 184). Similarly, thedemand for third-party reencertificationof wood productsis growing. This guaranteethat wood is grown and har-vested in sustainableways offers a strategic ool in the mar-ketplace.It is estimated hat between 16 and25 millionpeo-ple wouldpurchasecertified wood productsand arewillingto pay a price premium(Ozanne and Smith 1998; OzanneandVlosky 1997).Establishingconsumer relationshipsbased on trust haslong-termbenefits(Ganesan 1994). Forexample,the BodyShop weathered a public relations storm when some of itsenvironmentalclaims were attacked.Althoughstock pricesdipped,the clientele remained oyal to thecompanybecausea trusting relationship had been established (Sillanpaa1998).Two othercompaniespursuinga successful ecologi-


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Journalof PublicPolicy& Marketing 211cal approachare Tom's of Maine and Patagonia.Tom's ofMaine's mission is to treat all humans,animals,and naturewith respectanddignity.To achieve this goal, it seeks qual-ity employee relations,donatesprofitsto ecologically basedcharities,createsproductsusingthe mostbenign ingredientsand processes, and expresses its ethos in all its marketingcommunication (Briskin and Peppers 2001). Similarly,Patagoniadonates money to conservationgroups, reduceswaste and harmful chemicals in its manufacturingprocesses, uses recycled materialsand organically growncotton, reducessuppliers'waste, and has a no-growthstrat-egy (Reinhardt 1998; www.patagonia.com).All three ofthese companies offer productsand operationalpracticesthatareconsistent with the values of consumers,such as thewomen in this study,who view themselves as conservers.Implications for Environmental GroupsIf marketingpractitionersmuststruggleto build trustwithincustomer relationships,environmentalgroups stand in aunique position relative to the consumer-manufacturingdyad. Researchsuggests thatconsumers are most likely totrust environmentalgroups as a source of informationonenvironmental certification over independent third-partygroups or the government (Ozanne and Vlosky 1997).Therefore, environmentalgroups might develop environ-mental seals of approvalthat consumerscould use to sim-plify theirdecision-making strategies.This studyalso providesevidence for rethinking he wayenvironmental groups go about enacting their goals.Although consumer education plays an importantrole infostering social change, the message may need to beexpanded. Data on the alarming rates of deforestation,greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,or species extinctionmay not be the most effective message for translatingpub-lic environmental concern into action. Our results suggestthatworkingto build multifacetedrelationshipsamong peo-ple and naturemay fosterthe developmentof a mutualselfthat can constrainconsumptionand increase environmen-tally responsiblebehaviors. Insteadof focusing on increas-ing recycling and otherbehaviors,a more effective strategyfor change may be to amplify the importanceof natureinpeople's lives throughdirect and local contact.Therefore,environmental policy programs should stress hands-oninterventions(e.g., bringing urban children to ruralareas,watching and counting whales, erecting bluebird trails,monitoringstreams) hatilluminateecological diversityandthe interconnectednessof all thingson earth.Programs hatfoster the mutual self may have a ripplingeffect into otherfacets of consumers' everyday lives, includingacquisition,use, anddisposal of consumergoods.This self-in-relation-to-naturemay alreadyexist formanygroups in society. Forexample,the riverguides in ArnouldandPrice's (1993) studyexhibit the mutualself and tried tofoster this relationshipwith natureamong the participants.Thus, the task before environmentalgroupsmaybe to iden-tify people who already possess this relationship o nature,work toward the goal of raising consciousness about thisrelationship,and then use thisrelationship o motivate mod-eration in consumption. Recreational activities as wide-ranging as hiking, boating, golfing, gardening, and bikingall have varyingdegrees of contactwith nature.These pre-

existing relationships o naturemightbe amplified throughlocal demonstrationshatenablepeopleto experiencenaturedifferently.Consider he impactof transforming section ofa golf course with native plantings. From an economicstandpoint,cost savings mightbe realizedin termsof labor,water, pesticides, and fertilizers. However, environmentalbenefits may also be reaped,as native fauna inhabit thesenontraditionalgolfing spaces. In contrast to sterile mono-culture greens, native habitats would have greatercolor,movement (e.g., butterflies), and form. The results heresuggest that the firsthandexperience of naturaldiversitymightaffect people's behavior.Ideally, golfers mightapplythese firsthand nsightsto landscaping heir own homes andbusinesses.

Similarly,ourfindings suggest thatteachingchildren at ayoung age about the environment osters strongercommit-ment to theenvironmentn adult ife. Environmental roupsmightformpartnershipswith local schools and create com-munitygardensin local schoolyardsso that childrengrowup in dailycontact with nature,knowingfirsthand hejoy ofa diverse habitat.Implications for Regulatory AgenciesThe women in this studyexperience governmentregulationof naturevery differentlythan the averageconsumer. Forexample, manyof the informantsbelieved that the govern-ment's preservation trategies ackedvision andscope. Thenationalparkssystem, thoughprovidinga "natural" avenfor many touristsduringthe vacationmonths,stands as anexampleof our culture's disconnectionwith the natural hatexists withineverydaylife. Long lines to get into the parks,massiveovercrowdingof campsites,and excessive amountsof waste arecommonoccurrences n these destinationsthatare specifically constructedand designed for experiencingthe "greatoutdoors."Government egulators hould ook morecarefullyat howthey packageand promotenature.For manypeople, naturebecomes a destination rather han somethingthat exists intheireverydaylives. People's disconnectionfrom the localenvirons that surround their houses, towns, and adjacentcommunitieshas importantramifications. f local environsare perceivedas less exotic and majestic, they may also beperceived as less worthyof conservationefforts. Fosteringconnections to local environmentalwonders may deepencitizens' commitmentto preservingthose areas that mostaffect theireverydayqualityof life.Furthermore,egulatorsmust consider the weaknesses inthe current environmentalguidelines. The Federal TradeCommissionguidelinesof 1996 (cited in Ottman1997, pp.215-38) providea good startingpoint, but they are largelyoverlooked by organizations.Moreover, these guidelineshave shifted a disproportionatemountof the responsibilityto consumersby providingwaste disposal guidelines whileoften ignoring the wasteful manufacturingprocesses thatcontribute to environmentaldegradation.These guidelinesare useful for consumers who want to make minorchangesin their consumption patternsin order to shop their con-science. However, they provide little relief for the con-sumerswho, like the women in this study, seek to becomeconservers.Furthermore, lthoughthese guidelines relievethe burdenconsumers feel when shopping for household


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212 EcofeministAnalysisof EnvironmentallyensitiveWomengoods, they also reinforce the "consumedifferently"dis-coursethat contributes o the maintenanceof the highlevelsof consumptionthat are unique to North America yet aredevastating globally. More public discourse on consumingless and on alternatives o consumptionneeds to be encour-aged (OzanneandMurray1995).Forexample, many plasticcontainersthat are nationallymarketedhave "recycle" ymbols. However,collectionsitesare not always availableto customerswho buy these con-tainers.Therefore,to avoid deception, regulatorshave rec-ommended that the statement"Check to see if recyclingfacilities exist in your area" be included on the bottle'spackaging (Ottman 1997). This recommendationlays amajoronus of responsibilityon the consumer, who mustfirstactively separate his bottle fromothers n therecyclingbin,check with the local environmental egulationagencytodeterminewhethersuch a facilityexists, and then throw thebottleaway when no such facilitiesexist. Regulatorsneed toshift more responsibilityto manufacturers otjust to labeltheirproductsproperlybut also to produceproducts hatareeasily recyclablewithin a majorityof markets.Implications or ConsumersThe mutual self is the basis for an empoweringway of lifein which people question the role of consumptionin theirlives, dismantleunnecessary onsumption,and becomecon-servers.The notionof citizen as conserverprovidesa poten-tially powerfulmetaphor hat links theecological self to themarketplace Lakoff and Johnson 1980; Zaltman,LeMas-ters, and Heffring 1982). This citizen-as-conservermetaphorhighlightsanoppositionalmeaningto theconceptof consumer,which is a foundational oncept in the field ofmarketing.Contrary o the assumptionthatconsumptionin a mass-marketeconomy leads to a betterqualityof life, the womenin thisstudyhave foundfreedom n conserving. By enactingthe mutual self, they feel a greatersense of control andpower,becausethey areneitherdominatingnorbeing dom-inated. The women have transformed hemselves and thecommunitiesaroundthem, even if the steps they take aresmall--cleaning a stretchof stream,providinga child withan alternativeviewpoint,or becoming criticallyreflexive inthe household choices they make.These women view consuming as a regrettableactivityand only enter the marketplace reluctantly. Questionsremain:Are these women partof a growing trend,or arethey a marginal group? In the best-selling book, YourMoney or Your Life (Dominguez and Robin 1992), theexcessive focus on moneyandconsumption s cited as a pri-mary cause of the marketplacedependency in the UnitedStates and people's loss of control over their lives. In thevoluntary simplicity movement that is spreadingfrom itsorigins in the Pacific Northwest(Andrews 1997), the mes-sage offered is that if people discardunnecessarymaterialclutterfrom their lives, they will live more"inwardlyrich"lives (Elgin 1993, p. 25). Finally,Schor(1998) identifies thegrowing number of downshifters, upscale and educatedadults who have decided to downshiftfrom the fast-pacedlife of corporateAmerica to less stressfuljobs and sched-ules. Although downshiftersdo not reject consumptionoutof hand, they consume differently in order to live within

more modestmeans.They choose less demandingand eco-nomically rewarding obs, so they have more free time topursue family, creative, and naturalactivities. Schor esti-matesthatdownshiftersrepresentapproximately15%of theU.S. population.Thus, growing numbers of U.S. citizens are alreadychanging their"consuming" ifestyles to gain control overtheirchaotic lives. GabrielandLang(1995, p. 151) suggestthat this act may ultimatelybe the most radical form ofprotest:"Yet,it is these largelyinvisiblerebelswho may inthe long runprovidethe greater, f not the only challengetoconsumerism.By saying 'No,' they mayforcea questioningof the core assumptionsof consumerism and open up arangeof choices thatarecurrently nvisible."The womeninthis studyfind thatconsumingless makes themfeel greatercontrolover theirhomes and theirfamiliesandenables themto affirm the valuestheyhold dear.Althoughthisempower-ment occasionally brings hardships, complications, andsocially deviant behaviors,the women find satisfaction inenactingandmaintaining heirdeep connectionsto nature.

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an eco feminist analysis of environmentally sensitive women using qualitative methodology (jstor)

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