Articles

For a Culture of Limits: Ecology, Politics, and Society beyond the Extractivist Model


Abstract


This essay critiques the narrow public focus on climate change, repositioning it as one of nine interconnected planetary crises. It argues the true driver of this systemic breakdown—from biodiversity loss to chemical pollution—is the dominant socio-economic model, which is extractivist and reliant on infinite growth. Adopting a political ecology framework, the paper contends that environmental degradation is not neutral but a political act that creates "winners and losers." Through case studies like Taranto and the Congo, it exposes the deep environmental injustices and socio-environmental conflicts inherent in this system. The analysis highlights the "metabolic rift" and the logic of "discard" , which devalues both nature and human beings. The essay concludes by calling for a fundamental shift towards a new "culture of limits" that redefines progress and well-being.

Keywords


Biodiversity, Political Ecology, Extractivist Model, Environmental Justice

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2423/i22394303v15Sp79

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