After Exploitation

The ecological, economic, political, and social challenges of the twenty-first century call for innovative responses and concerted effort. The approach championed by this book takes a a “relational turn” that no longer sees humans as masters of the world, but rather integrates them into a complex network of relationships with the nonhuman world. The author, an internationally recognized scholar and author of numerous works on the history of philosophy, religion and natural science, develops an ethics for engaging with nature by accepting human and nonhuman beings as equals in their knowledge and relations to the world. Only in this way, he argues, can we break out of the “exploitation regimes” of patriarchy, capitalism, and colonialism that have brought the planet to the brink of collapse. The book formulates an agenda for a flourishing and respectful human relationship with the earth, in which scientific, artistic, and political-legal innovations come together consistently and programmatically. To reverse the colonial plundering of the planet, non-European and Indigenous traditions of world relations take on special significance, as do holistic European traditions, such as Romanticism, which reject human fantasies of domination and advocate a relational approach to the nonhuman world. The important role of art, literature, and spirituality in shaping a world ‘after exploitation’ is also conveyed in other elements of the book: von Stuckrad uses personal vignettes and poetry to create ways of communicating that go beyond factual information and support readers on their journey through the relational turn. Originally published in German in 2024 (Nach der Ausbeutung) this book has already proven itself essential reading for all those interested in explanations and solutions to climate change, human relationships with the more-than-human world, the role of art and literature in scientific and social transformation, and global and environmental justice in general.