ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 in the Routledge Handbook of Ecocultural Identity illuminates the hegemonic character of everyday ecocultural interactions, which function in Western/ized settings predominantly to restrict both individuals and societies to ecologically distanced positions and to mask biospheric connection and immersion. Milstein traces the boundaries of dominant anthropocentric ecocultural identity by identifying ways ecocentric expressions are patrolled and disciplined in everyday communication. Milstein explores ways individuals express connection with the more-than-human world, ranging from worms to whales, and ways these expressions are marked by others, and constrained via ridicule or labeling. The author also illustrates ways individuals mitigate their own expressions of ecocentric identity via self-labeling, self-censoring, and marking their own boundary-crossing. In addition, Milstein illuminates rare unmitigated displays of ecocentric identity, in which shared regenerative ways of being are co-constructed, validated, and strengthened. As a practical outcome of this study, the author sets out research-grounded methods for transforming ecocultural identity in these times.
