Making Loss Sacred: Recovering the Value of Environmental Sacrifice

Abstract

Abstract

Narratives of sacrifice are widespread in environmental discourses and frequently depicted negatively. Conversely, within religious thought, sacrifice is a positive and constructive act. In this chapter we seek to recapture this positive power of sacrifice for environmental action. We do this by thinking through two disparate STS studies we had conducted previously, Caroline McCalman’s study of “everyday environmentalists” and Anna Krzywoszynska’s ethnographic work with no-tillage farmers, both in the UK. By exploring the concept of sacrifice in a manner inclusive of the religious meanings, our contribution brings out a deeper understanding of the role of community in the “making-sacred” of sacrifice. We argue that the secularised, individualised framing of environmental sacrifice commonly found in environmental narratives today is not fit for purpose, and that a religious understanding of sacrifice illuminates the need for a communal framing. Through this productive application of religious thought to our previous STS research, we show the richness available to those who make room for the sacred when discussing encounters with scientific knowledge and innovations.