Spinoza, ecology and international law: radical naturalism in the face of the Anthropocene (1st)

This text addresses the use of Benedict Spinoza's philosophy in current attempts to elaborate an ecological basis for international environmental law. Because the question of environmental protection has not been satisfactory resolved, the legal debate concerning our responsibility for the environment has - as evidenced in the recent UN report series 'Harmony with Nature' - come to invite calls for a new eco-centric, rather than anthropocentric, legal paradigm.

In this respect, Spinoza appears as a key figure. Addressing the contention that Spinoza's ethics might provide a useful source for developing a new, eco-centred framework for environmental law, this book elaborates a more nuanced understanding of Spinoza's philosophy.