Bryant & Farrell: Conservatism, the Far Right, and the Environment

In Conservatism, the Far Right, and the Environment, Jesse Callahan Bryant and Justin Farrell (both Environment, Yale University) review and integrate sociological research with multidisciplinary literature on conservative and far-right environmental thought.  

The authors argue mainstream sociology has neglected the natural environment. This neglect has resulted in the natural environment being theoretically unintegrated within sociology. Conversely, conservatism has received disproportionate theoretical attention but remains underdeveloped compared to its cultural and political influences. For example, most conservative thought research has focused on anti-regulatory and anti-science positions.  

In this article, the authors bridge the gap between conservatism and the environment by employing a cultural and historical-sociological approach to identify three cultural commitments in conservative thought – naturalism, organicism, and pastoralism. These commitments form an intellectual tradition and cohesive moral order concerning nature and society. 

Naturalism is the idea that human society is subject to a natural order. One way naturalism appears in practice is through paternalistic and hierarchical approaches – such as a father in charge of the family. Organicism is the view that society institutions act as a living organism, like a unified ecosystem. In effect, this is an understanding that social health is a primary moral good. Finally, pastoralism is a framework of rural lifestyle as in opposition to the urban, globally connected world.  

The authors use these three cultural commitments to analyze literature on historical and contemporary conservative and environmental thought. This analysis reflects the disparate character of past scholarly efforts in sociology with conservatism and the environment. Bryant and Farrell hope this review will serve as a roadmap for more robust research in this increasingly important field.