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The Changing World Religion Map pp 273–295Cite as

Reshaping the Worldview: Case Studies of Faith Groups’ Approaches to a New Australian Land Ethic

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Abstract

This study highlights the praxis of various mainstream and alternative faith traditions in Australia with relation to environmental sustainability issues. A mixed methods approach (surveys, interviews, site visits) was used to investigate the levels of awareness and involvement of faith communities on issues including biodiversity protection, water conservation, energy efficiency, waste management and cultural property heritage. The aim is to highlight a theme of integration (or lack thereof) that arose out of the interviews which formed a critical part of the participants’ worldview. A brief overview of the relationships of attitudes and behaviors to environmental issues and the importance placed on values and worldviews is provided. Individuals from 40 faith groups participated in the study; individuals and case studies from 10 different groups are highlighted, from the conventional, mainstream Christian traditions to alternative Christian and Eastern traditions and the New Age movement. We found that mainstream traditions were making important attempts to integrate their worldview into appropriate environmental management strategies; but the impact was marginal overall. The lesser known and alternative traditions were at a significant leading edge of integrating praxis; yet, because these traditions are viewed with some suspicion, their efforts were marginalized by members of other faiths and the public. There are several points of convergence and divergence that faith traditions have with regard to environmental sustainability.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The list of authors is not exhaustive; Chaiklin (2011) refers to Schneider (2004) who provides some 15,000 references relating to one aspect of attitudinal research.

  2. 2.

    These categories are used in accordance with those used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2005).

  3. 3.

    Buddhism and Hinduism are notoriously difficult to categorize, due to some adherents proclaiming that Buddhism is not a religion, and Hinduism incorporating many conflicting belief systems.

  4. 4.

    Frescoes by Giotto, world-renowned painter of the fourteenth century, feature at the chapel of St Francis in Assisi.

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Acknowledgments

Firstly, the authors thank the School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the Environmental Sustainability Research Group at Deakin University for providing the funding to be able to undertake the study. We also thank the study participants for their valuable contributions. The study was undertaken in accordance with the requirements set by Deakin University’s Human Research Ethics Committee (project no. EC54-2009).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health, Nature and Sustainability Research Group, School of Health and Social Development, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC, 3125, Australia

    Justin Lawson

  2. Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC, 3125, Australia

    Kelly Miller & Geoff Wescott

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  1. Justin Lawson
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  2. Kelly Miller
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Correspondence to Justin Lawson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA

    Stanley D. Brunn

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Lawson, J., Miller, K., Wescott, G. (2015). Reshaping the Worldview: Case Studies of Faith Groups’ Approaches to a New Australian Land Ethic. In: Brunn, S. (eds) The Changing World Religion Map. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9376-6_14

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