Modern Perspectives on Environmentalism: Ecocentrism and Technocentrism in the Nigerian Context

The evolution of environmentalism in the 21st century has taken an anthropocentric viewpoint despite global calls for instituting sustainable development which should provide the required equilibrium. Therefore, environmentalism in developing countries like Nigeria is quite an ethical dilemma between protecting the environment and meeting their developmental needs. While ecocentrism points out the relevance and intrinsic value of ecological entities, technocentrism tries to demonstrate that scientific and technological advancements will proffer the required solutions. Nevertheless, holistic global policy frameworks provide feasible institutional directions for individual countries to follow. Conclusively, humanity needs to harness the positives from both ecocentrism and technocentrism as no singular perspective can resolve environmental issues in entirety. The paper recommends more awareness creation, holistic environmental policy design and mechanisms to reduce the cost of ‘green’ technologies.