Where are you at? Re-engaging bioregional ideas and what they offer geography

Abstract

Bioregionalism was popularised in the 1970s back to the land movement. It is distinguished from other forms of environmentalism through the spatial imaginary of a bioregion as the scale for environmental action and regenerative living. Bioregional thought has been widely critiqued by geographers for its potentially deterministic understanding of the relationship between place and culture. This paper argues that bioregionalism is less of a homogenous movement and more of a discursive forum that houses a spectrum of perspectives. We identify three key tendencies within bioregional thought, an ontological tendency, a critical tendency and a processual tendency. Each tendency is rooted in different spatial imaginaries, and generates different axiologies and strategies of change. We argue that contemporary processual tendencies in bioregional thought are productive for geographers considering questions of (1) materiality, agency and place, (2) politics, ethics and place, and (3) acting in place for urgent and ethical change.