McGowan & Pinn/Everyday Humanism, 9. From a Human-Centered to a Life-Centered Humanism

In this chapter, we argue the current ecological crisis is foremost a crisis of values. In order to address this crisis, we suggest worldviews, both religious and non-religious, including humanism, help us understand the emergence of the crisis, as well as being a value basis by means of which to redress the situation. We briefly delve into the history of humanism and conclude that humanists roots within the Renaissance, Enlightenment and Modernity offer an explanation as to why humanists seem to have neglected to respond in the name of humanism to the global ecological crisis. Subsequently, we will advocate a shift from a human-centered to a life-centered humanist worldview and we explore new possibilities for knowledge, passion and action as three dimensions of this shift.