The Routledge Handbook of Eco-Phenomenology

The Routledge Handbook of Eco-Phenomenology is a comprehensive exploration of how we, as humans, interact with and perceive the natural world. Spanning seven thematic sections, this wide-ranging collection gathers contributions from leading scholars in philosophy, theology, anthropology, literature, music studies, and environmental thought. Together, over 30 chapters offer fresh perspectives on how we inhabit a more-than-human world.

At the heart of this volume is the dynamic intersection of phenomenology – a philosophical tradition attentive to embodied experience – and environmental ethics, inviting readers to rethink assumptions about activism, passivity, and ecological responsibility. Rather than advancing a unified doctrine, the chapters explore eco-phenomenology as a field of ongoing tension and dialogue, attentive to receptivity, perception, and the ethical demands of a world that exceeds us.

Key themes include re-evaluations of human embodiment in relation to nature, the role of perception in understanding our ecological entanglements, and cultural attitudes that challenge human exceptionalism. Literary explorations and reflections on music deepen the inquiry, showing how the arts open distinct pathways of attunement to the environment. The volume culminates in critical dialogues between eco-phenomenology and other intellectual traditions, including posthumanism, Indigenous cosmologies, and enactivism.

More than an academic survey, this handbook is an invitation to rethink environmental engagement as a mode of being rooted in care, vulnerability, and attentiveness to the Earth as our shared home. It is essential reading for scholars, researchers, and students in philosophy, environmental studies, anthropology, literature, and the arts.

Funding for this research and its open access publication was provided by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council under the Early Career Scheme (CUHK 24609822)