Nature as a Space for Gender Relation, Not a Commodity: The Re-ontologization of Indigenous Communities' Communal Sovereignty in Ecosocialism
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Keywords

Ecosocialism
Indigenous Communities
Indigenous Women
Indigenous Men
Reontologisation

How to Cite

Nature as a Space for Gender Relation, Not a Commodity: The Re-ontologization of Indigenous Communities’ Communal Sovereignty in Ecosocialism. (2026). Proceedings of the Bali Sruti Conference, 1(1), 282-296. https://doi.org/10.68290/bgsf.v1i1.32

Abstract

This conceptual study reinterprets nature as a space of gender relations rather than a commodity and examines how ecosocialism can support the communal sovereignty of indigenous communities. The study uses philosophical and conceptual analysis to compare ontological claims about nature, examine the gendered consequences of commodification, critically review ecosocialist and ecofeminist arguments, and formulate a re-ontologization of communal sovereignty. The analysis shows that capitalist commodification separates indigenous communities from relational ways of life, disrupts gendered divisions of labour, and disproportionately disadvantages indigenous women. Ecosocialism, strengthened by ecofeminism and relational ontology, offers a counter-framework based on communal ownership, ecological justice, and reciprocal human–nature relations. The study is conceptual and does not include empirical or field-based evidence, which limits the generalisability of its claims. The study contributes to ecosocialist, ecofeminist, indigenous, and environmental philosophy by clarifying the gendered foundations of communal sovereignty. Its novelty lies in proposing re-ontologization as a gender-sensitive epistemological-political strategy that resists both the commodification of nature and the homogenisation of indigenous communities.

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