Paul Burkett, the prolific author on Marxist ecology, sadly died on 7 January 2024. He was aged 67 and had sudden complications from acute myeloid leukaemia. He began teaching at Syracuse University, then worked at the University of Miami and at Indiana State University for more than twenty years. He retired in 2020.
At the turn of the century Burkett made several seminal contributions to the revival of Marxist ecology. His book Marx and Nature: A Red And Green Perspective (1999) re-examined Marx’s works in light of ecological questions. He made good use of the Marx and Engels Collected Works, published since the mid-1970s, to set out a far more nuanced and well sourced account of Marx’s ecological thinking.
Burkett also engaged directly with critics of Marx, including other Marxists. He was able to convince Ted Benton, probably the foremost critic at the time, that Marx had much to offer on ecology. He also reviewed other crucial literature, such as Alfred Schmidt and Jonathan Hughes, in journals such as Organization and Environment and Historical Materialism. Burkett was a combative defender of Marx against the green eco-socialists around Capitalism Nature Socialism journal.
Marxist
Burkett’s book Marxism and Ecological Economics (2006) engaged directly with the works of key ecological economists. He argued for a red-green alliance, but very much on Marxist terms. Burkett took on their arguments against Marx and broke new ground in connecting Marx’s metabolic theory to modern conceptions such as sustainability. In collaboration with John Bellamy Foster, Burkett showed how Marx had corresponded with the energetic economist Sergei Podolinsky, providing both helpful comments and a trenchant critique.
Burkett was supportive of other scholars. He was kind enough to provide me with detailed comments on my own climate change book and to give it a public endorsement. Burkett admired Hal Draper’s books, modelling Marx and Nature on this approach. He understood the importance of the class-based approach to ecology and the necessity for trade unions to play a key role in these battles. Burkett’s writing on ecology and political economy deserves to be read and discussed by the new global generation of eco-scholars and activists. We should remember Paul Burkett’s contributions and mark his passing by carrying on the struggle for socialism.