tsbd Türkiye Siyaset Bilimi Dergisi 2587-2346 2667-775X Yozgat Bozok Üniversitesi 10.59886/tsbder.1761621 Environment Policy Political Ecology Conflict Resolution Çevre Politikası Politik Ekoloji Uyuşmazlık Çözümü Doğanın ve İnsan Dışı Öznelliğin Temsili: Yeni Materyalizm, Posthümanizm ve Ontolojik Politikalardan Çıkarımlar The Representation of Nature and Nonhuman Agency: Insights From New Materialism, Posthumanism and Ontological Politics https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6726-7370 Demirci Muhammed Ramazan GİRESUN ÜNİVERSİTESİ 03 31 2026 9 1 53 68 08 09 2025 03 02 2026 Copyright © 2018, Türkiye Siyaset Bilimi Dergisi 2018 Türkiye Siyaset Bilimi Dergisi

Bu çalışma, modern siyaset teorisinde hâkim olan antropomerkezci temsil anlayışını sorgulayarak doğa ve insan dışı varlıkların siyasi özne olarak tanınabilirliğini incelemektedir. Kuramsal çerçevesini yeni materyalizm, posthümanizm ve ontolojik politikalardan alan araştırma, kavramsal analiz ile karşılaştırmalı vaka incelemelerini bir araya getirmektedir. Yeni Zelanda’daki Whanganui Nehri’nin yasal kişilik kazanması, Hindistan’da Ganj ve Yamuna nehirlerinin hukuki özne olarak tanınma girişimleri, Ekvador Anayasası’nda doğanın haklarının yer alması, Kolombiya’da Atrato Nehri ve Amazon Ormanları kararları ile ABD’deki yerel yönetim uygulamaları, insan–doğa ilişkisinin yeniden tanımlandığı örnekler olarak ele alınmaktadır. Bulgular, bu örneklerin ortak yönünün doğayı salt korunması gereken bir nesne değil, hak ve sorumluluk sahibi bir özne olarak konumlandırmak olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Çalışma, ilişkisel ontoloji, karşılıklılık ve çoktürlü vatandaşlık kavramlarını demokrasi teorisiyle ilişkilendirerek ekolojik demokrasinin normatif temellerini tartışmaktadır. Sonuç olarak makale, insan dışı varlıkların siyasal temsiline dair hem kuramsal hem de kurumsal düzeyde yeni açılımlar sunmakta ve demokratik topluluğun sınırlarını insan ötesine genişleten özgün bir çerçeve önermektedir.

This article explores the potential for acknowledging nature and nonhuman entities as political subjects by challenging the prevailing anthropocentric paradigm in contemporary representation theories. The study integrates conceptual analysis with comparative case studies, utilizing the theoretical frameworks of new materialism, posthumanism, and ontological politics. It explores diverse legal and political initiatives, such as the designation of the Whanganui River as a legal entity in New Zealand, the judicial efforts to confer personhood upon the Ganges and Yamuna rivers in India, the constitutional integration of the rights of nature in Ecuador, judicial decisions regarding the Atrato River and the Amazon Rainforest in Colombia, and local governance experiments in the United States. The findings reveal that these instances collectively strive to redefine nature not just as an entity to be protected but as a rights-bearing subject possessing political agency. The article connects relational ontology, reciprocity, and multispecies citizenship to modern democratic theory, contributing to normative discussions on ecological democracy and showcasing creative institutional frameworks for incorparating nonhuman perspectives into decision-making process. The study ultimately presents, an innovative paradigm that extends the political community’s parameters beyond the humanity, providing both theoretical profundity and practical guidance for reconsidering democracy amid ecological crisis.

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