BRIN Researcher Says Ecotheology Offers Solution for Dual Post-Disaster Trauma
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Yumasdaleni, a researcher at the Centre for Religious and Belief Studies within the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), has stated that an ecotheological approach can serve as an integrative solution for addressing dual post-disaster trauma, encompassing both ecological damage and the psychosocial wounds of affected communities.
Speaking at an online discussion in Jakarta on Friday entitled “Eco-Theological Resilience and Citizen Science Post-Disaster,” she explained that prevailing development paradigms have tended to be anthropocentric, positioning humans as the central force dominating nature.
“We are looking at this anthropocentric paradigm alongside a theocentric one, meaning theocentrism is grounded in religion and ecology,” said Yumasdaleni.
Yumasdaleni noted that this paradigm shift is essential so that humans no longer position themselves as the sole masters of the earth, but rather as part of the balance between theological and ecological dimensions.
Excessive exploitation, she continued, has given rise to deforestation, pollution, uncontrolled mining, and climate change, the effects of which are still being felt today.
“Indirectly, this also inflicts violence upon human beings themselves,” she said.
Yumasdaleni explained that disasters do not only trigger physical destruction but also cause emotional, spiritual, and social trauma. The loss of homes, livelihoods, and community symbols such as places of worship compounds the sense of loss.
“The terms that have emerged are solastalgia and ecological grief — two phenomena arising from ecological changes that affect human identity and spirituality, requiring both ecological restoration and psychosocial recovery,” she said.
She explained that solastalgia refers to emotional suffering caused by destructive environmental change.
“The concept of solastalgia is that of emotional and existential distress caused by destructive environmental change, creating a longing for home even though the individual is still physically present there,” Yumasdaleni elaborated.
In this context, Yumasdaleni stressed the need for integrated interventions, including nature-based therapy, ecological restoration, and the recovery of ritual spaces that hold symbolic meaning for communities.
Recovery cannot be achieved through physical measures alone but must also address the spiritual dimension and collective identity of communities.
“Ecotheology is a holistic practice that integrates human trauma recovery with ecosystem restoration,” she said.
This approach, Yumasdaleni stated, affirms the interconnectedness of humanity, God, and nature as a unified whole, bound together by a moral responsibility to safeguard environmental sustainability.