Environmental theology pertains to "the God-environment relationship and divine expectations of human behavior in relation to the environment".
[1] The history of Environmental Theology is often regarded as a new age idea developed in the last one hundred years, however, evidence shows that its roots can be traced back to Saint Francis of Assisi.
Written by Dr. Lynn White Jr. in 1967, "The Historical Roots of our Ecological Crisis" remains one of the core pieces of literature to all environmental theologians.
In this infamous publication, Dr. Lynn White Jr. proposed the idea that the current ecological crisis can trace its roots back to the Bible and man's interpretation of Gods words.
[1] A definition for environmental theology was finally proposed in 2001 – "a term used to describe the God-environment relationship and divine expectations of human behavior in relation to the environment".
[1] Environmental theology generally must include an understanding of God's relationship to the cosmos or Creation, a cosmology.
[6] In fact the number of articles written regarding Environmental Theology increased substantially in the years after its publication.