The path down to green liberalism

The debate over the compatibility of environmentalism and liberalism has primarily been defined by the challenge of bringing liberalism 'up' to the moral level required to deal with environmental issues. For instance, it is argued that liberalism must become 'more liberal' in order to enshrine hitherto unrecognised rights of non-human nature into the liberal order. I will argue, however, that those who reject the possibility of 'greening' liberalism have misinterpreted the phenomenon of actually-existing-liberalism, and uncritically accepted its propagandistic self-description. I show that the realistic compatibility of environmentalism with liberalism lies with the latter's ability to act in ways generally considered illiberal, rather than with its ability to become more liberal, or come 'up' to the moral level of environmentalism. It can instead be a moral path 'down' by which liberalism can become 'green'.