以行動者網絡理論探討 COVID-19 疫情爆發後心靈環保飲食文化之推廣–以小小樹食為例

Abstract

正是因為COVID-19新冠肺炎疫情的爆發，以及在短時間內席捲全球這樣一個特殊時空背景下，觸發了本研究主題的研究動機。人類社會經過工業革命、科技、金融等產業的創新發展，帶動消費主義盛行，對自然資源過度開發利用，造成生態破壞與氣候變遷的嚴峻生存環境後果。現代畜牧工業不僅是影響氣候變遷的重要因素之一，其作業流程也多不符人道，嚴重剝奪其他物種的生存條件與生命權。 法鼓山創辦人聖嚴法師認為僅針對自然資源和生態的環保觀念是不夠積極的，故把佛法淨化心靈的觀念與環保術語結合，使環保由個人心靈做起，才能真正落實全方位的環保運動，因而於1992年提出「心靈環保」作為法鼓山的核心理念。從「心靈環保」角度看地球及生存其上的萬物皆為生命共同體，人類為了自身安全，必要珍惜地球有限資源及尊重其他生命。 文化是人與環境互動的結果，是人類社會一切行為規範、價值、知識、信仰、傳統、習慣等的總稱。飲食文化包含從耕作飼養到烹調吃食、社交、傳統、習慣、理念、創意等等面向。研究者好奇，當人類面對COVID-19的警鐘、地球永續的嚴峻挑戰時，是否能從食衣住行中「食」的習慣開始調整，培養一種符合「心靈環保」，友善地球尊重生命的飲食文化？ 「小小樹食」餐飲事業以推廣彈性素食為理念，以製作葷食者也喜愛的創意蔬食料理為方法，其經營團隊努力實現「小小樹食」作為自體環保與自然環保實踐場域的目標。研究者以行動者網絡理論為基礎，藉由文獻探討、實地觀察、深度訪談與問卷調查等研究方法，詳細論述個案從行動者網絡理論視角，在品牌經營與理念實現的發展歷程中，所經歷的轉譯四階段–問題界定、利益賦予、徵召、以及動員的內容；並由蒐集的資料，分析個案作為推廣心靈環保飲食文化平台的功能與成效。由葷食答卷者佔比78%，葷食、素食者均超過8成認同個案的理念與方法並顛覆蔬食料理印象…等統計結果顯示，個案確實成功動員了葷食者成為其主要客源，形成倡導彈性素食理念的行動者網絡，提供友善地球、尊重生命的實踐場域，協助推廣符合「心靈環保」理念的飲食文化。 研究者建議政府相關部門提出更多宣導與措施，以利環保理念化為日常生活的行動與實踐。並建議有興趣的研究者可就佛法與行動者網絡理論的異同做後續學術探討。

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which swept the globe within a short period of time, helped inspire the topic of this research. Human society has undergone industrial revolutions, as well as more recent innovative leaps in the technological and financial fields. These facts have provided fuel for the spread of consumerism, over-exploitation of natural resources, thus causing severe environmental consequences such as damages to eco-systems and climate change. Industrialized stock farming nowadays is one of the main factors affecting climate change, and its way of operations, which is not in accord with humane standards, seriously deprives the animals of humane living conditions and their right to live. The founder of Dharma Drum Mountain, Master Sheng Yan, felt that focusing environmental protection issues on natural resources and ecology was not sufficient. He thereby combined the concept of purifying the mind with environmental protection terminology, suggesting that implementation of a fully comprehensive environmental protection movement should start from purifying everyone’s own mind. In 1992 he proposed spiritual environmentalism as the core concept of Dharma Drum Mountain. From the perspective of spiritual environmentalism, the earth and all habitants thereon are a community of life. For the sake of their own sustainability, human beings shall cherish the limited resources of the earth and respect other lives. Culture is the result of interactions between people and the environment, it is a general term for all behavioral norms, values, knowledges, beliefs, traditions, habits, etc. of a human society. Dietary culture may include aspects from farming, cooking to dining; socializing; traditions; habits; beliefs; creativity, and so on. This research aims to discuss this question: When faced with the alarm call of COVID- 19 pandemic and the severe challenges of the earth's sustainability, will human beings seek for a change of eating habit, which is one of the four major elements of life: eating, clothing, housing, and transportation? Will we cultivate a dietary culture that is more in conformity with the concept of spiritual environmentalism, that is, more earth friendly and respecting of life? With the concept of promoting a flexitarian diet and offering gourmet vegetarian dishes also appealing to non-vegetarians, the management team of "Little Tree Food" hopes to offer guests a place where they will achieve both self-cleansing of the body and environmental protection for the earth. Through research methods of literature discussions, field studies, in-depth interviews and a questionnaire survey, this research applies the actor-network theory (ANT) to discuss in detail how the research case goes through ANT’s four stages of translation, that is, problematization, interessement, enrollment, and mobilization, for their business development, brand management and concept implementation. From the data collected, this research analyzes the effectiveness of the research case as a platform for promoting a dietary culture that conforms with the concept of spiritual environmentalism. According to the statistical results, non-vegetarian respondents account for 78%. More than 80% of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian respondents agree with Little Tree Food’s efforts in serving gourmet vegetarian food that overturns the stereotypical impression of vegetarian cuisine. Therefore, the research concludes that Little Tree Food has successfully mobilized non-vegetarian main-stream dinners to become its main source of guests, thereby has formed an actor network that helps promote the concept of flexitarian diet. Little Tree Food can indeed be considered as a platform capable of accommodating the practice of eating more earth friendly and life respecting. It thus helps to promote a dietary culture that is more in conformity with the concept of spiritual environmentalism. This research suggests that relevant ministries in the government shall put forward policies that educate the public for better understanding of sustainability related issues for actions. It also suggests that it may be of further interest to conduct comparative studies on ANT and Buddhist concepts given that this research has found some interesting parallels between the two perspectives.