NS5 Lecture 1: Environmental Ethics

1. MODULE 1
PERCEPTION OF NATURE, WORLD VIEWS &
ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICSMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

2. HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE NATURE?
tmacfitness.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

3. HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE NATURE?
hdw.eweb4.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

4. HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE NATURE?
www.smashingmagazine.com
www.naportals.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

5. HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE NATURE?
www.smashingmagazine.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

6. MAJOR PERCEPTIONS OF
HUMANS TO NATURE
•Everything is connected!
•man is just a part of the bigger
picture
•Nature is fragile!
•nature has delicate balance
•Nature is durable!
•nature as a sturdy system
•Nature is capricious!
•nature is unpredictable www.thegreatillusion.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

7. ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
AND WORLD VIEWS
fye2011.blogspot.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

8. WHAT IS ETHICS?
“A discipline dealing with
what is good and bad,
with moral duty and
obligation” Marilen M. Parungao-Balolong

9. SUBSECTIONS OF ETHICS
Social Ethics
Ethics which guides human
behavior towards each other
Professional Ethics
Ethics which guides professionals
within its group and toward society
Environmental Ethics
Ethics which guides human behavior
towards the earth Marilen M. Parungao-Balolong

10. COMMON SCENARIO
HOW DO YOU APPROACH THE
FOLLOWING ISSUES RELATED TO
VALUES?!
1.Skin Color!
2.Gender!
3.Religion!
4.Education
www.intermix.org.ukMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

11. LETS’S TRY THE FOLLOWING?
WHAT IS YOUR REACTION?
•Some animals have more feelings than others, and
we should care for those with the most feelings first!
•I have mourned the loss of a plant!
•It is okay to pick just one flower in class!
•It is okay to pick just 50 flowers in classMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

12. LETS’S TRY THE FOLLOWING?
WHAT IS YOUR REACTION?
•I have secretly set insects free from the house so
they will not be killed!
•Would pick a bouquet of wild flowers, even if they
would die because of it!
•I would harm myself in defense of a forest
ecosystem (i.e. chaining myself to a tree)!
•The death of a household pet has been more
traumatizing than the death of humansMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

13. LETS’S TRY THE FOLLOWING?
WHAT IS YOUR REACTION?
•I have no problem with eating meat!
•Will eat meat, even if I don’t know how the animal
was treated during its life!
•I would kill a deer for a source of meat!
•I would kill a deer just to help control populationMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

14. LETS’S TRY THE FOLLOWING?
WHAT IS YOUR REACTION?
•I would kill a deer for a trophy!
•It is better to test cosmetics and medicine on non-
humans before humans than the other way around!
•The world would be better without mosquitoes!
•The world would be better without dogs and cats!
•The world would be better without humansMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

15. THE ENVIRONMENTAL
ETHICAL VALUE SYSTEM
•Biocentrism!
•Ecocentrism!
•Anthropocentrism
www.scienceclarified.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

16. BIOCENTRISM
•Humans are members of the Earth’s
community!
•All species are integral elements in a system of
interdependence!
•All organisms are centers of life, each pursuing
its own good!
•Humans are not inherently superior to other
living thingsMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

17. eco110rope.wordpress.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

18. ECOCENTRISM
•Expansion of biocentrism by including
abiotic components of the environment!
•It cares less about individual life forms but
emphasizes interaction between them and
fosters a system approachMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

19. eco110rope.wordpress.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

20. ANTHROPOCENTRISM
•Emphasizes human domination over nature
and views non-human environment as a
bundle of natural resources to be managed
and exploited for maximal human gain!
•The ecosystems have only instrumental
value, not intrinsic worthMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

21. eco110rope.wordpress.comMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

22. ONE THING IN COMMON…
All three value systems have
the human stewardship for
the natural world in
common, however they
differ sharply as to whom
they do itMarilen M. Parungao-Balolong

23. PROBLEMS OFTEN ARISE WITH
ANTHROPOCENTRIC VIEW…
Overpopulation
Preoccupation with
possession, power and
ambition Marilen M. Parungao-Balolong

24. HOW COULD IT WORK?
Adopt Ecocentric Values
Re-connect emotionally to the natural world
!
Live simply so others may simply live
!
Welcome opportunity to conserve the earth’s
resources Marilen M. Parungao-Balolong

25. ENVIRONMENTAL
JUSTICE in ETHICS
What Is Environmental Justice?

The EPAs Office of Environmental Justice defines Environmental
Justice as:

The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless
of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the
development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws,
regulations, and policies. Fair treatment means that no group of people,
including racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic group should bear a
disproportionate share of the negative environmental consequences
resulting from industrial, municipal, and commercial operations or the
execution of federal, state, local, and tribal programs and policies.
Marilen M. Parungao-Balolong