Environmental Ethics

Two Arguments against Biological Interests

by Aaron Simmons

Published in Environmental Ethics, Fall 2010

According to biocentrism, all living organisms have interests in the fulfillment of their biological functions and,... more According to biocentrism, all living organisms have interests in the fulfillment of their biological functions and, therefore, they are deserving of moral respect. I suggest there are two reasons why we ought to reject the idea of biological interests. First, it implies a metaphysically mysterious account of interests. Second, it implies that what is good for humans is partly determined by things external to themselves, independent of their capacities for desires. This conflicts with the ideal of self-direction, according to which it is desirable that how we ought to live is grounded in one's own capacity for desires. It is still an open possibility, however, that nonsentient life forms are morally considerable in the sense of having intrinsic value.

Do Animals Have an Interest in Continued Life? In Defense of a Desire-Based Approach

by Aaron Simmons

Published in Environmental Ethics, Winter 2009

Do we harm animals if we painlessly kill them? The idea that animals are harmed by death faces the challenge that... more Do we harm animals if we painlessly kill them? The idea that animals are harmed by death faces the challenge that animals lack self-awareness and, therefore, are incapable of valuing their own continued lives. Some people object that death harms animals because it forecloses their future opportunities for pleasure. However, this argument is problematic because it's unclear why animals' future opportunities have value for them if they are incapable of caring about them. A more promising argument holds that many animals have an interest in life insofar as they have certain enjoyments in life, where animals' enjoyments are best understood not merely as fleeting experiences but rather as dispositional desires that animals continue to have over time.

Animals, Predators, the Right to Life, and the Duty to Save Lives

by Aaron Simmons

Published in Ethics and the Environment, Spring 2009

One challenge to the idea that animals have a moral right to life claims that any such right would require us to... more One challenge to the idea that animals have a moral right to life claims that any such right would require us to intervene in the wild to prevent animals from being killed by predators. I argue that belief in an animal right to life does not commit us to supporting a program of predator-prey intervention. One common retort to the predator challenge contends that we are not required to save animals from predators because predators are not moral agents. This retort fails to overcome the predator challenge. I aim to articulate a more satisfactory argument explaining why we are not required to save wild prey from predators even if animals have a basic right to life.

Why Should We Care About Birds? By Carol P. Christ

by Feminism and Religion

Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project

I believe that we should we care about birds because it is right to do so.  If we do not, we will contribute to... more I believe that we should we care about birds because it is right to do so.  If we do not, we will contribute to extinction of species, and we will leave a diminished world to those who come after us. We must not give up hope that we can save the world for birds, for other wildlife, and for our children’s children.

On February 2, 2012, the International Day for Wetlands, the Greek government signed into law a Presidential Directive mandating protection of the small wetlands of the Greek islands.  There is no assurance that this law will be enforced.  There are still no measures in effect to protect most of the larger wetlands in Greece, even though this is required by the European law Natura 2000, which requires all of the countries in the European Union to protect bird and wildlife habitats.

Wilderness, Wasteland and Homeland: Comments on Drenthen

by Nathan Kowalsky

published in 'Ethical Perspectives,' 2007

Judging a place as wasteland or homeland is not a matter of objective fact, but a matter of perspective: presupposed... more Judging a place as wasteland or homeland is not a matter of objective fact, but a matter of perspective: presupposed values, knowledge through acquaintance, and comportment. Therefore, contra Martin Drenthen, the value of wilderness is a judgement call, not a conceptual necessity. I show this by first distinguishing wilderness from “wildness,” then culture from civilization, and finally, by situating Nietzsche’s teachings of the will to power in the context of a devalued world-view. Nevertheless, I agree with Drenthen that some understandings of wilderness are more appropriate than others. When wild nature is understood to be “good” in an axiologically transcendent sense, morality and humanness per se are not undermined, and the transcendence of wildness is still sufficiently immanent to avoid the drive to devalue it. Even thought such conceptualisation can be attained by civilized urbanites, it seems to be optimally actualised in life by non-civilised cultures. This leads to implications that are not easy for us to accept, but deserve our serious consideration nonetheless.

Material Ecocriticism: Materiality, Agency, and Models of Narrativity

by Serenella Iovino

Co-authored with Serpil Oppermann.
Published in Ecozon@: European Journal of Literature, Culture and Environment, Vol 3, No 1 (2012)

The proliferation of studies bearing on the intellectual movement known as the "new materialisms" evinces... more The proliferation of studies bearing on the intellectual movement known as the "new materialisms" evinces that a material turn is becoming an important paradigm in environmental humanities. Ranging from social and science studies, feminism, to anthropology, geography, environmental philosophies and animal studies, this approach is bringing innovative ways of considering matter and material relations that, coupled with reflections on agency, text, and narrativity, are going to impact ecocriticism in an unprecedented way.
In consideration of the relevance of this debate, we would like to draw for Ecozon@'s readers an introductory map of the new paradigm and introduce what can be called "material ecocriticism." We will illustrate what we consider to be its main features, situating them in the conceptual horizons of the new materialisms. From this genealogical sketch, we will examine the re-definitions of concepts like matter, agency, discursivity, and intentionality, with regard to their effects on ecocriticism and in terms of their ethical perspectives.

Sobre o bem de tudo e de todos: a conjunção impossível entre ambientalismo e libertação animal

by Cátia Faria

It is usually assumed that being an environmentalist entails upholding the good of everything and everyone. In thismore It is usually assumed that being an environmentalist entails upholding the good of everything and everyone. In this
paper though I will show how the holistic defense of everything implies disconsidering the suffering and the death of a
great number of individuals living in nature when the equilibrium of ecosystems or the preservation of biodiversity is at
stake. I will claim that from an anti-speciesist perspective we should reject environmentalism and defend the interests of
animals in nature, avoiding those ecological interventions which are harmful to animals and intervening in natural
processes in ways that can be beneficial to them, even if by doing so we may go against the conservation of natural
equilibrium or biodiversity, just as we do in the case of human beings. This means that if we are in support of what is
for the good of everything we can’t consistently be for the good of everyone and that if we claim, as we should, that
what is important is the good of everyone (animal liberationism) we can’t also be committed to the good of everything
(environmentalism).

Les debemos algo a los animales salvajes-Torres Aldave

by Mikel Torres Aldave

Biocultural Stewardship: The Application of Aldo Leopold's Land Ethic

by Dan Caston

April 2012 draft in review for publication in Journal  of Conservation and Society

Aldo Leopold’s land ethic is widely recognized as a key philosophical tenet for the development and evolution of... more Aldo Leopold’s land ethic is widely recognized as a key philosophical tenet for the development and evolution of environmental ethics.  Criticism of the application of the land ethic considers that it is interpreted to narrowly resulting in the removal of humans as part of the biotic community.  This further exacerbates the anthropocentric division that Leopold was attempting to reduce. As a solution, I pose the concept of biocultural stewardship, defined as an ethically based interaction with the natural and cultural environment that respects all members of both communities and values the co-evolutional aspect of their interaction.  This paper, then, is an exploration of Leopold’s land ethic and its more accurate application through biocultural stewardship.


Keywords:  biocultural stewardship, bioculturalism, stewardship, land ethic, Aldo Leopold, environmental ethics, cultural diversity, biodiversity, cultural diversity, culture

Is Conservation Biology a Scientifically Legitimate Discipline

by Sandra C. Neill

Co-authored with Mart R. Gross (University of Toronto). Presented at League for Innovation in the Community College STEMtech conference, Orlando FL 2010

The Ethical Experience of Nature: Aristotle and the Roots of Ecological Phenomenology

by Dylan Van Der Schyff

I demonstrate here how Aristotle’s teleological conception of nature has been largely misunderstood in the scientific... more I demonstrate here how Aristotle’s teleological conception of nature has been largely misunderstood in the scientific age and I consider what his view might offer us with regard to the environmental challenges we face in the 21st century. I suggest that in terms of coming to an ethical understanding of the creatures and things that constitute the ecosystem, Aristotle offers a welcome alternative to the rather instrumental conception of the natural world and low estimation of subjective experience our contemporary techno-scientific culture espouses. Among other things, I consider how his conception of orexis and eudaimonia (happiness or, as I prefer here, “the flourishing life”) might be extended to include the eco-system itself, thus allowing us to better understand the moral meaning of nature. I conclude with a look at the way in which modern phenomenology re-addresses the fundamental Greek concern with ontology, meaning and human authenticity. I consider the ways in which phenomenology reasserts the value of direct human experience that was so important to Aristotle; and I consider how this view, and that of Deep ecology, may help us to experience nature - and all of Being for that matter - in a more authentic, meaningful and altogether ethical light.

More Seminal Ethics Implications

by Mark Singer

Tandem works include: "Seminal Ethics," "Kant Concept Art," "Addendum - More Seminal Ethics Implications" - also on this site.

These implications are: moral, epistemology, love, happiness, time and space, psychological, art, education, medical, economic, war, capital punishment, and abortion.

"Addendum - More Seminal Ethics Implications" includes additional categories.

Review of David E. Cooper, 'Convergence with Nature: A Daoist Perspective'

by Ian James Kidd

Forthcoming in Environmental Values.

There is much to admire in Cooper’s elegant and insightful book. It offers a sustained account of how Daoism can help... more There is much to admire in Cooper’s elegant and insightful book. It offers a sustained account of how Daoism can help to inform our understanding of our own engagement with nature, and a way of achieving, or regaining, ‘convergence with nature’.

Foods and Gods

by Juliana Ossa

Tribal Religions and Our Wounded World

by Juliana Ossa

From Environmental Utopianism to Parochial Ecology: Communities of Place and the Politics of Sustainability

by Michael Northcott

Ian Angus interviews philosopher Arne Naess about nature, social justice and strategies for change

by Ian Angus

Free nature: Ian Angus interviews philosopher Arne Naess about nature, social justice and strategies for change: [1]
Angus, Ian. Alternatives Journal 23. 3 (Summer 1997): 18-21.

Ethnobiology as a Bridge between Science and Ethics: An Applied Paleozoological Perspective

by Steve Wolverton

In Ethnobiology. Edited by E. N. Anderson, D. Pearsall, E. Hunn, and N. Turner 2011, pp. 115-132. Wiley-Blackwell. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

In the face of the global environmental crisis, ethnobiologists find themselves in a potentially helpful position.... more In the face of the global environmental crisis, ethnobiologists find themselves in a potentially helpful position. Ethnobiology represents one of a few bridging disciplines between the philosophical foundations of environmental ethics and the scientific foundations of environmental science. Environmental philosophers study what ought to be done to address environmental problems at multiple spatial and temporal scales (Borgerhoff-Mulder and Coppolillo 2005; Rolston 1988), focusing on what it means to value nature, how humans do value and should go about valuing nature, and how these ethical footings should inform science and policy. Environmental science incorporates functional roles for many scientific disciplines (Miller 2007). Environmental science and environmental ethics share the goal of curbing the environmental crisis through communication among practitioners from different fields, appreciation of diverse perspectives, and incorporation of vested parties in policies and management decisions (Penn and Mysterud 2007a). Practitioners of ethnobiology communicate and interact across disciplinary, cultural, and temporal boundaries (Lepofsky 2009; Nabhan 2009).Within ethnobiology, applied zooarchaeology (or “applied paleozoology” to include paleontology)—the study of animal remains from archaeological and paleontological sites to provide baseline information relevant to restoration ecology and conservation biology—transcends temporal boundaries and offers an example of a bridging perspective that links ethics to science.

The Value of Endangered Species

by Ben Bradley

The Journal of Value Inquiry 35 (2001): 43-58.

Strong Sustainability as a Frame for Sustainability Communication

by Barbara Muraca

Ott, K.; Muraca, B.; Baatz, C. (2001): Strong Sustainability as a Frame for Sustainability Communication. In: Godemann, J,; Michelsen, G. (Eds): Sustainability Communication. Springer Netherlands, Isbn: 978-94-007-1697-1

The term sustainability has enjoyed great success, but at the cost of overextending its meaning to the point of... more The term sustainability has enjoyed great success, but at the cost of overextending its meaning to the point of trivialization. There is such an overabundance of definitions, concepts, models and political strategies that it is not clear anymore whether the terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’ still bear any meaning. The theory outlined in this chapter counters these tendencies by identifying more precisely the normative field that constitutes the very core of the sustainability concept, while avoiding a too narrow understanding. It points out the ethical presuppositions as well as the requirements for a theoretical framework of a consistent and discursively justified concept of sustainability. This rectifies the vagueness of the term as currently used and offers new possibilities for sustainability communication.