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Environmental Ethics and Economics: Values and Choices

Culture, Worldview, and the Environment

& Environmental Ethics

AP Environmental Science

Mr. GrantLesson 6

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Objectives:• Define the term anthropocentrism.

• Characterize the influences of culture and worldview on the choices people make.

• Outline the nature, evolution, and expansion of environmental ethics in Western cultures.

• Compare the major approaches in environmental ethics.

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Define the term anthropocentrism.

A human-centered view of our relationship with the environment.

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Characterize the influences of culture and worldview on the choices people make.

A person’s culture influences his or hers worldview. Factors such as religion and political ideology are especially influential.

Ethics and economics involve valuesCulture and worldviewWorldviews differ among people• Well-meaning people can support or oppose an action• Some support uranium mines

o Jobs, income, energy, economic growth• Opponents see other impacts

o Destroyed land, pollution, radiation poisoningo Community disruption, substance abuse, crime,

etc.

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Characterize the influences of culture and worldview on the choices people make.

A person’s culture influences his or hers worldview. Factors such as religion and political ideology are especially influential.

Culture and worldviews affect perceptionsMany factors shape worldviews• Religious and spiritual beliefs shape our worldview and

perception of the environment• Community experiences shape attitudes• Political ideology: government’s role in protecting the

environment• Economics• Vested interest = the strong interest of an individual in

the outcome of a decision o Results in gain or loss for that individual

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Outline the nature, evolution, and expansion of environmental ethics in Western cultures.Environmental ethics applies ethical standards to relationship between people and aspects of their environments. Ethics = the study of good and bad, right and

wrong… a prescriptive pursuit: it tells us how we ought to behave

Relativists = ethics varies with social context Universalists = right and wrong remains the

same across cultures and situations Environmental ethics = application of ethical

standards to relationships between human and nonhuman entities

Hard to resolve: it depends on the person’s ethical standards and domain of ethical concern

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Outline the nature, evolution, and expansion of environmental ethics in Western cultures.

Our society’s domain of ethical concern has been expanding, such that we have granted more and more entities ethical consideration.Anthropocentrism values humans above all else, whereas biocentrism values all life and egocentrism values ecological systems.

Three ethical perspectives…Anthropocentrism = only humans have intrinsic valueBiocentrism = some nonhuman life has intrinsic valueEcocentrism = whole ecological systems have value… a holistic perspective that preserves connections

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Compare the major approaches in environmental ethics.

The preservation ethic (preserving natural system intact) and the conservation ethic (promoting responsible longer use of resources) have guided branches of the environmental movement.

• Perservation ethic - unspoiled nature should be protected for its own intrinsic value.o John Muir had an ecocentric

viewpoint… he was a tireless advocate for wilderness preservation

• Conservation ethic - Use natural resources wisely for the greatest good for the most people (the utilitarian standard)o Gifford Pinchot had an

anthropocentric viewpoint

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Compare the major approaches in environmental ethics.

The land ethic philosophy of Aldo Leopold is viewed as centrally important to modern environmental ethics.

• Land ethic - Healthy ecological systems depend on protecting all

parts

– Aldo Leopold believed the land ethic changes the role of people from conquerors of the land to citizens of it

• The land ethic can help guide decision making

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Compare the major approaches in environmental ethics.

Environmental justice seeks equal treatment for people of all races and income levels.

• The poor and minorities are exposed to more pollution, hazards, and environmental degradation

North Carolina wanted to put a toxic waste site in the county with the highest percentage of African Americans

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Environmental justice and Native Americans• From 1948 to the 1960s, neither the U.S. government nor

industry provided Navajo miners with information or protection

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Compare the major approaches in environmental ethics.

Environmental justice is also an international issue between developed and developing nations.

• Wealthy nations impose pollution on poorer nations- Hazardous waste is expensive to dispose of

• Companies pay poor nations to take the waste- It is dumped illegally- It may be falsely labeled as harmless or beneficial- Workers are uninformed or unprotected

• The Basel Convention prohibits international export of waste- But illegal trade and dumping continue- The United States has not ratified this treaty