Week Nine - Environmental Ethics

 

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Environmental ethics is a recently-initiated branch of environmental studies which suggests that human beings include and consider the natural world and its non-human inhabitants when studying ethics. This call for environmental inclusion and consideration began in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the historian Lynn Townsend White and the ecologist Garrett Hardins published two incredibly influential scientific papers, "The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis" and "The Tragedy of the Commons", respectively. Whereas White traced the current environmental issues back throughout history, Hardin explained that when multiple individuals act in their own self-interests, a shared, limited resource will ultimately be depleted. These two articles sparked the fire that began to, and continues to, heat many of the arguments revolving around various environmental issues; because the natural world and its non-human inhabitants are now being included and considered in these arguments, so many more factors must be incorporated into the issues' solutions. Oftentimes, what's ethically best for human beings and what's ethically best for the environment intertwine or are, in certain cases, even the same, though it may not always be so apparent.

Environmental ethics is an important factor in the success of our group project because it is (for the most part) what we are using to appeal to the students, faculty, and administrators of Rowan University. I believe that the main reason as to why people will be willing to help us clean up, improve upon, and protect the environment of the campus is because it is "the right thing to do", and at the core of ourselves, that is what we are as a species: right, or good, rather. If we can show our classmates, professors, and administrators what the campus currently looks and is like for wildlife, specifically birds, compared to what it could look and be like, I have a feeling that a majority of those people will be eager to help us create a "friendlier" environment in whatever way he or she can.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Environmental Ethics ü

• Harman, Jay R., and Alan F. Arbogast. "Environmental Ethics and Coastal Dunes in Western Lower Michigan: Developing a Rationale for Ecosystem Preservation." Annals of the Association of American Geographers 94.1 (2004): 23-36. Association of American Geographers. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

Article Summary: In their article, "Environmental Ethics and Coastal Dunes in Western Lower Michigan: Developing a Rationale for Ecosystem Preservation", Jay R. Harman and Alan F. Arbogast explain that the management of the shoreline sand dunes of the Great Lakes has long been argued over; some people believe that the shores could act as an important resource, while others state that the shores must be protected because of their "geomorphic uniqueness". This "geomorphic uniqueness" argument stems from older research, which suggested that the sand dunes were fossil land features. Unfortunately, the wind has gone out of the sails of the latter's argument because it was recently proven that the sand dunes' are not fossil land features. The debate, however, continues. What Harman and Arbogast propose as a solution is rather simple: those arguing against the dunes' preservation ought to "[respect] what others value in respect for them", meaning that they agree to preserve them out of respect to those who want to preserve them, even though they don't necessarily agree.

• Whitford, Andrew B., and Karen Wong. "Political and Social Foundations for Environmental Sustainability." Political Research Quarterly 62.1 (2009): 190-204. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.
• Rice, Gillian. "Pro-Environmental Behavior in Egypt: Is There a Role for Islamic Environmental Ethics?" Journal of Business Ethics 65.4 (2006): 373-390. Springer. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://iseethics.org/

The website of the International Society for Environmental Ethics (ISEE):

"...ISEE has striven to advance research and education in the field of environmental ethics and philosophy, and to promote appropriate human use, respect, conservation, preservation, and understanding of the natural world..."

http://daphne.palomar.edu/calenvironment/ethics.htm

Palomar College's Internet article on environment ethics.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/what-is-environmental-ethics.html

Buzzle.com's ("Intelligent Life on the web") Internet article on environmental ethics.

http://ecoethics.net/bib/

Harvard University's environmental ethics website, which lists countless bibliographies of articles about the subject.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_ethics

The Wikipedia article on environmental ethics.