Download Environmental World views - Bethpage Union Free School District

Environmental Worldviews, Ethics,
and Sustainability
Key Concepts
Environmental Worldviews
Ethical guidelines
Sustainable living
Worldviews
Environmental worldviews
Individual-centered worldview
Earth-centered worldview
Human-centered worldview
Life-centered worldview
Ecosystem-centered worldview
Environmental Worldviews
More holistic
More atomistic
Biosphere- or Earth-centered
Ecosystem-centered
Biocentric
(life-centered)
Anthropocentric
(human-centered)
Planetary
management
Stewardship
Environmental
wisdom
Self-centered
Instrumental
values play
bigger role
Intrinsic
values play
bigger role
Environmental Worldviews
Planetary Management
• As the planet’s most important
species, we are in charge of the
earth.
• Because of our ingenuity and
technology we will not run out of
resources.
• The potential for economic
growth is essentially unlimited.
• Our success depends on how
well we manage the earth’s
life-support systems mostly for
our benefit
Stewardship
• We are the planet’s most
important species but we have an
ethical responsibility to care for the
rest of nature.
• We will probably not run out of
resources, but they should not be
wasted.
• We should encourage
environmentally beneficial forms of
economic growth and discourage
environmentally harmful forms.
• Our success depends on how well
we manage the earth’s life-support
systems for our benefit and for the
rest of nature
Environmental Wisdom
• Nature exists for all species and
we are not in charge of the earth.
• Resources are limited, should
not be wasted, and are not all for
us.
• We should encourage earthsustaining forms of economic
growth and discourage earth
degrading forms.
• Our success depends on learning
how the earth sustains itself and
integrating such lessons from
nature into the ways we think and
act
Planetary Management Worldview
 Humans are the most important
species
 Manage Earth for our benefit
 Industrial-consumer societies
 Nature has instrumental value
Planetary Management: Variations
 No-problem school
 Free-market school
 Responsible planetary management
school
 Spaceship-Earth school
 Stewardship school
Life-Centered Worldviews
 Humans should not cause the
premature extinction of species
 Protect species endangered by human
activities
 Protect species because of their intrinsic
value
Biosphere
All species on earth
Nation
All animal species
Biodiversity
(Earth's genes, species,
and ecosystems)
Community
and friends
Ecosystems
All individuals
of an animal species
Family
All people
Self
Earth-Centered Worldviews
 Ecocentric worldview
 Emphasis on preserving functioning
ecosystems
 Humans are part of ecological
processes
Environmental Wisdom Worldview
 Humans are part of nature
 We are not in charge of the biosphere
 Live sustainably by mimicking nature
 Human success depends on learning how
Earth systems work and applying what
we learn
 Deep Ecology
The Truth
“… you're going to
find that many of the
truths we cling to…
depend greatly on
our own point of
view.”
Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars,
ROTJ
Ethical Principles
 Universalism
 Utilitarianism
 Consequentialism
 Relativism
 Rationalism
 Nihilism
Values
 Instrumental (utilitarian) value
 Intrinsic (inherent) value
 Anthropocentric worldview
 Biocentric worldview
Living More Sustainably
 Develop respect for all living things
 Understand nature and apply its lessons
 Understand our impacts on the biosphere
 Develop critical thinking skills
 Evaluate our worldviews and lifestyles
 Strive to make the world a better place
Living More Sustainably
Biosphere and
Ecosystems
Species and
Cultures
Individual
Responsibility
Help sustain the
earth’s natural
capital and
biodiversity
Avoid premature
extinction of any
species mostly by
protecting and
restoring its
habitat
Do not inflict
unnecessary
suffering or pain
on any animal
Do the least
possible
environmental
harm when altering
nature
Avoid premature
extinction of any
human culture
Use no more of
the earth’s
resources than
you need.
Solutions
Developing Environmentally
Sustainable Societies
Guidelines
Leave world in as good a shape as—or better
than—we found it
Strategies
Sustain biodiversity
Eliminate poverty
Do not degrade or deplete the earth's natural
capital, and live off the natural income it
provides
Develop eco-economies
Build sustainable communities
Copy nature
Take no more than we need
Do not reduce biodiversity
Try not to harm life, air, water, soil
Do not change the world's climate
Do not use renewable resources faster than
nature can replace them
Use sustainable agriculture
Depend more on locally available renewable
energy from the sun, wind, flowing water, and
sustainable biomass
Emphasize pollution prevention and waste
reduction
Do not waste matter and energy resources
Help maintain the earth's capacity for selfrepair
Recycle, reuse, and compost 60–80% of
matter resources
Do not overshoot the earth's carrying
capacity
Maintain a human population size such that
needs are met without threatening lifesupport systems
Repair past ecological damage
Emphasize ecological
restoration
Environmental Education
 Where do goods I consume come from?
 What do I know about this place
where I live?
 How am I connected to the Earth and
all other living things?
 What is my purpose and my responsibility
as a human being?
Environmental Revolutions
 Biodiversity protection
 Efficiency revolution
 Solar-hydrogen revolution
 Pollution protection
 Sufficiency revolution
 Demographic revolution
 Economic/political environmental revolution