ENVIRONMENTAL WORLDVIEWS,
ETHICS AND SUSTAINABILITY
Living in the Environment
Chapter 28
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Core Case Study:
Biosphere 2 - A Lesson in Humility
• Biosphere 2, was designed to be self sustaining
life-supporting system for eight people sealed in
the facility in 1991. The experiment failed
because of a breakdown in its nutrient cycling
Chapter Overview Questions
•What philosophies and religions can
help us decide how to value life and
distinguish between right and wrong
environmental behavior?
•What human-centered environmental
worldviews guide most industrial
societies?
•What are some life-centered or
earth-centered environmental
worldviews?
•How can we live more sustainably?
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Environmental worldviews are how
people think
How you think the world works.
What you believe your environmental
role in the world should be.
What you believe is right and wrong
environmental behavior.
(environmental ethics)
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Types of Environmental
World Views
Divided into 2 groups
• Individual-centered(Atomistic)
- Human-centered
• Earth-centered(Holistic)
-Life-centered
or some combination of both
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Life forms have instrumental value or intrinsic value.
Instrumental, or utilitarian, values life forms because
they are useful to the biosphere or us.
i.e. preserving natural capital of biodiversity
Intrinsic, or inherent, values life forms because they
merely exist.
Anthropocentric instrumental values view life forms
as valuable only if they are useful to humans. Humans
have intrinsic value, rest of nature has instrumental
value.
Biocentric intrinsic values view life forms as valuable
because they exist. All species have instrumental
value.
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Human-centered views
Human to be the most important species and stewards of the
earth.
1. Planetary management worldview :humans are the dominant
species. View of most people in industrial societies.
•
Humans should manage the earth.
•
All other life forms have some sort of
instrumental value.
•
Problems can be solved with more economic
growth and development, and better management
and technology.
•
The planet should have a free-market global
economy.
2. Stewardship worldview(variation of environmental world
view): humans have an ethical responsibility to care for the
earth.
•
Humans should make the world better.
•
Humans should pay back our debt to the
earth by leaving it better than before.
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28-2 Life-Centered and Earth-Centered Worldviews
A. Doubts that we can effectively manage Earth because of our lack of
knowledge. Ex. Biosphere project
B. Humans have an ethical responsibility to avoid causing the
premature extinction of species. Unique genetic info./economic
good
Actively protect species endangered by human activities
Some believe all animal species have a right to survive
1. Environmental wisdom worldview: humans are not in charge and
should study the history of the earth to determine how it has
maintained itself.
2. Deep ecology worldview: obligations of humans to all life forms
and not reduce the interdependence and diversity of life.
3. Ecofeminist environmental worldview: women should be equal to
men in the human quest to develop more sustainable societies.
Environmental degradation can be slowed by using images of
catastrophe and economic and ecologic collapse.
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Environmental Wisdom Worldview
• Humans are part of nature
• There is not always more
• Some types of technology and
economic growth are good
• Human success depends on
learning how Earth systems work
and applying what we learn
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28.3 Solutions: Living More Sustainably
Environmentally literate citizens are
needed to build a more environmentally
sustainable society.
This requires an understanding of
• how the earth works,
• our interactions with the earth,
• and the methods we use to deal with
environmental problems.
Nature must be experienced directly
to complete environmental education.
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Living more Sustainably
• Need environmentally literate
citizens for a sustainable society.
- requires understanding of how earth
works, methods to deal with problems
• Respect earth and life and all its
diversity
• Care for life with understanding
• Build societies that are free
• Secure earth’s bounty for
present and future generations
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Living More Sustainably
Affluenza is the addiction to overconsumption and materialism in developed
countries.
-Symptoms: high debt level, declining
health, increased stress, more bankruptcies.
-Causes: credit cards enable instant
gratification, easy money, and selfishness.
-Solutions: consume less, live more
simply, and spend less.
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Conclusion
Effective environmental citizens avoid
mental traps that lead to denial and
inaction and instead enjoy life and
keep empowered feelings.
The environmental revolution is a
positive outlook and a call for
leadership, ideas, and solutions to
current environmental challenges.
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