Environmental Ethics Participatory Workshop 01
“Ethics is the difference between what a person has the right to do and the right
thing to do – provides set of principles to guide choices to act responsibly.”
11/16/2011
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
References and Agenda
1. Hal Taback and Ram Ramanan,
“Environmental Ethics – a
casebook for Environmental
Practitioners, 2013, Taylor and
Francis/CRC
Introductions 10 min
Social Contract 10 min
Sustainability 10 min
Ethics Basics 20 min
Break
10 min
Ethics Dilemma 60 min
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Sustainability Triple Bottom-line and the 4th Dimension
Triple
Bottom-line
4
Ethics – the 4th
Dimension
Ethical dilemmas and
resolution approach
Changing
Ambiance
3
Sustainability and the
Triple Bottom-line
Shareholder Primacy to
Stakeholder primacy
Social
Contract
2
Transformed Playing
Field for Businesses
1
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Social Contract - Social Responsibility
Father of a Nation,
Mahatma Gandhi
(1869 – 1948)
“Earth provides enough
to satisfy every man’s
need, but not every
man’s greed."
01/30/2012
Scientist extraordinaire
Albert Einstein
(1879 – 1955)
“The concern for man and his
destiny must always be the chief
interest of all technical effort.
Never forget it among your
diagrams and equations."
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Social Contract - Environmental Responsibility
Common man with an
uncommon vision, Cree
Indian (19th century)
“Only after the last tree has been cut down,
Only after the last river has been poisoned,
Only after the last fish has been caught,
Only then will you find you cannot eat
money“
01/09/2012
Poet and Nature
Advocate
Rachel Carson
(1907 – 1964)
“Only within the moment of time
represented by the present
century has one species – man
– acquired significant power to
alter the nature of his world."
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Social Contract - Corporate Sustainability
World’s
richest man
& investment
icon, Warren
Buffet
"It takes twenty years to build a
reputation, and five minutes to
ruin it."
Why go beyond compliance? To protect
investments! To lead markets!
World’s largest
retailer Wal-Mart’s
CEO, Lee Scott
Wal-Mart’s three ambitious goals:
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Use 100 percent renewable energy
Create zero waste and
Sell products that sustain Wal-Mart's
resources and the environment
http://www.scmr.com/article/CA6457969.html
01/09/2012
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Social Contract - Corporate Philanthropy
Oil Magnate,
John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
(1839 – 1937)
““I believe it is my duty to
make money and still more
money and to use the money
I make for the good of my
fellow man, according to the
dictates of my conscience”
01/30/2012
Software Magnate,
Bill Gates
(1955 – )
“Is the rich aware of how four
billion of the six billion live? If
we were aware, we would want
to help out, we’d want to get
involved."
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
Social Contract - Shareholder Primacy to Stakeholder Primacy
Shareholders
Government
Employees
Corporation
Community
Others
Social contract has changed:
Principal driver of societal
transformation is the recognition
that business is no longer the
sole property or interest of a
very few
Public interest in business
ethics and social responsibility
has been continually changing
for 40 years
Corporation is a centerpiece of
a complex society; that
proactively meets stakeholder
expectations
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
– Changing Business Ambiance
Globalization
Accelerated
Consumption
Digital
Connectivity
Corporation
Disparate
Prosperity
Resource
Scarcity
Ecological
Decline
Globalization: e.g. Money flow across
borders 3 times global GDP
Digital Connectivity: e.g. Internet and
Mobile phone users have grown to 2
and 5 billion respectively in 2010
Disparate Prosperity: Persistent
poverty is bad for business, increases
risks
Ecological Decline: e.g. Ecological
damage US$2.15 trillion in 2008
Accelerated Consumption: e.g. total
energy consumption up 47% while
population is up 26% to 7 billion
Resource Scarcity: e.g. 4 billion people
live in water stressed or water scarce
areas
KPMG International, “Building Business Value in a Changing World”, accessed Dec. 2012
http://www.kpmg.com/Global/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/Documents/building
-business-value.pdf
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
– Global Sustainability Mega-forces
Climate Change
Urbanization
Energy and Fuel
Wealth
Material Resource
Scarcity
Food Security
Water Scarcity
Eco-system Decline
Population Growth
Deforestation
KPMG International, “Building Business Value in a Changing World”, accessed Dec. 2012
http://www.kpmg.com/Global/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/Documents/building
-business-value.pdf
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
– The Cheating Culture and the Boa Constrictor
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Internet music theft & shoplifting
Student athletes accepting bribes
Plagiarizing papers and reports
Parents choosing getting into a
good school over ethics
College students changing grades
Athletes taking performance
enhancing drugs
Fake facts & citations by journalists
Lawyer’s overcharging
Contractors offering bribes
•
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•
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Corporations cooking the books
Cops/Politicians taking bribes
Dishonest stock market pundits
Executives taking undue bonuses
Clergy bilking parishioners
• How can companies expect
employees to act ethically when
they have been exposed to a
lifetime of cheating.
• Cheating creeps up like a Boa
Constrictor
“The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get
Ahead” by David Callahan, (New York: Harcourt Publishers, 2004)
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Environmental Ethics - Participatory Workshop 01
– The Six Pillars of Character
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Trustworthiness
Respect
Responsibility
Justice & Fairness
Caring
Civic Virtue & Citizenship
______________________________
“Making Ethical Decisions” by Michael Josephson, accessed December 2012,
http://www.sfjohnson.com/acad/ethics/Making_Ethical_Decisions.pdf page 1
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