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1 . 1 E N V I R O N M E N TA L VA LU E S Y S T E M S
IB ESS TOPIC 1
An Environmental Value System (EVS) is a worldview or paradigm that shapes the way an individual or group of people perceive and evaluate environmental issues. This will be influences by cultural, religious, economic and socio-political contexts.
AN OVERVIEW
SIGNIFICANT IDEAS:• Historical events, among other influences, affect the
development of environmental value systems (EVSs) and environmental movements.
• There is a wide spectrum of EVSs, each with its own premises and implications.
APPLICATIONS AND SKILLS:Discuss the view that the environment can have its own
intrinsic value.Evaluate the implications of two contrasting EVSs in the
context of given environmental issues. Justify, using examples and evidence, how historical influences
have shaped the development of the modern environmental movement.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
Significant historical influences on the development of the environmental movement have come from literature, the media, major environmental disasters, international agreements and technological developments.
Chief Seattle (1855) Aldo Leopold(A Sand County Almanac)
“Whatever befalls the Earth-befalls the sons of the Earth. Humankind has not woven a web of life. Ware but on threat within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. all things connect.”
“We abuse the land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.”
DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
The environmental movement, public activism and grass-roots activism, as we know it, originated most forcefully in the 1960s. But (some) humans
have always been concerned about our impact on the environment.
There has been, and will continue to be a divide in philosophy between:
Those who see the reason for conserving nature as being to continue to supply goods and services to humankind in a sustainable way (environmental managers)
Those who believe that we should conserve nature unconditionally, for its spiritual value (deep and self-reliance ecologists).
Do we save it for OUR sake or ITS sake?Are we APART from nature or PART of it?
Where do we belong? What is our responsibility?
STAKEHOLDERS IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
These groups and individuals have influenced, over time, norms of behavior and political choices.
1. Influential Individuals: Often use media publications to raise issues and start the debate. Rachel Carson, Al Gore, etc.
2. Independent Pressure Groups (NGOs): Non-governmental organizations like Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, WWF, use awareness campaigns to influence public opinion.
3. Multi/Transnational Corporations: Supply consumer demand/using resources/impacting the environment.
4. Intergovernmental Bodies (UN): The United Nations has been influential in bringing together governments, NGOs, and corporations in order to consider global environmental and world development issues.
STAKEHOLDERS IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
5. Governments: Make policy decisions and apply legislation (laws) to manage the country. Meet with governments to consider international agreements.
It’s important to note that different countries are at different stages of environmental awareness.
THE GROWTH OF THE MODERN ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
MAJOR LANDMARKS & CASE STUDIES(SEE PAGES 4 AND 7 IN TEXTBOOK FOR MORE DETAIL)
Years Events Significance
10,000 BP Neolithic Agricultural Revol.
Early 1800s Industrial Revolution Europe
1914 Passenger Pigeon Extinct
1930s-1940s Dust Bowl in North America
1940s Green Revolution
1952 London Smog Event
1956-1968 Minamata Bay Disaster
1962 ‘Silent Spring’ Published
1971 Greenpeace Founded
1972 First Earth Summit-UN
1976 Love Canal
Years Events Significance
1979 James Lovelock Publishes the book --‘Gaia Hypothesis’
Systems Approach to studying the environment begins. Nature seen as self-regulating.
1984 Bhopal Disaster (India)
Mid 80’s British Scientific Team discovers Ozone Hole
1986 Chernobyl Disaster
1987 Montreal Protocol
1989 Exxon Oil Valdez Spill
2005 Kyoto Protocol signed by 174 countries
2006 ‘Inconvenient Truth’
2007 IPCC releases 4th Assessment
2010 Deepwater Horizon Spill
2011 Fukushima Daiichi Disaster
2012 Rio + 20 ‘The Future We Want’ Published
. . . CASE STUDIES
From La Belle Dame Sans Merci by John Keats
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, 1982
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, 1982
“And this is why I sojourn here, Alone and palely loitering, Through this sedge is wither’d from the lake, And no birds sing.”
“For the first time in the history of the world, every human being is now subjected to contact with dangerous chemicals from the moment of conception until death.”
“Now I truly believe that we in this generation must come to terms with nature, and I think we’re challenged, as mankind has never been challenged before, to prove our maturity and our mastery, not of nature but of ourselves.”
ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHIES
A branch of philosophy concerned with the natural environment and humans’ place within
it.
“What do we mean when we talk about nature?”What is the value of the natural, that is non-human
environment to us, or in itself?”“How should we respond to environmental challenges
such as environmental degradation, pollution, and climate change?”
“How can we best understand the relationship between the natural world and human technology and
development?”
THE SPECTRUM OF ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE SYSTEMS
• Different societies hold different environmental philosophies and comparing these helps explain why societies make different choices. • The EVS we each hold is influenced by cultural,
religious, economic and socio-political events. • The environment or any organism can have its own
intrinsic value regardless of its value to humans. How we measure this value is a key to understanding the value we place on our environment.
As it turns out, the human brain may not be such a great adaptation after all. Human resources are limited, but humans tend to view nature as something to be
conquered, mastered and controlled.
ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHIES(AN OUTLINE)
CATEGORIES
1. ECOCENTRICSA. Deep EcologistsB. Self-Reliant Soft Ecologists
2. ANTHROPOCENTRICS
3. TECHNOCENTRICSA. Environmental ManagersB. Cornucopians
ECOCENTRIC WORLDVIEW
Ecology and nature are central to humanity.
A less materialistic approach to life with greater self-sufficiency of societies.
Is life/earth-centered—the rights of nature and the dependence of humans on nature is emphasized (holistic view).
The Earth is here for all species.Resources are limited. Endless economic growth is not
possible. We need the Earth more than it needs us. We should manage growth in ways that are beneficial.We must work with the Earth, not against it. Our arrogance as a species leads us to believe that the Earth is
far less complex than it actually is. Our understanding of the Earth is inadequate and simplistic.
A MATERIAL WORLD
A MATERIAL WORLD
ECOCENTRISM(ECOCENTRISM IS BIO-CENTRIC OR LIFE-CENTERED)
All life has inherent value—value for its own sake, not just for humans.
The ecological integrity and complexity of ecosystems and habitats in which species live should be protected.
We have an ethic obligation to prevent premature extinctions, restore degraded ecosystems, remove pollution, and deal with environmental problems.
Deep ecologists are the most liberal of the ecocentrics. They put more value on nature than humanity.
They believe in bio-rights (universal rights where all species and ecosystems have an inherent value. Humans have no right to interfere.
Believe policies should be enacted to reduce our impact on the environment, decrease the human population, and reduce consumption.
ANTHROPOCENTRIC WORLDVIEW(HUMAN CENTERED, PRAGMATIC APPROACH)
Believe that humans must sustainably manage the global system through taxes, environmental regulations,
and legislation.
Humans are not dependent on nature, but nature is there to benefit humankind.
There will always be more resources to exploit.We are the Earth’s most important species, we are in
charge. We can solve any pollution problem that we cause.Economic growth is a good thing and we can always
keep the economy growing. We can solve any problem that we create.
TECHNOCENTRIC WORLDVIEW(PLANETARY MANAGEMENT)
Believe that technological developments can provide solutions to environmental problems.
See ‘summary’ on previous slide. Similar to anthropocentric views.
1. Environmental Managers: The Earth is a garden that needs tending—we are stewards of the Earth. We have an ethical duty to protect and nurture the Earth. Governmental legislation/regulations/taxes can protect the environment and
resources from exploitation. Sustainable economies are the key. We must intervene when groups are harmed by environmental damage.
2. Cornucopians: Technology and inventiveness will solve any environmental problem. We can
always improve our living standards. The world has infinite resources to benefit humanity. Unregulated (minimal government control), free-market capitalism is the best way
to mange markets, sustain growth, create wealth and manage the planet. If we can understand the machine (Earth), we can control it.
ENVIRONMENTAL WORLDVIEWS
Islam: The Earth has been given to humans for their sustenance. Humans
are not given mastery or dominion over Earth, but granted as a gift. We are caretakers. A notion of ‘dominion’ or mastery over the Earth.
The animal world is a community equal to the human one. Greater emphasis on the trustee status of human beings and charity
(3rd Pillar).
Christianity: It’s complicated, but in the biblical book of Genesis, God commands
humans to ‘replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over it’ (Genesis 1:28). This has been interpreted by some in a radically, anthropocentric way. The passage is open to much interpretation.
ENVIRONMENTAL WORLDVIEWS(. . . HOW TO BE CALM)
Buddhism: Believe that all sentient beings share conditions of birth, old age,
suffering and death. Every living thing in the world is codependent. Humans are not more important than other living things—loving kindness and compassion extend to all living things/Earth.
Indigenous Cultures: Animals and plants as well as natural objects have a spirituality. Tend
to hold property in common, use a subsistence economy, barter for goods rather than use money, and use low-impact technologies. Participatory democracy.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?(ECOLOGY VS ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE)
Environmental Science is the study of the interactions among the physical, chemical, and biological components of the environment; with a focus on pollution and degradation of the environment related to human activity; and the impact on biodiversity and sustainability from local and global development.
Ecology is a sub-discipline of biology studying the relationships between organisms (biotic) and their environment (abiotic).
INTRINSIC VALUE(A NICE SUMMARY)
