Student Notes:

ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
Contents
1. Environmental Ethics ................................................................................................................. 2

1.1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 2

1.2. Need for Environmental Ethics ........................................................................................... 2

1.3. Environmental Ethics and Its Principles .............................................................................. 2

1.4. Types of Environmental Ethics ............................................................................................ 3

1.4.1. Social Ecology ............................................................................................................... 3

1.4.2. Deep Ecology................................................................................................................ 4

1.4.3. Eco-feminism................................................................................................................ 4

1.5. The Future of Environmental Ethics .................................................................................... 6

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1. Environmental Ethics Student Notes:

1.1. Introduction
Environmental ethics is a branch of ethics that studies the relation of human beings and the
environment and how ethics play a role in this. Environmental ethics believe that humans are a
part of society as well as other living creatures, which includes plants and animals. These items
are a very important part of the world and are considered to be a functional part of human life.
Therefore, it is essential that every human being respects and honors this and use morals and
ethics when dealing with these creatures.
Environmental ethics therefore, is the discipline in philosophy that studies the moral relationship
of human beings to, and also the value and moral status of, the environment and its non-human
contents.

1.2. Need for Environmental Ethics

• The acts of humans lead to environmental pollution. The stronger demand for resources is
also a factor that contributes to the problem as we all need food and shelter. When these
things are so desired, the natural balance of the environment is disturbed. Engineering
developments are resulting in resource depletion and environmental destruction.
• There are several environmental issues that have created havoc on our environment and
human life. If ignored today, these ill effects are sure to curb human existence in the near
future.
• Various environmental issues have taken a toll on our environment and we’ve already started
seeing some disastrous effects in the form of the effect of health on humans, rise in sea level,
depletion of non-renewable resources, melting of glaciers, extinction of species, and many
more.
• Given the rapid pace of environmental decay and the need for inter-generational equity,
environmental ethics has to form the central part of our governance structures.
1.3. Environmental Ethics and Its Principles
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Suppose putting out natural fires, culling feral animals or destroying some individual members of
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overpopulated indigenous species is necessary for the protection of the integrity of a certain
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ecosystem. Will these actions be morally permissible or even required? Is it morally acceptable
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for farmers in non-industrial countries to practise slash and burn techniques to clear areas for
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agriculture? Consider a mining company which has performed open pit mining in some previously
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unspoiled area. Does the company have a moral obligation to restore the landform and surface
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ecology? And what is the value of a humanly restored environment compared with the originally
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natural environment? It is often said to be morally wrong for human beings to pollute and destroy
parts of the natural environment and to consume a huge proportion of the planet’s natural
resources. If that is wrong, is it simply because a sustainable environment is essential to (present
and future) human well-being? Or is such behaviour also wrong because the natural environment
and/or its various contents have certain values in their own right so that these values ought to
be respected and protected in any case?
These are among the questions investigated by environmental ethics. Some of them are specific
questions faced by individuals in particular circumstances, while others are more global questions
faced by groups and communities. Yet others are more abstract questions concerning the value
and moral standing of the natural environment and its non-human components.
There are several approaches or principles to determine how we are to value our environment.
It is such a huge field, and it is so vast that it is difficult for one principle to cover all the ground.
Many theories have emerged over the years, and each one has stressed on various principles of
environmental ethics. The list below states all the principles that have been predominantly found
in those theories.

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• Anthropocentrism: It suggests that human beings are the most important beings. All other Student Notes:
living beings are but accessories that would assist in their survival. Now, there are two further
divisions of anthropocentrism. They are weak anthropocentrism and strong
anthropocentrism.
• Non-Anthropocentrism: As opposed to anthropocentrism, non-anthropocentrism, this
principle gives value to every object, every animal in nature. It is a principle that believes in
everything that sustains itself in nature.
• Psychocentrism: Psychocentrism is the principle that believes that human beings hold more
value in the environment since their mental capacities are better developed and far more
complex than any other element in the environment.
• Biocentrism: It is a term that holds not only an ecological but also a political value. It is a
philosophy that imparts importance to all living beings. In terms of environmental ethics,
biocentrism is the principle that ensures the proper balance of ecology on the planet.
• Holism: The term holism had been coined by Jan Smuts in his book called Holism and
Evolution (1926). Holism considers environment systems as a whole rather than being
individual parts of something. It considers these environment systems to be valuable.
• Resourcism: The principle of resourcism says that nature is considered to be valuable only
because it has resources to provide with. Thus, nature ought to be exploited.
• Speciesism: The principle of speciesism justifies the superiority of the human race. Thus, it
also justifies the exploitation and maltreatment of animals by humankind.
• Moral Considerability: This, too, is an important principle of environmental ethics. Intrinsic
value is added to every being, which makes us consider being moral. Moral considerability
towards a being means that we agree that all our interactions whatsoever with the being is
bound by moral laws.
• Instrumental Value: The instrumental value is the value imparted to a being as long as it can
serve us with resources.
• Intrinsic Value: Intrinsic value is the value attached to a being just for itself and not only for
its resourcefulness.
• Aesthetic Value: Aesthetic value is imparted to a being by virtue of its looks or its beauty.
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• Animal Liberation or Animal Rights: As is evident from its name, animal liberation or rights
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try to secure animal life and ensure their welfare by enforcing certain laws.
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• Animal Welfare: It ensures that the animals are treated well and humanely.
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1.4. Types of Environmental Ethics

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1.4.1. Social Ecology

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• Social ecology studies relationships between people and their environment, often the
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interdependence of people, collectives and institutions.

• The concept has been employed to study a diverse array of social problems and policies
within the behavioural and social sciences.
• Social ecology has been criticized for its extrapolation from the natural world to human
society.
• Ecologists argue that the interdependence and lack of hierarchy within nature provides a
grounding for non-hierarchical human societies. However, it is one thing to say how nature
is, but quite another to say how society ought to be. Even if we accept that there are no
natural hierarchies within nature (which for many is dubious), there are plenty of other
aspects of it that most of us would not want to foster in our human society.
Core Principles of Social Ecology
• Multidimensional structure of human environments—physical & social, natural & built features;
objective-material as well as perceived-symbolic (or semiotic); virtual & place-based features.
• Cross-disciplinary, multi-level, contextual analyses of people-environment relationships spanning
proximal and distal scales (from narrow to broad spatial, sociocultural, and temporal scope).

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 • Systems principles, especially feedback loops, interdependence of system elements, anticipating Student Notes:
unintended side effects of public policies and environmental interventions.
• Translation of theory and research findings into community interventions and public policies.
• Privileging and combining both academic and non-academic perspectives, including scientists and
academicians, lay citizens and community stakeholder groups, business leaders and other
professional groups, and government decision makers.
• Transdisciplinary values and orientation, synthesizing concepts and methods from different fields
that pertain to particular research topics.

1.4.2. Deep Ecology

• Deep ecology is based in the belief that humans must radically change their relationship to
nature from one that values nature solely for its usefulness to human beings to one that
recognizes that nature has an inherent value.
• Sometimes called an “ecosophy”, deep ecology offers a definition of the self that differs from
traditional notions and is a social movement that sometimes has religious and mystical
undertones.
• They contend that the mainstream ecological movement is concerned with various
environmental issues (such as pollution, overpopulation, and conservation) only to the extent
that those issues have a negative effect on an area’s ecology and disrupt human interests.
They argue that anthropocentrism, a worldview that contains an instrumentalist view of
nature and a view of humanity as the conqueror of nature, has led to environmental
degradation throughout the world, and thus it should be replaced with ecocentric (ecology-
centred) or biocentric (life-centred) worldviews, where the biosphere becomes the main
focus of concern.
• Critics of deep ecology argue that it is just too vague to address real environmental concerns.
In its refusal to reject so many worldviews and philosophical perspectives, many have claimed
that it is difficult to uncover just what deep ecology advocates. For example, on the one hand,
it offers us eight principles that deep ecologists should accept, and on the other it claims that
deep ecology is not about drawing up codes of conduct, but adopting a global comprehensive
attitude.
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Principles of Deep Ecology

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• The well-being and flourishing of human and non-human life on Earth have value in themselves
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(synonyms: intrinsic value, inherent worth). These values are independent of the usefulness of the
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non-human world for human purposes.

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• Richness and diversity of life forms contribute to the realization of these values and are also values
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in themselves.
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• Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity except to satisfy vital needs.
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• The flourishing of human life and cultures is compatible with a substantially smaller population.
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The flourishing of non-human life requires a smaller human population.

• Present human interference with the non-human world is excessive, and the situation is rapidly
worsening.
• Policies must therefore be changed. These policies affect basic economic, technological and
ideological structures. The resulting state of affairs will be deeply different from the present.
• The ideological change will be mainly that of appreciating life quality (dwelling in situations of
inherent value) rather than adhering to an increasingly higher standard of living. There will be a
profound awareness of the difference between bigness and greatness.
• Those who subscribe to the foregoing points have an obligation directly or indirectly to try to
implement the necessary changes.

1.4.3. Eco-feminism
• Oppression, hierarchy, and spiritual relationships with nature have been central concerns of
ecofeminism.
• Ecofeminists assert that there is a connection between the destruction of nature by humans
and the oppression of women by men that arises from political theories and social practices

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 in which both women and nature are treated as objects to be owned or controlled. Student Notes:
• Ecofeminists aim to establish a central role for women in the pursuit of an environmentally
sound and socially just society.
• They have been divided, however, over how to conceive of the relationship between nature
and women, which they hold is more intimate and more “spiritual” than the relationship
between nature and men.
• Whereas cultural ecofeminists argue that the relationship is inherent in women’s
reproductive and nurturing roles, social ecofeminists, while acknowledging the relationship’s
immediacy, claim that it arises from social and cultural hierarchies that confine women
primarily to the private sphere.
• Eco-feminism demonstrates an adherence to the strict dichotomy, among others, between
men and women. Some eco-feminist critiques note that the dichotomy between women and
men and nature and culture creates a dualism that is too stringent and focused on the
differences of women and men. In this sense, eco-feminism too strongly correlates the social
status of women with the social status of nature, rather than the non-essentialist view that
women along with nature both have masculine and feminine qualities, and that just like
feminine qualities have often been seen as less worthy, nature is also seen as having lesser
value than culture.
Concepts of Eco-feminism
• Modern Science and Eco-feminism: They view the dominant stream of modern science not as
objective science but as a projection of Western men's values. The privilege of determining what is
considered scientific knowledge and its usage has been controlled by men, and for the most part
of history restricted to men. A common claim within ecofeminist literature is that patriarchal
structures justify their dominance through binary opposition, these include but are not limited to:
heaven/earth, mind/body, male/female, human/animal, spirit/matter, culture/nature and
white/non-white.
• Vegetarian Eco-feminism: The application of ecofeminism to animal rights has established
vegetarian ecofeminism, which asserts that omitting the oppression of animals from feminist and
ecofeminist analyses is inconsistent with the activist and philosophical foundations of both
feminism (as a "movement to end all forms of oppression") and ecofeminism. It puts into practice
"the personal is political," as many ecofeminists believe that "meat-eating is a form of patriarchal
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domination that suggests a link between male violence and a meat-based diet.
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• Materialist Eco-feminism: A materialist view connects institutions such as labor, power, and
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property as the source of domination over women and nature. There are connections made
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between these subjects because of the values of production and reproduction. This dimension of
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ecofeminism may also be referred to as "social feminism," "socialist ecofeminism," or "Marxist

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ecofeminism”.
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• Spiritual/ Cultural Eco-feminism: It is also called an earth based spirituality which recognizes that
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the Earth is alive, and that we are an interconnected community. Spiritual ecofeminism is not linked
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to one specific religion, but is centered around values of caring, compassion, and non-violence.

Declaration of Ethical Principles in relation to Climate Change

The Member States of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, meeting in
Paris at the thirty-ninth session of the General Conference, from 30 October to 14 November 2017,
taking into account the work carried out by the World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge
and Technology (COMEST) on environmental ethics in general and the ethical issues associated with
climate change in particular,
• Noting with great concern that there is an urgent imperative to mitigate the causes of climate
change, and to adapt to its consequences,
• Noting with concern that climate change exacerbates other threats to social and natural systems,
which place additional burdens on the poor and vulnerable,
• Also recognizing that climate change is a common concern for all humankind, and convinced that
the global and local challenges of climate change cannot be met without the participation of all
people at all levels of society including States, international organizations, sub-national entities,
local authorities, indigenous peoples, local communities, the private sector, civil society
organizations, and individuals,

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 • Reiterating that significant contributions should be pursued by all to limit climate change and its Student Notes:
effects reflecting equity and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and
respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances, with developed countries
continuing to take the lead, and developing countries continuing to enhance their mitigation
efforts; recalling the commitment from the Paris Agreement that "developed country Parties shall
provide financial resources to assist developing country Parties with respect to both mitigation and
adaptation in continuation of their existing obligations under the Convention" and "other Parties
are encouraged to provide or continue to provide such support voluntarily",
• Recognizing the need for a transition as quickly as possible to sustainable lifestyles and sustainable
economic development,
• Convinced of the need to respond urgently to climate change with effective and comprehensive
policies which respect and promote human rights and are informed by ethical principles,
• Emphasizing the importance of including a gender perspective within climate change policies, and
• Recognizing the different needs and access to resources of men and women, as well as the needs
of the most vulnerable that include but are not limited to displaced persons and migrants,
indigenous peoples, local communities, persons with disabilities, the elderly, youth, and children,
as well as gender equality and empowerment of women,
• Also recognizing that meaningful participation of all stakeholders, including the most vulnerable, is
essential to effective decision-making to address climate change and its adverse effects,
• Also emphasizing the fundamental importance of science, technological innovation, relevant
knowledge, and education for sustainable development for responding to the challenge of climate
change, including appropriate local, traditional and indigenous knowledge,
• Further recognizing that not only climate change itself, but also the responses to it, may have
important and variable ethical implications at different scales of place and time.

1.5. The Future of Environmental Ethics

Given the increasing concern for the environment and the impact that our actions have upon it,
it is clear that the field of environmental ethics is here to stay. However, it is less clear in what
way the discipline will move forward. Having said that, there is evidence for at least three future
developments.
• First of all, environmental ethics needs to be and will be informed by changes in the political
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efforts to ameliorate environmental problems.

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• Businesses should take the lead in tackling these problems. Indeed, it may even be in the
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interests of big business to be active in this way, given the power of consumers. It is quite
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possible then, that we will see business ethics address many of the same issues that
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environmental ethics has been tackling. However, the effects of environmental ethics will not
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be limited to influencing and informing business ethics alone, but will undoubtedly feed into
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and merge with more mainstream ethical thinking.

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• Finally, environmental ethics will of course be informed by our scientific understanding of the
environment. Whether it be changes in our understanding of how ecosystems work, or
changes in the evidence concerning the environmental crisis, it is clear that such change will
inform and influence those thinkers writing on our environmental obligations.
After all, the environment is not something one can remove oneself from. In light of this, once it
is recognized that we have environmental obligations, all areas of ethics are affected, including
just war theory, domestic distributive justice, global distributive justice, human rights theory and
many others. Take global distributive justice as an example: if one considers how climate change
will affect people throughout the world so differently – affecting individuals’ homes, sanitation,
resistance from disease, ability to earn a living and so on – it is clear that consideration of the
environment is essential to such questions of justice.
Gandhi on Environmentalism
• The ecological scope of non-violence is unlimited. Gandhi's faith in non-violence and vegetarianism
made him a votary of conservation of all diversity including all forms of life, societies, cultures,
religions, and traditions. Arne Naess, the pioneer of deep ecology argued that ecological

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 preservation is non violent in nature. Naess introduced and Thomas Weber systematized the Student Notes:
relation between non-violence, self-realization and mutual dependence of all living beings in the
following points.
o Self-realization presupposes a search for truth.
o All living beings are one.
o Himsa (violence) against oneself makes self-realization impossible.
o Himsa against a living being is himsa against oneself.
o Himsa against a living being makes complete self-realization impossible.
• Naess used these principles to evolve a broader philosophy of environmentalism i.e, deep ecology.
He believed that Gandhi's Utopia is one of the few that shows ecological balance. As Gandhi
envisaged, non-violence has the power to solve all our problems, including ecological crisis.
• Many thinkers considered the Indian Environmental Movements like Chipko movement, Narmada
Bachao Andolan (NBA) etc. as the living example of Gandhian Environmentalism and they consider
Gandhi as a "man with deep ecological view of life, a view much too deep even for deep ecology."
The key agenda of the Chipko movement was that carrying forward the "vision of Gandhi's
mobilization for a new society, where neither man nor nature is exploited and destroyed, which
was the civilizational response to a threat to human survival." All these together made Gandhi an
exponent of Indian environmentalism.
• The economic ideas of Gandhi differed from conventional economics and bore close resemblances
with ecological economics. The term sustainable development was not much discussed at Gandhi's
time, but his ideal vision of the world known as Sarvodaya safeguard the rights of future
generations, through the welfare of all.
• Environmental movements in India used Satyagraha as the moral equivalent of war. Forest
Satyagraha was first used effectively in Chipko movement to protest against deforestation.
Gandhian techniques like padayatras were conducted to save nature. Conflict resolution techniques
based on non-violence and self sacrifice were used by environmental activists like Chandi Prasad
Bhatt, Baba Amte, Sunderlal Bahuguna, Medha Patker and others.
Buddha on Environmentalism
• People were not concerned with global environmental change at the time of the Buddha so he did
not give teachings specifically on this subject. He did recognise that local communities could be
affected by the behaviour of his followers and so, for example, he set rules that monks and nuns
should never relieve themselves in or near running water, ie where people would want to wash or
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drink. Similarly, he also ruled that monks and nuns should not disrupt the established habitat of
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any other creature, nor kill other living creatures, for example when building new quarters.
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• Some forms of Chinese and Japanese Buddhists teach the idea of the inter-relatedness of
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everything. This means that humans depend on nature and nature depends on humans. Harming
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one part of this whole is the same as harming all of it. Therefore, if people learn to live simply and
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in harmony with the world, the whole of the environment will benefit.
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• The Buddhist declaration at Assisi stresses the need for all people to have respect for wildlife and
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for the environment. The main threat to the world so far has been that human beings have been
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indifferent to the effects of their actions on other creatures. Most Buddhists believe that it is only
when this indifference ends, and we become mindful and compassionate, that the world will return
to peace, harmony and balance. This will then allow people to live positive lives and break free from
the negative effects of craving.
• Buddhist principals treat the mind and body, the self and environment, as inseparable.
Environmental destruction is therefore an outer manifestation of an inner affliction. If our thoughts
are polluted, then our actions will be polluted too, and so will their consequences.
Jainism and Environmentalism
• The common concerns between Jainism and environmentalism constituted in a mutual sensitivity
towards living beings, a recognition of the interconnectedness (Jain’s parasparopagraho jīvānām)
of life forms and a programme to augment awareness to respect and protect living systems.
• Jain Agams depict nature in a very unique way as it says that five main elements of nature; Prithvi
(land, soil, stones, etc), Jal (Water resources including cloud), Agni (Fire), Vayu (Air) and Aakash
(Sky) are living creatures and must be treated as living beings. These five types of elements go on
to form five classes of beings (as shown alongside) such as vegetation, trees and plants, fungi and

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 animals. This unique concept of Jainism restricts its followers to harm any creature and eventually Student Notes:
leads to limited consumption as well as help in protecting environment.
• Jain scriptures motivate people for minimal consumption. They emphasize on Tyaga (Sacrifice). Jain
Sharavaka / Shravikas (Laymen and women) are preached to minimize their Bhoga (Consumables).
The seventh vow for Jain households is Bhogopbhog Pariman Vrata (Vow). This vow restricts them
from unlimited consuming of natural resources. Moreover, this vow is a Shiksha Vrata (Educational
vow). It preaches its observers to learn and educate themselves towards limiting their
consumables.
• One of the ways Jain monks or the followers of Jainism, observe non violence is by restraining
themselves from eating the roots like potato, radish, carrots, ginger etc, especially during the 4
months of rainy season. The reason behind this is they think that during harvest of these
vegetables, earth is dug out and the soil organisms are killed more during rainy season. Jains called
this period as “Chaumasu” or “Chaturmas”.
Hinduism and Environment
• Hinduism offers a perspective on environmental conservation where there is no separation
between the Creator and the created — there is no essential separation between the species homo
sapiens and the other species of animals, for example, and indeed between humanity and all of the
world around us.
• Hindu scripture, when viewed through an ecological lens, provides a strong foundation for action.
• The cornerstone of this foundation is the teaching that all is Divine and everything is sacred. There
are three main ecological concepts that support this:
o Vasudeva Sarvam – The Divine is present in all beings.
o Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – Everything is part of one interconnected global family, both
spiritually and practically.
o Sarva Bhuta Hita – Promoting the welfare of all beings is the highest dharma.
• From the broadest perspective, a Hindu way of approaching ecological challenges is similar to
applying the precautionary principle.
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Copyright © by Vision IAS

All rights are reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without prior permission of Vision IAS

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