Explore secular ethical perspectives on conservation
Secular = non-religious
Libertarianism (Deep Ecology)
All life forms have intrinsic value: they are
valuable within themselves, not for their
usefulness to humans.
Started by Aldo Leopold: "A
thing is right when it tends
to preserve the integrity,
stability and beauty of the
bionic community. It is wrong
when it tends otherwise."
Leopold says it is wrong to view the world
in terms of it's economic value to humans.
Arne Næss: Deep Ecologist
Nature does not exist to
serve humans. He does not
believe that humans are
more important just
because they have a soul.
Næss believes that every living being
should have equal rights. This is
'Ecosophy' = ecological harmony
Arne Næss believed that humans
should do the following things in
order to have Ecosophy
Drastically reduce the human population
Abandon all goals of
economic growth
Conserve the diversity of species
Live in small, self-reliant communities
"Touch the Earth lightly."
James Lovelock's Gaia Hypothesis
Lovelock argues that the Earth is a
biosphere; a complex interacting
system.
Earth is a self-regulating being,
Organisms on Earth interactive with
their non-living surroundings in
order to maintain the conditions for
life on the planet. This is the
complex interacting system.
Gaia can survive without us, as humans
are only one part of the Earth, but we
need her. If we abuse Gaia we risk our
own survival.
Gaia = Greek Goddess of the world
Disagreed with the notion of
Dominion - that God gave
humans authority over the
Earth and all it's species.
Conservationism (Shallow Ecology)
The environment is important due
to it's usefulness to humanity.
Plants and animals have
instrumental value, not intrinsic
value; They are valuable because
they are useful to humans.
Conservationism is an Anthropocentric
belief - it is based on the idea that humans
are the most important species on the
planet. Many philosophers deem this as
speciesist (discriminative in favour of one
species over others)
Michael La Bossiere
suggested that the
anthropocentric
approach is part of
the natural order of
evolution.
He states that if a species becomes extinct naturally as a consequence to human activity, it
is acceptable.
John Mill claims that humans bring order to a
chaotic world. Thus, animals should be treated with
dignity as this benefits humans.
Conservationism is a Utilitarianist approach.
Utilitarianism, coined by Jeremy Bentham, is
the notion that something is ethical if it brings
the greatest amount of happiness to the
greatest amount of people.
Immanuel Kant - The Categorical Imperative
The Categorical Imperative states that you should act for the sake of duty only.
This is a contrast to the
Hypothetical Imperative:
acting in order to receive
some kind of reward.
Kant says that the Categorical Imperative is
the only good way to act.
For example, one should help an elderly person
across the road simply because it is the
correct thing to do.
Feeling good about doing an ethical deed is simply a bonus, according to Kant.
Good will is what Kant describes as 'good
without qualification'.
The Summum Bonum is
the highest good that
everyone should strive
towards. It takes place in
the afterlife and is the
reward for doing duty for
duty's sake.