LAS555

OCT 2020

ENVIRONMENTAL
ETHICS 101
LAr RAFIUDDIN ROSLAN
CoSLA
 “Global environmental risks caused by human activities are
becoming increasingly complex and interconnected, with far-
reaching consequences for people, economies and ecosystems.”
Nathanial Matthews

2
 WHAT IS
ENVIRONMENTAL RISK?

3
CLIMATIC CHANGE

4
STRATOSPHERIC OZONE DEPLETION

5
DEGRADED AIR QUALITY

6
DEGRADED WATER QUALITY

7
SCARCITY OF FRESH WATER

8
LAND CONTAMINATION

9
DEFORESTATION

10
SOIL EROSION AND DEGRADATION

11
LAND USE CHANGES

12
BIODIVERSITY LOSS

13
POPULATION GROWTH

14
URBANISATION

15
POVERTY

16
FOOD SECURITY

17
DISEASE

18
PEAK OIL AND ENERGY SECURITY

19
CONFLICT AND DISPLACEMENT

20
WHAT OR WHO TO BE
BLAME?

21
 HUMANS HAVE CAUSED
THIS ENVIRONMENTAL
CRISIS

We are now in the Anthropocene – a geological epoch where

humans are a dominant force of change on the planet; by an
increasingly interconnected and accelerating world.
Patrick Keys

22
BACK TO
BASIC

23
MORAL
REASONING
Applications of critical analysis to
specific events to determine what is right
or wrong, and what people ought to do in
a particular situation.
“..ironically, human’s reasoning are
based on their emotions, not on logic.”
“..and usually influenced by internal
biases or outside pressures, such as the
self-serving bias or the desire to
conform.” – Praxtent, UT

24
 MORAL DEVELOPMENT
THEORY

Piaget's Gilligan’s
Cognitive Morality of
Development Care

Kohlberg's Bronfenbrenner's
Moral Moral Orientation
Development
25
 SOURCE OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT
Early Exposure
SOURCE HUMAN
Role Model
Emotional Support
Reinforcement and Intervention
RELIGION Monotheism
Polytheism
Animism
Totemism
Atheism
CULTURE Continent
Race
Ethnic

EDUCATION Parenting
Pre-School
26
Primary and Secondary School
Higher Institution
 THE
VIRTUE

27
“The focus of environmental ethics should indeed be on the
virtues and how these inform our relationship to natural
environments.”
David E. Cooper

28
WHAT ARE
ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS?
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.
• a believe that humans are a part of society as
well as other living creatures, which includes
plants and animals.
• 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
respected and honour this and use morals and
ethics when dealing with these creatures.

29
KONRAD OTT
Environmental ethics is an established
field of practical philosophy
"which reconstructs the essential
types of argumentation that can be
made for protecting natural entities
and the sustainable use of natural
resources."

30
COMPETING PARADIGMS

Theocentrism
Anthropocentrism
Ecocentrism

31
 THE PRINCIPLES #1
Anthropocentrism
It suggests that human beings are the most important beings. All other living beings are
but accessories that would assist in their survival.
Weak Anthropocentrism Strong Anthropocentrism
“..believes that human beings “..believes that human
are the centre because it is beings are at the centre
only through their perspective because they rightfully
that environmental situations deserve to be there.”
can be interpreted.” – Peter Vardy
– Peter Vardy
32
 THE PRINCIPLES #2
Ecocentrism
Also known as Physiocentrism, this principle gives value to every
object, every animal in nature and believes in everything that
sustains itself in nature.

“..non-human world as possessing an intrinsic

value in itself and does not consider utility as the
criteria for value; it extends moral status to non-
human life forms.”
– Andrew33Brennan
 THE PRINCIPLES #3
Theocentrism

often linked with STEWARDSHIP and ENVIRONMENTAL

ethics or CREATION care. It is the belief that human beings
should look after the world as guardians and therefore in the way
God wants them to.
“It maintains that human beings are merely here
for a short time and should be looking after the
world for future generations.” – John Howell
It is popular with Christianity, Judaism and Islam. 34
 ADRESS
GLOBAL
CRISIS

IT’S A
WRAP
!
MORAL MITIGATION
DEVELOPME
NT
VIRTUE
35
AL GORE: THE CASE FOR OPTIMISM ON
CLIMATE CHANGE (TED 2016)

36
THANK YOU!
LAr Rafiuddin Roslan

Phone
012-6453523
Email
rafiuddin@uitm.edu.my