This course introduces students to the ethical dimensions of the relationship between human beings and the natural world. Beginning with traditional and contemporary theories of morality and value, students will develop their own sense of what it means to have a “respect for” and “responsibility to” nature. From Western, Non-western, and Indigenous perspectives, this course explores animal rights, food and ecological ethics, population and consumption, environmental justice, climate change, and sustainability.
Course Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to...
1. Explain the difference between various moral theories that apply to issues regarding humankind's dealings with the natural world;
2. Identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of these moral theories, and apply these theories as well as other appropriate argumentative techniques to the analysis of contemporary moral issues dealing with the environment;
3. Critically assess alternative approaches to, and defenses of, a code of responsibility to nature (i.e., an "environmental ethic"); and
4. Explain and defend a moral position using appropriate terminology and compelling argumentation, and then communicate effectively to an audience that may include individuals who disagree with that position.
Sample Syllabus
Textbook Information
Pojman, Louis P., Paul Pojman, and Katie McShane. Environmental Ethics: Readings in Theory and Application. 7th ed. (Cengage, 2016) ISBN: 9781285197241
