Intro to Environmental Ethics

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

In this course, we investigate the ethics of human interaction with the world around us. What is nature? What is wilderness? Is there such a thing? How should we design our parks, our cities, our agricultural systems–according to what values? Who should design these systems, manage them, and so on? How do we weigh environmental values when they conflict? How do we maintain a responsible hope in the face of existential environmental threats? Topics in the course will include environmental justice, biodiversity, animal ethics, climate change, consumerism, suburban sprawl, zoning, food ethics, and more. This course will meet the Environmental Ethics requirement in the JESP degree.