Environmental Philosophy

(2-5 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Santiago: Agricultural and Forest Ethics DISCIPLINE: Philosophy - Agronomy and Natural Sciences Sciences DESCRIPTION The course addresses the foundations of ethics as a practical philosophy, in its main historical-systematic expressions, and in their applications to agriculture, the environment, animals and the use of technology. It also develops the knowledge and attitudes that allow to the students of Agronomy and Forestry Engineering an ethical vision of the professional exercise, as well as an understanding of their role in society. Copenhagen: Environmental philosophy addresses the human relationship with the non-human world from a variety of philosophical perspectives: ethical, political, aesthetic, epistemological, and/or metaphysical. Questions explored may include In what sense are human beings a 'part of nature'? Does the natural world have intrinsic value, and what are our ethical obligations toward it? Can a distinction be drawn between humans and animals? Sydney: This unit presents a variety of philosophical issues associated with the study and management of the natural environment. We will look at questions such as: what does it mean to live in harmony with the environment? what is sustainability? why should we preserve biodiversity? what is the best way to achieve conservation goals? what are ecological models and how do they work? and what is the proper relationship between environmental science and the values found in environmental policy and management? Leuven: "The course intends to introduce the students into environmental philosophy... included under the umbrella of environmental philosophy is animal ethics and animal philosophy". This lecture and discussion based course is aimed at ecophilosophy, focused on the intersection of philisophy and ecology with a distinct aim at teaching students to think critically about these issues. Heidelberg: The world has been confronted with the knowledge of the dangerous and irreversible effects of global warming due to the emissions from fossil fuel use: extreme weather events, higher sea levels, ruined habitats, higher weather unpredictability, drought, crop failure, heatstroke, increased incidence of diseases, etc. These climatic changes, that are already happening, raise a number of issues of justice. We will discuss, among others, the questions of why we should mitigate climate change, how the remaining permissible carbon budget should be distributed fairly, what our individual responsibilities are to mitigate climate change, and what our duties are to pay for adaptation costs and compensate for losses and damages.