Key Terms  Speciesism  Prejudice for one’s own species and against other species  Sentientism  Theory that only those beings with mental states should be the subject of moral concern  Wholism  Conception of nature that sees humans and nature together as forming a moral community

Nature and Morality  Human beings have discovered in recent years that natural resources are subject to diminishment, destruction and loss  Is nature valuable in itself?  Should humans be concerned individually and morally?

Environmental Ethical Issues  Must take action to conserve and replenish what we take from nature for our own uses  Cannot continue its exploitation  Animal rights  With modern innovation, we should no longer be destroying animals for food and parts  Could be more humane raising domestics  Controversial use of animals for experimentation  Concerns over endangered species

Attitudes Toward Nature  Developed over a long period  Platonic dualism  Human beings separate and superior  Judeo-Christian teachings  Human beings have a soul whereas the rest of nature does not  Human beings have dominion over nature, must multiply

Attitudes Toward Nature  Advancement of science and technology has made nature more subservient  Industrialization has increased the use of natural resources and pollution  Population increase has meant need for land has grown as well

Arguments For Exploitation  Dominion-over-Nature  Religious – Western religions condone this in the Bible  Natural order and evolution shows human beings to be the most evolved species  Civilization more important than nature – highest evolutionary and religious order  Only humans are deserving of moral rights

Arguments Against Exploitation  Monistic wholism says that human beings and nature are parts of a whole not separated  Religious arguments have been misinterpreted  Human beings may be replaced eventually  Reasoning should not separate humans, but bring them closer to nature  Nature contains human needs and thus should be valued

Moderate Position  Nature is important and significant but not necessarily as important as humans  May be used for human ends if done with care  Generally agrees with wholism, but not totally against the good of humans  Thoughts?

PSA  Choose a specific issue you feel is not being covered in the endangerment of the environment  Using research completed in class, construct a small PSA poster that reflects the following:  What is in danger  What you want people to know  What is the impact of not acting  At least one measureable statistic, cited  Images (do your best)  What can be done to prevent further exploitation  Name on it, completed for homework or turned in today