Chapter Seven

Environmental Ethics
Melaku Beshaw (MBA)
Arba Minch, Ethiopia
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 1. Approaches to Environmental Issues
 Environmental ethics considers the ethical relationship
between people and the natural world and the kind of decisions
people have to make about the environment:

 Should we continue cut down the forests for humanistic aim?

 Should we knowingly cause the extinction of other species?

 Should we continue manufacture petrol-driven cars? etc.

An environmental ethic is the set of values or principles that

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govern a corporation's practices relating to the environment.

 Cont’d Approaches
 Society and many businesspersons now have some sense of
obligation or moral responsibility to the environment that is
expressed in different ways. For a business enterprise

 the values or principles include to take account of the

environment from the design stage through to ultimate
disposal;

 that environmental management should be the

responsibility of staff at all levels as an integral part of
their job. 3
 Cont’d  Acid rain

 Air pollution
In order to illustrate the
 Ecosystems
extensiveness of the
 Energy production
environment issue in
& consumption
society and the
challenges that confront  Nature and wildlife

business, the following  Ozone

discussion lists the
 Waste management
major concerns.
 Water quality 4
 Today, environmental problems
Climate Change 

occupy a substantial part of the

Climate change, also
international agenda. Scientist
referred to as global
inevitably point out “human” as the
warming, is "the result of primary actor in both the prevention
human activities altering and the emergence of problems.
the chemical composition
 They seek answers to some
of the atmosphere through fundamental questions:
the build-up of greenhouse
 “How can people become
gases that trap heat and environmentally conscious? "and
reflect it back to the “Do people have an ethical sense
Earth's surface." of their environments?” etc. 5
 Approaches to environmental ethics have
emerged based on people’s environmental
perspectives.

These approaches are expanded under three headings:

1. anthropocentric,

2. bio-centric, and

3. eco-centric.
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 1. Anthropocentric Approaches
Anthropocentrism consists of  Anthropocentrism regards humans as the most
the words “antro” (human)
important life form and views other life forms as
and “centrism” (center).
important only to the extent that they have a
Thus, etymologically, desirable effect on humans.
anthropocentrism means
 Anthropocentric people’s motivation for
“human-centered.”
protecting the environment is to increase their
Anthropocentric ethics
quality of life and maintain human life; the
argues that only people have
environment should be protected as long as it is
moral values. 7

for the benefit of humans.

 2. Bio centric Approaches
Bio-centric approaches expand
the boundaries of moral  Opponents of anthropocentric views emphasize

importance to include other that the root cause of the ecological crisis and

members of the biotic bad behaviors towards non-human creatures is

the tradition of interpreting the world and
community, namely plants and
nature with upon anthropocentric
animals.
perspective.
Biocentrism is a view contending
 In general, biocentrism refers to the ethics of
that all living organisms should
respect for life and focuses on all living
be respected.
beings, including plants, microbes,
8 and animals
 3. Eco centric Approaches
Beyond bio-centric ones, the
transition to eco-centric
 Eco-centric supports environmental issues because
approaches appeared in they see nature as worth preserving regardless of
important environmental the economic or lifestyle implications of
conventions at the end of the conservation.
twentieth century.
 To eco-centric, nature has a spiritual dimension and
Eco centric individuals value intrinsic value that is reflected in their experiences
nature for its own sake and, in nature and feelings about natural settings.
therefore, judge that it  Eco-centric individuals judge that nature has
deserves protection because of independent value and should receive moral
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its intrinsic value. consideration in its own right.

2. Opposition to Green Environmentalism

 Environmentalism is a heterogeneous worldwide social

and political movement, which champions the
preservation, sustainable management and restoration
of the natural environment in an endeavor to fulfill
human wants.

 To achieve the foregoing targets, environmentalists

generally call for social change, public policy reforms
and changes in the behaviours of individuals,
governments and private firms and organizations. 10
The three-pronged objectives of the environmental movement
are;
1. Nature worship,
2. A commitment to maintain the health of natural system
3. Identification of humanity as a part of to the ecosystem.

The major concerns that alarm the environmentalists are the

swift increase in the global population and consequently rising
demands for natural resources and energy and growing
pressures on natural systems as well as short sightedness,
acquisitiveness and an increasing alienation of the post-
industrialized humanity from the natural environment. 11
 The popular environmental movement began with a number of
high-profile events, which roused public awareness of
environmental issues in the 1960s.

 The important environmental events, which received great

attention, were: on 31 January 1969, an oil spill took place off
the coast of Santa Barbara, California, on 22 June, the same
year, the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio, caught fire
because of the chemicals floating on the river surface and so
on.

 In reference to the public support and awareness in the American

context, Guber (2003) notes that phrases such as “global 12

warming”.
 The level of political recognition of environmental and

sustainable development efforts is also evidenced by the

international cooperation and treaties such as the Kyoto

Protocol, and more recently, the 2009 Climate Conference

in Copenhagen. And Paris agreement in 2015 Etc.

 In fact, a movement that opposes many of

environmentalism’s, often referred to as the “anti-

environmental” movement, has grown into a significant

opposing force in recent years. 13

3. Sustainable Development
 Sustainable development is defined as development ensuring that the use
of resources and the impact on the environment today does not damage
prospects for the use of resources or the environment by future
generations.

 This was a theme in the report of the United Nations World Commission
on Environment and Development (1987), which concluded that,
continued economic growth not only is possible, but also is necessary to
reduce poverty and to sustain future generations.
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 Sustainable developments have been endorsed by many businesspersons as
an approach that allows environmental and economic concerns to
coincide and makes economic progress possible.

 Sustainable development is a natural extension of many corporate

environmental policies. It requires that management consider the effect of
its activities on the environment and on the long-term interests and
needs of stakeholders.

Business sustainable development means “adopting business strategies

and activities that meet the needs of the enterprise and its
stakeholders today while protecting, sustaining, and enhancing the
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human and natural resources that will be needed in the future.”

 4. ROI of Sustainable Environmental
Responsibility
1. An increase in investor demand.

2. An increase in brand value.

3. Increased employee engagement.

Customers, employees, communities and shareholders all

benefit from a commitment to sustainable practices which
seek to protect the planet, treat employees with respect,
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and engage with the community in a positive manner.

 17 Sustainable Development Goals
1. No Poverty 10.Reduced inequality

2. Zero Hunger 11.Sustainable cities and community

3. Good health and wellbeing 12.Responsible consumption and

4. Quality education production

13.Climate action
5. Gender equality
14.Life below water
6. Clear water and sanitation
15.Life on land
7. Affordable and clean energy
16.Peace, justice and strong institution
8. Decent work and economic growth
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17.Partnership for the goal

9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure
“Plans to protect air and water, wilderness, &
wildlife are in fact plans to protect man.”
Steward Udall

Thank You
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