Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Environmental ethic'

In this thesis I attempt to base an environmental ethic on a quality called naturalness. I examine it in terms of quantification, namely, as to whether it can quantified? I then apply the concept to specific areas such as restoration and conservation to create an environmental ethic and to show how such an ethic would be beneficial in general, and especially to policy issues concerning the environment. The thesis consists of three chapters: (1) the definition of nature and natural by way of a historical approach; (2) the place of humans in this scheme; and (3) the place of value and the discussion concerning quantification.

Ever since the environment and nonhumanity became major ethical topics, human-centered worldviews have been blamed for all that is morally wrong about our dealings with nature. Those who consider themselves nonanthropocentrists typically assume that the West’s anthropocentric axiologies and ontologies underlie all of the environmental degradations associated with our species. On the other hand, a handful of environmental philosophers argue that anthropocentrism is perfectly acceptable as a foundation for environmental ethics. According to Bryan Norton’s convergence hypothesis, "If reasonably interpreted and translated into appropriate policies, a nonanthropocentric ethic will advocate the same [environmental] policies as a suitably broad and long-sighted anthropocentrism" (Norton 2004:11). Norton notes that although adherents to either ism may disagree about the relative importance of the various reasons they have for advocating such policies, they nevertheless share an equal commitment to protecting the environment. Because any form of anthropocentrism must fundamentally favor humanity over nonhumanity, nonanthropocentrists are nevertheless concerned that such favoritism is "nothing more than the expression of an irrational bias" (Taylor 1981:215). They reason that only a nonanthropocentric ethic can guarantee that policies do not arbitrarily favor humans when their interests conflict with those of nonhumans. I argue that critics of convergence fail to appreciate that Norton’s hypothesis is limited to ideologies that he deems "reasonable" and "suitably broad and long-sighted," or else they misapprehend what these terms imply. When it comes to ethics, nonanthropocentrists and anthropocentrists alike vary along a continuum according to whether their overriding intuitions are more aligned with individualistic or collectivistic axiologies and their associated timescales. The most unreasonable, narrow, and short-sighted ideologies are those that are the most individualistic. It is at the collective end of the continuum that Norton’s proposed convergence takes place. I defend a version of anthropocentrism that I term ecological anthropocentrism.

In this dissertation I have been concerned to conduct an analysis into the theoretical role played by the concept of intrinsic value as it has been invoked by various foundations for an Environmental Ethic. Within this analysis, I have distinguished between a metaphysical conception of intrinsic value, having to do with its ontological status, and a normative conception which abstracts from any questions pertaining to ontology and pertains solely to questions of normativity and moral obligation. I have noted a symmetry between certain earlier metaethical dialogues (Sidgwick and Moore) and the more recent debates concerning value's ontology in the domain of environmental value theory. I believe that the latter day Last Person thought experiment mirrors the challenge given by Sidgwick to which Moore responded with his Beautiful World analysis. Theorists have conflated a requirement for a noninstrumentalist (intrinsic) value with the requirement for a strongly objectivist ontology for value. Hence, theorists believed that what was required was a nondispositionalist, internal notion of value... a value abstracted from any evaluative stance or even any possible evaluative stance. I show that this confusion is expressed in the present dialogue of environmental ethics. After assessing the role played by the notion of intrinsic value, I inquire into a coherent form of this notion and offer a revised theoretical framework or foundation for an environmental ethic by offering a revised account of its logical status.

Autopoiesis attempts to provide an operational definition of living systems regardless of the actual form a system takes. One of the key claims of autopoiesis is that a concept of teleology is not needed to explain what it is to be living. In this dissertation I contend that the theory of autopoiesis sets up an impoverished conception of teleology against which to argue and that, partly as a result, autopoiesis is not a fully-coherent concept. I show that the theory of autopoiesis in fact requires living things to have an immanent teleology and that there is consequently a significant convergence between a theory of autopoiesis thus amended, Aristotelian physics — especially as it concerns Aristotle’s concept of δύναμις (dunamis) — and Spinoza’s concept of conatus. I then take this convergence and show how it is relevant to an understanding of contemporary environmental ethics. After an exegesis of the concept of autopoiesis I demonstrate that the concept can be expressed in terms of Aristotle’s δύναμις; and that Spinoza’s concept of conatus owes a major debt to Aristotle in general and to the concept of δύναμις; in particular. Having established that autopoiesis and conatus can be expressed in terms of δύναμις, I examine some theories of environmental ethics in which the presence of autopoiesis or conatus, specifically, or immanent teleology, generally, are considered to be morally relevant properties and in which those things possessing these properties are morally-considerable. I then develop my own (Aristotelian) environmental ethic in which moral agents are faced with a moral imperative to take responsibility for all things which possess an immanent teleology.

Hong Kong is searching for an environmental ethic that asks us to live not as mere exploiters and consumers of natural resources, but responsibly and as if we saw the nature, supporting all of our activities and needs, as our home. In the years throughout its history, Hong Kong has struggled to understand the city and the people's relationship with the local environment, hindering efforts to move the city towards a more environmentally viable future. Without a systematic and holistic investigation into the traits, roots, and potentials of this relationship, efforts to salvage the city's worsening environmental conditions will remain scattered and in vain. In Hong Kong, the concept of environmental responsibility is largely absent among the people. The culture, economically driven and characterized primarily by materialistic values, together with a top-down and centralized management of local environmental issues, paves way for individuals to self-sanction their avoidance or disengagement from their responsibilities as moral agents. An exploration of the worldviews -- that is, the beliefs about interactions between the self, the society and the universe -- that predominated in Hong Kong's culture throughout different stages of its environmental history, reveals the root of our predicament as resting on the continuation of societal norms that ignore the necessity of individuals taking responsibility for their environmental attitudes and behaviours. Greater effort should hence be invested in restoring the feeling of personal responsibility for environmental wellbeing as the societal norm. I advocate two courses of action for invigorating a sense of environmental responsibility in Hongkongers. In the short run, drawing on existing research concerning normative social influence and the construction of personal and societal norms, techniques in marketing and advertising, and to some extent propaganda, can encourage behaviour that is more environmentally conscious. In the long run, I suggest we change the way our youth are being educated, about the environment and about ways to value. The local education system and content must be reoriented so that the teaching of environmental knowledge, and the creating of values that support environmental responsibility, are brought to the center stage. The progress toward an environmentally responsible ethic in Hong Kong has remained stagnant for far too long. If there is a time to take action and make a change, that time is now.<br>published_or_final_version<br>Philosophy<br>Master<br>Master of Philosophy

Through Her Own Eyes: Environmental Rhetoric in Women’s Autobiographical Frontier Writing identifies frontier women, those who traveled overland to the West and those who homesteaded, as historical ecofeminists. The purpose of this study is to analyze frontier women’s environmental rhetoric in their journals and letters, which encouraged readers to become closer to nature and get to know it while encountering new land in the West. Promoting a close relationship with nature, frontier women’s writing also implied conserving and protecting nature for future generations, which demonstrates how they can be retroactively labeled ecofeminists. Frontier women’s environmental rhetoric reveals their alignment with Carolyn Merchant’s theory for harmony between humankind and nature: partnership ethics. Although many historians have mentioned frontier women’s emphasis on nature in their narratives, few have explored frontier women’s nature writing at length. Glenda Riley has completed a book-length study of early American women environmentalists, but she mentions only women whose environmental work led to documented activism or membership in conservation organizations. Annette Kolodny’s work focused on frontier women’s fantasies about the west, rather than their environmental rhetoric as a way of persuading readers, whereas my work uses frontier women’s daily writing to demonstrate an evolving environmental ethic that helps to categorize them as historical ecofeminists. An archival project, this study relies upon the archived overland journals of Sarah Sutton and Nancy Sherwin, both housed at UC Berkeley’s Bancroft Library as well as the letters of female homesteader Elinore Pruitt Stewart, archived at the Sweetwater County Museum. A visit to the archives at the Sweetwater County Museum yielded the treasure of Elinore Pruitt Stewart’s numerous unpublished letters. Frontier women’s philosophical alignment with ecofeminism made it possible for ecological philosophies to begin taking root in the American West. As historical ecofeminists, frontier women’s writing laid the foundation for the modern-day ecological conscience that makes individuals work to conserve nature for future generations.

<p> Water is one of the most precious elements on Earth. Yet we find ourselves in a global water crisis, struggling to address freshwater scarcity, pollution, climate change, and the need for safe drinking water and sanitation. Given the urgency of the global water crisis, it is imperative that we reinvent our relationship to water and cultivate an integral water ethic.</p><p> This dissertation, and the ethic it explores, is grounded in an integral approach to ecology that studies phenomena across multiple perspectives (e.g., natural sciences, social sciences, and the humanities). Relating to water in an integral mode entails acknowledging that water has not only exterior, objective dimensions but also interior, subjective qualities. Thus, an integral water ethic holds that water is not a mere passive object to be exploited for human purposes; instead, this approach recognizes that water is an intrinsically valuable, vital member of the Earth community. An integral water ethic encourages humans to learn to cultivate love and compassion for water and for those suffering from the global water crisis. Through the cultivation of love and compassion for water, humans will be better able to see water not as a mere resource and commodity, but rather as a loving and compassionate member of the Earth community who nourishes all beings.</p><p> This dissertation explores three world religions (Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism) and considers the following contributions to an integral water ethic: sacramental consciousness of baptism, loving service of the Yamuna River, and compassionate wisdom of the bodhisattva. Contemplative practices for developing love and compassion for water are also shared. The purpose of this study is to draw attention to creative avenues for cultivating mutually enhancing relations between humans and water and thereby to help overcome destructive attitudes toward the natural world.</p><p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2001.<br>Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 225-231). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2012.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Despite the fact that Islam remains a powerful social force in the lives of many of its adherents, contemporary scholars lament the silence of Muslims on the environmental question. However, closer scrutiny reveals a burgeoning green movement amongst Muslims the world over. While scholarly works initially elucidated the scriptural basis for Islamic ecological ethics (ecoethics), efforts are now centred on translating the ecoethics of Islam into practice. The educational landscape of Islam is frequently put forward as the primary arena for imparting its ecological teachings. This thesis examines the connections between Islam, ecology and education, and investigates the revival of Islamic ecoethics by way of environmental education in the educational landscape of Islam broadly, and the maktab in particular. The maktab, the foundational educational establishment in Islam, remains underutilised despite its important place in the educational life of Muslims. A liberation ecotheology research framework was employed to display the richness of traditional resources and institutions in meeting contemporary environmental challenges. Through a conceptual analysis of sacred texts, traditions and contemporary thought on Islam, ecology and education, this thesis constructs an eco-justice ethic of Islam and draws out the pedagogical implications for implementing this ecoethic. Content analysis, of environmental education activities in the broader educational landscape of Islam, provides insights into environmental teaching and learning. Environmental education in the maktab, which plays a pivotal role in imparting the elementary teachings and values of Islam, is brought into focus by way of a curriculum review which examines the environmental elements encapsulated in two maktab curricula produced in South Africa. Implications for environmental teaching and learning in the maktab, are then extracted. This thesis affirms the important position of religious thought as a determiner of environmental action. It presents, from within a liberatory tradition of Islam, a theocentric eco-justice ethic which is based on the sovereignty of God, the responsible trusteeship of humankind and the intrinsic value of Creation. It puts forward an activist, transformative approach to environmental education, premised upon an integrated knowledge structure and educational objectives which require reflective and critical engagement with all ecological knowledge, responsible environmental action, and social transformation. And it proposes a transformative approach to environmental education to bring the liberatory intent of the Islamic environmental tradition into focus, both in the broader educational landscape of Islam, as well as the maktab. Muslims own a fair share of the global concern around the earth’s health and wellbeing. To varying degrees, they continue to draw upon religious teachings to shape their values, beliefs and attitudes towards life - including the environment. Revitalizing ecological ethics in the educational establishment of Islam provides an impetus to not only uncover Islam’s environmental tradition, but to affect Muslim awareness and action on the ecological question.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Ondanks die feit dat Islam ‘n sosiale krag in die lewens van baie van sy aanhangers is, beklaag hedendaagse geleerdes die stilte van Muslims op die omgewings-vraag. Nadere ondersoek toon egter ‘n ontluikende groen beweging onder Muslims die wêreld oor. Terwyl navorsing tot dusver die skriftuurlike basis vir die Islamitiese ekologiese etiek (ekoetiek) verklaar, is pogings nou gevestig op die omskepping van hierdie ekoetiek in die praktyk. Die opvoedkundige landskap van Islam is dikwels na vore gebring as die primêre arena vir die oordra van sy ekologiese leerstellings. Hierdie tesis ondervra die verband tussen Islam, ekologie en opvoeding, en ondersoek die herlewing van die Islamitiese ekoetiek deur middel van omgewingsopvoeding in die opvoedkundige landskap van Islam in die algemeen, en die maktab in die besonder. Die maktab, die belangrikste grondlegging-stigting in Islam, bly onderbenut ten spyte van sy belangrike plek in die opvoedkundige lewe van Muslims. ‘n Bevrydings-ekoteologie navorsing raamwerk was in diens geneem om die rykdom van die tradisionele middele en instellings van die Islamietise ekoetiek na vore te bring. Deur middel van ‘n konseptuele analise van heilige tekste, tradisies en hedendaagse denke oor Islam, ekologie en opvoeding, bou hierdie tesis ‘n ekogeregtigheids etiek van Islam, en ontrek die pedagogiese implikasies vir die uitvoering van hierdie ekoetiek. Inhoud analise van omgewingsopvoedingaktiwiteite in die breër opvoedkundige landskap van Islam bied verder insigte tot omgewingsopvoeding praktyke aan. Omgewingsopvoeding in die maktab, wat ‘n belangrike rol speel in die oordra van die basiese leerstellings en waardes van Islam, is by wyse van kurrikulum-hersiening ondersoek. Hierdie hersiening ondersoek die omgewings-elemente vervat in twee maktab kurrikulums wat in Suid-Afrika geproduseer is. Implikasies vir omgewingsopvoeding in die maktab word dan ontrek. Hierdie tesis bevestig die belangrike posisie van godsdienstige denke as ‘n bepaling van omgewings-aksie. Dit bied, binne ‘n bevreiheids-tradisie in Islam, ‘n teosentriese eko-geregtigheids etiek aan wat baseer is op die opperheerskap van God, die verantwoordelike herderskap van mensdom en die innerlike waarde van die skepping. Dit poneer ‘n transformatiewe benadering tot omgewingsopevoeding wat berus op ‘n geïntegreerde kennis struktuur en opvoedkundige doelwitte wat reflektiewe en kritiese omgang met ekologiese kennis vereis; verantwoordelike omgewings-aksie; en sosiale transformasie. Dit bied ook aan dat die Islamitiese omgewings-tradisie deur middel van ‘n transformatiewe benadering tot omgewingsopvoeding, beide in die breër opvoedkundige landskap van Islam sowel as die maktab, na vore gebring kan word. Muslims besit ‘n groot deel van die wêreldwye besorgdheid oor die aarde se gesondheid en welstand. Tot wisselende grade, gaan hulle voort om hulle waardes, oortuigings en houdings teenoor die lewe, insluitend die omgewing, op godsdienstige leerstellinge te baseer. Om nuwe lewe in die ekologiese etiek van Islam in die opvoedkundige vestiging te blaas, bied ‘n geleentheid aan om nie net Islam se omgewings-tradisie te ontbloot nie, maar ook om die bewustheid en optrede van Muslims op die ekologiese vraag te beïnvloed.

A land ethic within the built enviroment was examined from the perspective of the surveying community in New Zealand. The research followed a structure of context, interpretation and application; used legal analysis; and, sampled the ideologies of iwi liason officers, consultant surveyors, and local authorities. Context involved asking why a land ethic was being debated, by focusing on the current level of environmental thought, and on the actions of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) and the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors (NZIS). Some findings are: that terms such as sustainable management and nature are ambiguous cultural constructs; and, that the adoptation of an environmental policy by the NZIS continues to be a tortuous process. Interpretation involved asking what constituted a New Zealand ethic, by putting such an ethic into perspective in relation to ecophilosophy, and by searching for a contemporary sense of kaitiakitanga. Some findings are: that restraint and humility are requirements in any moral theory of nature; that kaitiakitanga is not dependent on title to land; and, that iwi liason officers are divided as to how kaitiakitanga applied to the built environment. Application involved suggesting how a land ethic could be invoked in the built environment, through the provision of green space in the form of local purpose reserves. Some findings are: that surveyors regard reserves as being significantly less vital to a community�s well-being than engineered services; and, that local authorities are not generally aware that reserve policies might have to be linked to municipal open space strategies. The broad conclusions are: that regardless of the environment that now exists, surveyors will be required to make moral choices about the environment that is sought; that a land ethic will not necessarily provide rational prescriptions directing action towards land; and, that there is inherent tension between land tenure, land use and a land ethic. Suggested avenues for further research include a comparative analysis of other landed professions; the empowerment of women within any land ethic; and, the use of content analysis as an alternative methodology.

Research question. Examining consequences of global world changes both for national social and economic systems of countries and for emerging social and economic systems such as euroregions, countries that are partners in transborder cooperation, transnational corporations etc., and stressing the importance of ethic and environmental component is the main task of given paper. New changes that are caused by new policy of new leaders in economics and in society result in advantages and disadvantages both for modern generations and for future ones. Although economic aspect of mentioned policy and efficiency of social and economic systems activity is very important but the environmental ethic component should not be ignored. And this aim for the given research explains the actuality of project. When you are citing the document, use the following link http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/36176

It is not a new question as to whether there might be an ecological ethic. This study examines contemporary efforts to engage this question philosophically. These are found to assume some conception of environmental value, however the way in which it is conceived is seen to have significant implications for the role of philosophy in the question of how we might understand environmental responsibility. If this is to be understood in a substantial sense, thus as more than mere prudent self interest and therefore prompting genuine philosophical questions, then substantial questions about the nature of values and the process of valuing must be addressed. The study shows that addressing these questions requires that we address fundamental questions about the nature of the self, and the way in which the self is constituted by the process of engaging its fundamental goods and values. However, environmental responsibility is found to be something which cannot be understood in terms of a self which engages an environmental good. This is the contemporary notion of the ‘ecological self,’ and it is found to be untenable. It is shown that environmental responsibility, if it is to be tenable in a substantial sense, must be intrinsically part of being a self, such that the task of being environmentally responsible is integrally part of the task of being a self. Kierkegaard provides an account of selfhood as a task, and his account of the self is explored. Courting paradox, Kierkegaard challenges us to understand the self as essentially a matter of both immanence and transcendence. Understanding the self in this way is the means to accommodate the possibility that environmental responsibility is an integral part of selfhood, thus an immanent potential to be realised by the individual rather than something which must be grounded philosophically.

Because water is basic to life, an ethical dimension persists in every decision related to water. By explicitly revealing the ethical ideas underlying water-related decisions, human society's relationship with water, and with natural systems of which water is part, can be contested and shifted or be accepted with conscious intention. Water management over the last century has privileged immediate human needs over those of future generations, other living beings, and ecosystems. In recent decades, improved understanding of water's importance for ecosystem functioning and ecological services for human survival is moving us beyond this growth-driven, supply-focused management paradigm. Environmental ethics challenge this paradigm by extending the ethical sphere to the environment. This research in water ethics considers expanding the conception of whom or what is morally considerable in water policy and management. <br /><br /> First, the research proposes a water ethic to balance among intragenerational equity, intergenerational equity, and equity for the environment. Second, the proposed ethic acts as an assessment tool with which to analyse water policy. <em>Water for Life: Alberta's Strategy for Sustainability</em> is the focal policy document for this analysis. This document is an example of new Canadian policy; it represents the Government of Alberta's current and future approach to water issues; and it implicitly embodies the ethical ideas that guided the document's production. To assess Water for Life's success in achieving the principles of the proposed water ethic, this case study used discourse analysis, key informant interviews, and comparison to a progressive international policy document, <em>Securing Our Water Future Together</em>, the 2004 White Paper of Victoria, Australia. <br /><br /> Key conclusions show that <em>Water for Life</em> is progressive by embracing full public participation, a watershed approach, knowledge-generation initiatives, a new planning model, and water rights security. However, barriers exist that can disrupt the strategy's success, including the first-in-time first-in-right water allocation system, the strategy's lack of detail, inadequate protection of aquatic ecosystems, ambiguity of jurisdiction over water in First Nations communities, and under-developed connections between substantive issues. The thesis also outlines recommendations for Alberta and implications for other jurisdictions. Additionally this research offers guidelines and an assessment tool grounded in broad ethical concepts to water policy development; and it encourages making ethical ideas explicit in assessment and formation of equitable and sustainable water policy.

In this dissertation I consider the nature of the relationship between orientation and language-habits in the context of environmental ethics. Specifically, I focus on the problem of orientation as a way of understanding the unabated trend of anthropocentrism in the dominant Western language-culture. Orientation operates as the attitudes, beliefs, and feelings in relation to something that we embody in our lived experiences. One way that we communicate our orientation in relation to the land is through our language-habits. In considering our language-habits, I conceptualize a process I call conceptual autopoiēsis. Conceptual autopoiēsis is the co-evolutionary coupling process of the language-habits and language-cultures of human orientation, which recreates the initial conditions of the reproduction of the specific concepts embodied in that given orientation, language-habit, and language-culture. I show how our orientation to the land is embodied in our language-habits and language-cultures. I show how orientation, language-habit, language-culture, and conceptual autopoiēsis all function as the environment from which we select the very conceptualization of our orientation and the language we use to do so. More specifically, metaphysical anthropocentrism is a kind of orientation that assumes a dualistic relationship to the land that perpetuates a disconnect from Nature that makes it impossible to have an ecocentric land ethic. I argue that in order to advance the language-habits and language-cultures that can cultivate a more ecocentric orientation capable of living in harmony with nature, we must first understand how the conceptual autopoiēsis of language-habits and language-cultures of the current Western orientation continue to orient us as separate from Nature.

Submitted by Jakeline Ortega (jakortega@unoeste.br) on 2017-06-05T22:43:38Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Mario Yudi Takada.pdf: 422990 bytes, checksum: eeae64af1b2b573ecd6e0be3a7dcad9e (MD5)<br>Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-05T22:43:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Mario Yudi Takada.pdf: 422990 bytes, checksum: eeae64af1b2b573ecd6e0be3a7dcad9e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-08-10<br>This research, linked to the line of research Educational Institution: Organization and Management, grew out of concern so that the environment has been treated by man, given the challenges posed by environmental problems that the limit would preclude human life on earth. Our objective was to investigate the limits and possibilities of environmental education in the face of environmental crisis currently experienced, justifying it, therefore, the need to identify the ethics adopted by major legal documents concerning the environment and environmental education. The methodology was qualitative research through two procedures: i) survey and literature review in books and scholarly articles to study the ethical issue in environmental education; ii) as well as desk research, we focus on the ethical conceptions present in legal documents such as the 1988 Federal Constitution, the law 9795 of 27 April 1999, which deals with environmental education, establishing the National Education Policy environmental and other provisions, the law 9394 of 20 December 1996 laying down the guidelines and bases of national education, the national Curricular Parameters of primary and secondary education, and the jurisprudence of the Brazilian courts. The results indicated that the prevailing ethics in society is anthropocentric, in which the human being puts your well-being first. The environment was objectified existing only to satisfy human needs. Nevertheless, in our legislation and the main documents of the environmental education regarding education found progress in dealing with the environment, we conclude that the ultimate goal of environmental protection discourse is to end human life.<br>A presente pesquisa, vinculada à linha de pesquisa Instituição Educacional: Organização e Gestão, surgiu da preocupação com modo em que o meio ambiente vem sendo tratado pelo homem, haja vista os desafios postos pelos problemas ambientais que no limite impossibilitariam a vida humana na terra. O nosso objetivo foi investigar os limites e as possibilidades da educação ambiental face à crise ambiental vivenciada atualmente, justificando-se, portanto, a necessidade de identificar a ética adotada pelos principais documentos legais referentes ao meio ambiente e à educação ambiental. A metodologia adotada foi a pesquisa qualitativa, por meio de dois procedimentos: i) levantamento e análise bibliográfica em livros e artigos acadêmicos, para estudar a questão ética na educação ambiental; ii) e também a pesquisa documental, em que focalizamos as concepções éticas presentes nos documentos legais tais como a Constituição Federal de 1988, a lei 9795, de 27 de abril de 1999, que dispõe sobre a educação ambiental, institui a Política Nacional de Educação Ambiental e dá outras providências, a lei 9394, de 20 de dezembro de 1996, que estabelece as diretrizes e bases da educação nacional, nos Parâmetros Curriculares Nacionais do ensino fundamental e médio, e a jurisprudência dos tribunais brasileiros. Os resultados indicaram que a ética predominante na sociedade é antropocêntrica, na qual o ser humano coloca o seu bem estar em primeiro lugar. O meio ambiente foi objetificado existindo apenas para satisfazer as necessidades humanas. Apesar disso, em nossa legislação e nos principais documentos da educação referente à educação ambiental encontramos evolução no trato com o meio ambiente, concluímos que o objetivo final do discurso de proteção ambiental tem como fim a vida humana.

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: I begin this assignment with an examination of verses such as Gen. 1:28 from the period of primeval history in the Old Testament (0. T.) of the Christian Bible which have been seen by some commentators, particularly Lynn White, as being responsible for a despotic attitude towards the natural environment and consequently for much of the damage that has been done to the environment. These texts are critically examined to determine whether one may interpret them in that manner but also taking into account the form and context of writing. The 'despotic' interpretation of these texts is contrasted with the views of others, such as Robin Attfield who see in them a call to stewardship, not a licence to ruthlessly subjugate. Attfield particularly does not believe that these ancient texts can be held responsible for the present ecological crisis. Thereafter an examination is made ofO.T. texts which refer to the concept of rest for the earth which, for our present-day context is interpreted in this assignment as a rest from the rigours of environmental degradation and from the over-exploitation of the earth's resources. New Testament (N.T.) texts are also critically examined in section 4, examining in the gospels Jesus' attitude towards the natural environment, and also other N.T. texts, particularly from the epistles ofSt Paul. The conclusion in this section is that the N.T. writers portray a benevolent attitude towards non-human nature and portray God as caring for even those inhabitants of the natural realm which humans may deem insignificant, eg, the sparrows referred to in Luke 12: 6. In section 5, there is once again an examination ofN.T. texts, but this time for the purposes of re-interpreting the concept of salvation so that it embraces the whole of creation and not only humankind. The point of departure here is that humans cannot be separated from their non-human environment on this earth. Salvation and reconciliation is for the whole of the created order, as St Paul seems to indicate. Therefore in this section of the assignment an holistic view of salvation is adopted: we are saved in our world and with our world, not apart from it and out of it. Section 6 endeavours to draw together the criteria that would inform an environmental ethic that Christians can subscribe to, given the approach that has been taken in the previous sections of the assignment; 6.2 lists the features necessary for such an ethic. An examination is also made of various ethical theories such as Natural Law (Teleology), Utilitarianism, and Deontology and what impact they would have if applied in an environmental framework. This section ends in 6.5 with an overview of the main tenets of the Deep Ecology movement, not viewing it so much as an ethical system, but more as a set of values which accord with a deep respect for all of nature and which may guide humankind to transform destructive attitudes towards the environment. Because this assignment deals with Christian morality in respect of the environment, it is necessary to critically examine the concept of stewardship which is the thrust of section 7, titled 'Stewardship Revisited'. The views of Robin Attfield, John Passmore and William Dyrness with regard to stewardship in the Bible and Christian tradition are contrasted. Thereafter Elizabeth Dodson Gray's views are referred to and supported as the way towards a much-needed transformation of humans' attitude to the natural environment. Gray rejects the notion of stewardship as an acceptable environmental ethic because it retains the overtones of domination and paternalism. It is concluded that stewardship, even if it is biblically justified and is supported by Christian tradition, has failed to arrest the degradation and destruction of the natural environment caused by human activities. This then leads on to the next section where this assignment supports Gray's 'Ethic of Attunement'. 'Becoming Attuned', the heading of the section describes in two words the basis of Elizabeth Gray's environmental ethic. It is noted here that she calls upon humankind to become attuned to our ecosystems and the life-support systems in the biosphere and to plan and structure our industries and activities to 'fit in'. Gray's ethic of attunement is also supported because it is practical, down-to-earth and takes into account the needs of human beings as part of nature. Section 9 gives a brief overview of some practical implications and applications of an ethic of attunement. The fields of education, industry, farming, energy and nature-conservation are touched on. The last subsection under 9, 9.6, gives a recent example of a clash between human and non-human nature in the Cape Peninsula, namely, the so-called invasion of residential areas by baboons. How this problem may be dealt with under an ethic of attunement is discussed. This assignment concludes in section 10 with the exhortation to move beyond an ethic of stewardship of the natural environment to one ofattunement. Moreover, the urgency of doing so is emphasised. If we do not change our ways to fit in with nature, planet Earth is doomed to eco logical destruction.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In die begin van hierdie taak word verskei Bybelse verse uit die oergeskiedenis in die Ou Testament (O.T.) ondersoek om te bepaal ofhulle verantwoordelik gehou kan word vir die mens se despotiese gesindheid teenoor die natuurlike omgewing en die gevolglike skade wat so 'n gesindheid veroorsaak. Verklaarders soos veral Lynn White is van mening dat verse soos Genesis 1: 28 wel aanleiding gegee het tot so 'n despotiese gesindheid teenoor die omgewing. Hierdie mening word in teenstelling geplaas met die sienswyse van skrywers soos Robin Attfield wie meen dat die verse onder bespreking te doen het met rentmeesterskap eerder as despotisme. Bowendien glo Attfield dat hierdie oeroue tekste nie verantwoordelik gehou kan word vir ons hedendaagse ekologiese krisis nie. Daarna word ondersoek ingestel in die O.T. tekste wat te doen het met die konsep van rus vir die aarde. Die konsep word in hierdie deel van die taak vertolk in ons hedendaagse konteks as 'n_rus vir die aarde van omgewingsdegradasie en die onmatige ontginning van die aarde se hulpbronne. Tekste uit die Nuwe Testament (N.T.) word ook ondersoek. In afdeling 4 word gekyk na Jesus se woorde en gesindheid met betrekking tot die natuurlike omgewing asook ander verse uit die sendbriewe van Paulus. Hier is die gevolgtrekking dat die N.T. skrywers welwillendheid betoon teenoor die nie-menslike natuur en dat hulle vir God afbeeld as besorgd oor die geringste van wesens in die natuurlike wêreld, dit wat die mens as nietig mag beskou, soos die mossies waarna verwys word in Lukas 12: 6. In afdeling 5 word daar weereens N. T. tekste ondersoek, maar hierdie keer met die doelom die tradisionele dogma van verlossing om te skep sodat dit die hele skepping omhels en nie net die mensdom nie. Hier is die uitgangspunt dat ons nie die mens kan afsonder van die res van die skepping nie. Verlossing en versoening is vir die hele skepping, soos dit blyk in party dele van Paulus se briewe. 'n Alomvattende benadering tot verlossing word in hierdie deel van die taak bevorder: ons word verlos in en met die res van die skepping, en nie apart daarvan nie. Afdeling 6 poog om die maatstawwe te identifiseer wat behoort deel te wees van 'n omgewingsetiek vir Christene, gegewe die rigting wat ingeslaan is in die vorige afdelings van die taak. In 6.2 is daar 'n lys opgestel van die maatstawwe wat nodig geag is. Verskeie etiese teorieë soos Utilitarisme en Teleologie word nagegaan om hulle uitwerking op omgewingsetiek te bepaal. Hierdie afdeling eindig met 6.5 waar die grondbeginsels van die 'Deep Ecology' beweging voorgehou word as die soort waardes wat die mensdom kan lei om 'n_innige respek vir die hele natuur te koester. Daar word saamgestem met die mening dat 'Deep Ecology' nie 'n praktiese, stelselmatige omgewingsetiek is nie, maar, as ons die ideale en grondbeginsels daarvan aanneem, mag dit die nodige transformasie veroorsaak in mense se verkeerde gesindheid teenoor die natuur. Omdat hierdie taak met Christelike omgewingsetiek te doen het, is dit nodig om die konsep van rentmeesterskap as omgewingetiek te ondersoek, want dit is deesdae die oorheersende nadering in die Christelike kerk. Die menings van Robin Attfield, John Passmore en William Dyrness met betrekking tot rentmeesterskap word in teenstelling getrek. Daarna word gekyk na Elizabeth Dodson Gray se sienswyse aangaande die etiek van rentmeesterskap teenoor die omgewing. Haar sienswyse word ondersteun - dat rentmeesterskap hoofsaaklik 'n etiek van heerskappy of baasspeel is. Die gevolgtrekking hier is dat rentmeesterskap nie meer voorgehou kan word as 'n paslike omgewingetiek nie. Dit het nie tot dusver geslaag om die degradasie en vernietiging van die natuur deur die mens stop te sit nie. Gray sê dat die mens in ooreenstemming moet kom met die natuur ('become attuned'). Dit is die inhoud van afdeling 8 - 'n uitleg van haar 'Ethic of Attunement'. Haar uitgangspunt is dat die mens homlhaarself moet sien as deel van die natuur en nie as oorheerser nie. Al die mens se aktiwiteite, en veral die nywerheid, moet inpas by die natuur se siklusse. Gray se etiek word ondersteun omdat dit prakties is en omdat dit die belangstellings en benodighede van die mensdom in ag neem, maar as deel van die natuur. Afdeling 9 word gebruik om kortliks te skets wat sommige van die implikasies en praktiese toepassings van hierdie etiek in die samelewing mag wees. Hier word gekyk na die uitwerking op opvoeding, nywerheid, boedery, energie en natuurbewaring. In die laaste onder-afdeling in hierdie afdeling, 9.6, is daar 'n beskrywing van 'n spesifieke probleem wat te doen het met die botsing tussen die mens en nie-menslike natuur. Die onlangse botsings tussen mense en bobbejane in die Kaapse Skiereiland word gebruik om te sien hoe Gray se omgewingsetiek van 'attunement' in so 'n situasie gebruik kan word om 'n oplossing te kry. Die taak eindig met afdeling 10 waar mense aangespoor word om die omgewingsetiek van 'attunement' aan te neem en die etiek van rentmeesterskap af te skaf Bowendien word daar gepleit dat dit dringend moet gebeur want as ons nie ons algemene gesindheid van oorheersing verander nie, is die aarde verdoem tot vernietiging van die natuur.

Owing to the authorâ s interest in and concern for earthâ s processes, healthy ecosystems, and environmental decline and devastation, this thesis examines the human â nature relationship, as it relates to landscape architecture, through spiritual, mathematical, geometrical, historical, economical, ecological, philosophical and ethical perspectives. Sustainable design and eco-revelatory design methods are also explored in order to aid in the development of a personal design ethic that defines and produces ecologically responsible works of landscape architecture. The goal is to establish a personal framework for design that results in built landscapes that are ecologically more benign, holistically more functional, and culturally more significant than standard practices.<p> Research methodologies include literature review, case study analysis, project site analysis, and personal interviews. Findings suggest that despite a longstanding and growing call for a more harmonious relationship between nature and anthropogenic changes on the land, the green movement remains a loosely defined alternative undercurrent. The field of landscape architecture is uniquely poised to be a leader in the sustainable revolution; this is especially true when its practitioners, researchers and theorists are dedicated to ideals and activities that bring about true ecological value. For the individual designer, the experience of developing and committing to a personal design ethic can be empowering, and can produce work that has more mettle, veracity and purpose than the designer has previously known.<br>Master of Landscape Architecture

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-26T13:19:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 texto completo.pdf: 4628556 bytes, checksum: 73e3fc950fa8c14dab7d4e44f05b0f6d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-06-21<br>Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior<br>This work focused on living in Viçosa, MG, from the viewpoint of its population, using as reference its social environmental problems, and supported by theoretical discussions on urban sustainability and the new environmental ethics. The objective of this work was to identify the possibilities and/or limitations in implementing urban sustainability and the new environmental ethics. The qualitative research was guided by the following sources: secondary data; photographic documentation; interviews; Viçosa Municipal Chamber s meeting minutes from 2001 to 2010; and local newspaper articles from 2001 to 2011. The sources investigated showed that the process of transformation of Vicosa s urban space had as its main driving force the creation of ESAV in 1922 today s Universidade Federal de Vicosa (UFV) attracting professionals and students. This process took place at an accelerated pace, without planning. Based on the photographic analyses, it was possible to detect some signs of the changes in the urban scenario as a result of these events. Different changes were brought about by the main local agents: the political power, the real estate agencies, federal entities, the floating population, and the permanent population. These transformations had a negative impact on the city of Viçosa, such as the environmental hazards reflected in the landscape, generating problems to the population, such as illegal constructions (in permanent protection areas); São Bartolomeu Stream pollution ; accelerated construction of skyscrapers; traffic jam; sound and visual pollution; garbage in the streets; and poorly maintained sidewalks and streets. Overall, the data found in the weekly newspaper Folha da Mata and in the Municipal Chamber s meeting minutes are rather similar. As the sources reveal, the population is mainly concerned with the city s infrastructure, often requesting improvements and solutions for their particular streets or suburbs, despite the fact that these problems exist throughout the city. However timidly, the population s manifestations signal a more critical view of the reality. The interview analyses show that most the interviewees are aware of the problems faced by Vicosa, and of the effect such problems have on their own life. However, most do not perceive themselves as responsible and co-participators in creating these problems, attributing both the causes and power to solve them to the local public government and to the UFV. Despite that, some perceptions point to the possibility of achieving changes, such as the value attributed to popular participation in the process of transformation, and in the decisionmaking process involving sustainable actions, shown by different interviewees. Even though it is impossible to generalize, these specific manifestations represent the beginning of a process of construction of urban sustainability. The liabilities are related to the attitude of some citizens who do not see themselves as co-participators in this process of transformation and /or, in the solution of the problems. However, one should bear in mind that, since this work focus on the population s perception of living in Viçosa, using as reference its social environmental issues, these actors are just part of a process involving other actors: speculative real state agents; and the State, represented by the local public power and by the UFV, which, while responsible for Vicosa s prominent status in the national scenario, is equally responsible for its problems, being, thus, part of the process.<br>Este trabalho focalizou o viver na cidade de Viçosa, MG, a partir da percepção de seus moradores, tendo como referência seus problemas socioambientais, e se apoiou em discussões teóricas sobre a sustentabilidade urbana e a nova ética ambiental. O objetivo do trabalho foi identificar as possibilidades e, ou, os limites para se pensar na construção da sustentabilidade urbana e da nova ética ambiental. A pesquisa de natureza qualitativa se orientou pelas seguintes fontes: dados secundários; documentação fotográfica; entrevistas; atas das reuniões da Câmara Municipal de Viçosa, entre os anos de 2001 e 2010; jornal do município entre os anos de 2001 e 2011. As fontes consultadas permitiram compreender que o processo de reprodução do espaço urbano de Viçosa teve como principal mola propulsora a instalação da ESAV em 1922 atual UFV já que este elemento atraiu pessoas para trabalhar e estudar na instituição. Esse processo ocorreu de forma acelerada e sem planejamento. A partir das análises das imagens foi possível conhecer algumas marcas que ficaram na paisagem urbana em consequência de eventos que ali aconteceram. Diferentes mudanças foram provocadas pelos principais agentes da cidade: pelo poder político local, pelos agentes imobiliários, pelas entidades federais, pela população flutuante e pelos residentes fixos. Essas ações tiveram consequências para a cidade, como os problemas socioambientais que se materializam na paisagem e geraram problemas para a população residente. Problemas, como construções ilegais (áreas de proteção permanente); poluição do ribeirão São Bartolomeu; verticalização; trânsito; poluição sonora e visual; lixo nas vias públicas; e calçadas e vias mal pavimentadas, são exemplos. De modo geral, os dados encontrados no jornal Folha da Mata e na Câmara Municipal são bastante parecidos. Nessas fontes, os moradores se referem, sobretudo, à infraestrutura da cidade, muitas vezes apresentando pedidos de melhorias para problemas que estão em sua rua ou em seu bairro, apesar de serem identificados em toda a cidade. Porém, ainda que timidamente, as manifestações de moradores sinalizaram para uma visão mais crítica da realidade. No que se refere às entrevistas, observou-se que a maioria dos entrevistados percebe os problemas de Viçosa, assim como a interferência dos mesmos no viver. Além disso, a maior parte dos entrevistados não se percebe como corresponsáveis e coparticipantes do processo de geração dos problemas, atribuindo tanto as causas como o poder de solucionar esses problemas ao poder público e à UFV. Apesar disso, foram identificadas percepções que sinalizam possibilidades de se pensar em mudanças, como a valorização atribuída à participação popular no processo de mudanças, e na tomada de pequenas atitudes sustentáveis, demonstrada por diferentes entrevistados. Mesmo que seja impossível generalizar, essas manifestações, ainda que pontuais, representam uma semente na possibilidade de se pensar na construção da sustentabilidade urbana. Os limites estão relacionados à postura de moradores que não se veem como coparticipantes nesse processo de geração e, ou, na solução de problemas. Contudo, se o trabalho focaliza a percepção dos moradores em relação ao viver na cidade de Viçosa, tendo como referência as questões socioambientais que nela se apresentam, há que se considerar que esses atores são apenas parte da trama que envolve outros atores: os agentes da especulação imobiliária; o Estado, representado pelo poder público local e também a UFV, que apesar de projetar a cidade no cenário nacional, é também responsável pelos problemas na cidade, sendo, portanto, partes do processo.

270 pages<br>I theorize and offer some evidence that humans inadvertently risk exacerbating the loss of maintenance-dependent species on private land by using species-based land-use regulation to seek other benefits. Drawing evidence primarily from the US, I argue that such regulation poses a risk to maintenance-dependent species, that humans routinely disregard this risk, and that this disregard widely serves to defend the power of individuals and organizations to use such regulation to seek other benefits. I suggest this implies that with constraints on public funding, humans might improve the survival of some species by clarifying the purpose of such regulation and considering openly refraining from such regulation for some species. I also suggest such change might depend on articulating the issue as whether the survival of a species could ever depend on individuals having a right to conserve or maintain it without selectively incurring harm from regulation intended to save it.

Se la "consapevolezza" richiede una migliore considerazione della biodiversità e una trasformazione delle pratiche, si pone per tutti gli attori, anche se in modi molto diversi, la questione di sapere quale biodiversità proteggere e come agire in modo appropriato. Questa tesi esamina i legami tra le trasformazioni nella conoscenza della biodiversità e la valutazione delle sue proprietà significative, basandosi sullo studio della compensazione delle perdite di biodiversità. Osservando il lavoro dell'IPBES durante una sessione plenaria nel 2018, analizziamo prima i negoziati e le implicazioni percepite della conoscenza della biodiversità globale. Poi, le trasformazioni causate dalle compensazioni sono studiate concentrandosi sul loro emergere a livello globale, prendendo poi come caso di studio l'attuazione di queste politiche in Colombia. A tal fine, dieci mesi di lavoro sul campo sono stati condotti nel paese nel 2018-2019, compresi diversi mesi di etnografia all'interno della sua autorità ambientale nazionale — ANLA, incaricata di autorizzare i progetti. Invece di analizzare se le compensazioni possono effettivamente mantenere la loro promessa di rendere compatibili conservazione e sviluppo, questa ricerca articola la sociologia morale francese e la sociologia pragmatica per fare un passo indietro e guardare alla molteplicità di effetti contraddittori che lo sviluppo di questa politica produce, e alle lotte degli attori per darle un senso e determinare un modo coerente di orientare le loro indagini e azioni. Attraverso il suo carattere multisituato, questa tesi mostra non solo le riconfigurazioni multiple della nozione di biodiversità e delle sue componenti causate da valutazioni globali, compensazioni di biodiversità e valutazioni di impatto, ma anche l'attualizzazione dell'etica ambientale nelle pratiche attraverso le valutazioni, e la loro inseparabilità da una rete di valutazioni di conoscenze, istituzioni, politiche, procedure e attori. Questo lavoro contribuisce anche alla comprensione delle scale e della loro elaborazione come luoghi di contestazione, mostrando il loro ruolo chiave nella valutazione dell'impatto e più in generale nella definizione e articolazione dei problemi e delle soluzioni riguardanti la crisi della biodiversità. Questa tesi mostra infine come, mentre le compensazioni sono considerate scientifiche o tecniche e basate su convenzioni stabilizzate, gli attori si interrogano costantemente sul posto e lo spazio che il "politico", cioè la possibilità di andare oltre il linguaggio egemonico della valutazione, può, deve o prende nei processi in cui si intrecciano fatti e valutazioni.<br>While 'awareness' calls for a greater consideration of biodiversity and a transformation of practices, the question arises for all actors, albeit in very different ways, as to what is this biodiversity that should be protected and how to act appropriately. This thesis examines the links between transformations of knowledge about biodiversity and the valuation of its meaningful properties, by drawing on the study of biodiversity offsets. The observation of the IPBES work during a plenary in 2018 allows first the analysis of the negotiations and perceived implications of global biodiversity knowledge. Then, the transformations caused by biodiversity offsets are studied by focusing on their emergence at a global level and then by taking as a case study the implementation of these policies in Colombia. For this purpose, a ten-month fieldwork has been carried out in the country in 2018-2019, including several months of ethnography within its national environmental authority — the ANLA, in charge of the licensing of projects. Instead of analysing whether offsets can actually fulfil their promises, which consist in compatibilizing conservation and development, this research articulates moral sociology with French pragmatic sociology to take a step back by looking at the multiplicity of contradictory effects that the development of this policy produces, and the struggles of actors to make sense of it and determine a coherent way to orient their inquiries and actions. Through its multi-sited character, this research shows not only the multiple reconfigurations of the notion of biodiversity and its components caused by global assessments, biodiversity offsets and impact evaluations, but also the actualization of environmental ethics in practices through valuations, and their inseparability from a web of valuations of knowledges, institutions, politics, procedures and actors. This work also contributes to understanding scales and scale-making as sites of contestation by showing their key role in the valuation of impacts and more largely in defining and articulating problems and solutions with regard to the biodiversity crisis. This thesis finally demonstrates how, while offsets are considered scientific or technical and based on stabilized conventions, actors constantly questioned the place and space that the ‘political’, that is the possibility of overcoming the hegemonic language of evaluation, may, should, or take in the processes in which facts and valuations are woven.<br>Si la "prise de conscience" appelle à une meilleure prise en compte de la biodiversité et à une transformation des pratiques, la question se pose pour tous les acteurs, bien que de manières très différentes, de savoir quelle est cette biodiversité à protéger et comment agir de manière appropriée. Cette thèse examine les liens entre les transformations des connaissances sur la biodiversité et la valuation de ses propriétés signifiantes, en s’appuyant sur l’étude des compensations pour pertes de biodiversité. L'observation des travaux de l'IPBES lors d'une plénière en 2018 permet d’abord d'analyser les négociations et les implications perçues des connaissances sur la biodiversité mondiale. Ensuite, les transformations provoquées par les compensations sont étudiées en se focalisant sur leur émergence au niveau mondial, puis en prenant comme cas d'étude la mise en œuvre de ces politiques en Colombie. Dans ce but, un travail de terrain de dix mois a été réalisé dans le pays en 2018-2019, dont plusieurs mois d'ethnographie au sein de son autorité environnementale nationale - l'ANLA, en charge de l'autorisation des projets. Au lieu d'analyser si les compensations peuvent effectivement tenir leurs promesses, qui consistent à compatibiliser conservation et développement, cette recherche articule sociologie morale et sociologie pragmatique française pour prendre du recul en s'intéressant à la multiplicité des effets contradictoires que produit le développement de cette politique, et aux luttes des acteurs pour lui donner du sens et déterminer une manière cohérente d'orienter leurs enquêtes et leurs actions. Par son caractère multisitué, cette thèse montre non seulement les multiples reconfigurations de la notion de biodiversité et de ses composantes provoquées par les évaluations globales, les compensations de biodiversité et les évaluations d'impact, mais aussi l'actualisation de l'éthique environnementale dans les pratiques à travers les valuations, et leur inséparabilité d'un réseau de valuations des savoirs, des institutions, des politiques, des procédures et des acteurs. Ce travail contribue également à la compréhension des échelles et leur élaboration comme lieux de contestation, en montrant leur rôle clé dans l'évaluation des impacts et plus largement dans la définition et l'articulation des problèmes et des solutions concernant la crise de la biodiversité. Cette thèse montre finalement comment, alors que les compensations sont considérées comme scientifiques ou techniques et fondées sur des conventions stabilisées, les acteurs remettent constamment en question la place et l'espace que le "politique", c'est-à-dire la possibilité de dépasser le langage hégémonique de l'évaluation, peut, devrait ou prend dans les processus dans lesquels faits et valuations s’entremêlent.<br>Si bien la "concienciación" exige una mayor consideración de la biodiversidad y una transformación de las prácticas, todos los actores se preguntan, aunque de forma muy diferente, qué es esa biodiversidad que hay que proteger y cómo actuar adecuadamente. Esta tesis examina los vínculos entre las transformaciones del conocimiento sobre la biodiversidad y la valuación de sus propiedades significativas, basándose en el estudio de las compensaciones por pérdida de biodiversidad. La observación de los trabajos de la IPBES durante una sesión plenaria en 2018 permite, primeramente, analizar las negociaciones y las implicaciones percibidas del conocimiento de la biodiversidad mundial. A continuación, se estudian las transformaciones provocadas por las compensaciones, centrándose en su surgimiento a nivel mundial y luego tomando como caso de estudio la implementación de estas políticas en Colombia. Para este propósito, se ha realizado un trabajo de campo de diez meses en el país en 2018-2019, incluyendo varios meses de etnografía dentro de su autoridad ambiental nacional — la ANLA, encargada del licenciamiento de proyectos. En lugar de analizar si las compensaciones pueden realmente cumplir sus promesas, que consisten en compatibilizar la conservación y el desarrollo, esta investigación articula la sociología moral con la sociología pragmática francesa para dar un paso atrás observando la multiplicidad de efectos contradictorios que produce el desarrollo de esta política, y las luchas de los actores para darle sentido y determinar una forma coherente de orientar sus indagaciones y acciones. A través de su carácter multisituado, esta investigación evidencia no sólo las múltiples reconfiguraciones de la noción de biodiversidad y sus componentes provocadas por las evaluaciones globales, las compensaciones y las evaluaciones de impacto, sino también la actualización de la ética ambiental en las prácticas a través de las valuaciones, y su inseparabilidad de un entramado de valuaciones de saberes, instituciones, políticas, procedimientos y actores. Este trabajo también contribuye a la comprensión de las escalas y su elaboración como lugares de impugnación, mostrando su papel clave en las valuaciones de impactos y, en mayor medida, en la definición y articulación de los problemas y las soluciones con respecto a la crisis de la biodiversidad. Por último, esta tesis demuestra cómo, mientras las compensaciones se consideran científicas o técnicas y se basan en convenciones estabilizadas, los actores cuestionan constantemente el lugar y el espacio que lo "político", es decir la posibilidad de superar el lenguaje hegemónico de la evaluación, puede, debe o toma en los procesos en los que se tejen hechos y valuaciones.

<p>This study focuses on ecofeminist ethical theory. A first aim is to clarify ecofeminist views on five central issues in the field of environmental ethics. These issues are: (1) Views of nature, (2) social constructivism and nature, (3) values of nature, (4) ethical contextualism, and (5) ethical pluralism. A second aim is to compare ecofeminist standpoints with certain standpoints within nonfeminist environmental ethical theory. A third aim is to critically discuss some of the main standpoints in ecofeminism. The analysis focuses on the works of Karen Warren, Sallie McFague, Chris Cuomo, and Carolyn Merchant. Other important sources are the environmental philosophers and ethicists J. Baird Callicott, Paul Taylor, Irene Klaver, Bryan G. Norton, Christopher Stone, Eugene Hargrove, Holmes Rolston III, Per Ariansen, Don E. Marietta, and Bruno Latour.</p><p>The result of this study is that there are no main differences between ecofeminism and nonfeminist environmental ethics regarding the main standpoints on the five issues. Rather, the significant differences are found within these main standpoints. In addition, one important characteristic of ecofeminist ethics is its "double nature," that is, the fact that it is rooted in feminism and environmentalism. The double nature of ecofeminism results in a foundation out of which ecofeminism as an environmental philosophy has a unique potential to handle some of the theoretical tensions that environmental ethics creates.</p><p>From the perspective that environmental problems consist of complex clusters of natureculture- discourse and that environmental ethical theory ought to be action guiding, it is argued that ecofeminist ethical theory has an advantage compared to nonfeminist environmental ethics. This standpoint is explained by the fact that ecofeminism holds a variety of views of nature, kinds of social constructivism and contextualism, and conceptions of values and of the self, and from the presumption that this variety reflects the reality of environmental problems. However, in order for ecofeminist ethical theory to fulfill its promise as an acceptable environmental ethical theory, its theoretical standpoints ought to be explicated and further clarified.</p>

This thesis presents an environmental ethic based on the philosophy of Martin Heidegger. Chapter One uses Heidegger's conception of 'dwelling' as the basis for a satisfying account of the 'otherness' or alterity of nature. Chapter Two draws upon Heidegger's writings on 'the dif-ference', Madhyamaka Buddhist philosophy and the metaphysics of Alfred North Whitehead to develop a 'dialectical' conception of holism which can accommodate both the account of alterity presented in Chapter One and an account of the intrinsic value of individual beings. Chapter Three frames this conception of environmental holism in terms of ethics. It is argued that Heidegger's ideal of 'releasement' can be thought of as an essential 'function' of humans, the exercise of which promotes human flourishing. Extending this Aristotelian line of reasoning, it is shown how one can draw upon Heidegger's philosophy to articulate a form of environmental virtue ethic. Chapter Four investigates the charge that Heidegger's later thought is quietistic, a general allegation which is analysed into four interrelated specific charges: 1) the accusation that Heidegger is advocating a passive withdrawal from the world; 2) Adorno's charge in Negative Dialectics that Heidegger's philosophy is inimical to critical thought; 3) the objection that Heidegger is unable to deal adequately with either interhuman relations or the relations between humans and nonhuman animals; and 4) the charge that Heidegger's later writings cannot be brought to bear upon practical environmental issues. In answer to this last objection, case studies are presented of two environmental issues: 1) the environmental impact of tourism; and 2) the practice of environmental restoration.

The study of ethical practice in tourism among scholars and decision makers alike has blossomed over the pastten years. Urged on by the emergence of niche tourism marketing campaigns in sustainable tourism and by a widerglobal trend toward increased corporate transparency, the questions of motivating and maintaining ethical practicein one of the world’s most influential industries has received evermore attention in academia and the policydevelopment environment. This paper contributes to an understanding of ethical practice within the tourismindustry by analysing the potential barriers which exist to the implementation of an industry wide Code of Ethicsin a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic environment. Utilising the symbolic interactionism approach an analyticalmodel was constructed to investigate the institutional context of a proposed code of ethics for the tourism industryof Crimea. Focusing on cultural values, socio-economic status and institutional capacity it was found thatsignificant cultural distance and an underdeveloped tourism infrastructure posed the greatest potential disruptionto the implementation of an industry wide code.

A presente tese trata da concepção de projeto sustentável para a cidade - o caso de Uberlândia, Minas Gerais. A hipótese que se coloca é que o desenho ambiental urbano, em um projeto sustentável, além de responder às necessidades básicas da cidade de habitar, locomover, trabalhar e recrear, promove, também, a conexão sociocultural com a natureza, possibilitando o desenvolvimento da consciência e da identidade cultural de um lugar e de um povo. E, a partir da visão de mundo ecológica, tem o veio d\'água como elemento-chave estruturador do desenho da cidade. É uma abordagem em que a questão reside em colocar a o desenho ambiental urbano no centro da produção da cidade. Em síntese, trata-se de destacar o projeto sustentável como fio condutor da concepção e organização territorial, contrapondo aos modelos funcionais, administrativos e econômicos, cuja aplicação tem levado o ambiente urbano a processos intensos de degradação, de fragmentação e de insustentabilidade. Tem como premissa filosófica a dimensão ecológica, que estabelece os pilares para o pensamento sobre a organização das cidades. Nessa dimensão, está a visão de mundo ecológica, os princípios das teorias não lineares (Morin, 1990), a sustentabilidade e a ética ecológica. A partir dessa visão, a dimensão ambiental (McHarg, 1969; Spirn, 1995; Hough, 2004) se estrutura em dois eixos de análise: o ambiente biótico e o urbano. No biótico, destacam-se os links ecológicos como mediadores das interconexões ecológicas em que a água é elemento fundamental a existência da vida. No urbano, os vínculos antropossociais são assinalados dos como estruturantes da dinâmica urbana e por meio da identidade cultural e urbanidade, em que o sentido de pertencimento e pertinência é fortalecido pela condição de conectividade e pela qualidade da imagem urbana estabelecidas na dimensão da teia urbana. O estudo da cidade de Uberlândia visa aplicar tais premissas teóricas na leitura ambiental e, ao mesmo tempo, auxiliar no processo de instrumentalização do processo projetual do projeto sustentável para a cidade.<br>This thesis deals with the conception of sustainable design for the city - the case study of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais. The hypothesis that arises is that the urban environmental design in sustainable design, beyond responding the basic needs of the city as live, move, work and leisure, promotes also the socio and cultural connection with nature, enabling the development of consciousness and the cultural identity. And, from the ecological world-view, has the watercourses as a key design, an element-key structuring the city design conception. This is an approach in which consist to centralize the urban environmental design in central urban space production. In summary, it is to highlight the sustainable design as a conductor of territorial conception and organization, contrasting the functional models, administrative and economics ones, which has been taken the urban environmental to intense process of degradation, fragmentation and un-sustainability. It has as philosophical premise the ecology dimension, which establishes the cornerstones to the thinking about cities organization. In this dimension there is the ecological world-view, the non linear theories (Morin, 1990), the sustainability and ecological ethic. From this vision, the environmental dimension (McHarg, 1969; Spirn, 1995; Hough, 2004) structures itself in two axes analysis: the biotic and urban environment. At biotic ambient, it highlights the ecological links as mediators of ecological interconnections in that the water is the fundamental element to existence of life. At urban ambient, the social and cultural ties are highlighted as structures of urban dynamic and through the culture identity and urbanity, in which the sense of belonging and relevance is strengthened by the connectivity condition and by the urban image established in the urban web dimension. The case study of Uberlandia city aims to apply such theoretical premises in reading the environmental panorama and, at the same time, to assist the instrumentalization of city sustainable design process.

Environmental ethics and environmental journalism are influencing the developing philosophy of environmental citizenship. This philosophy involves the ideas that people are part of the environment, that the future depends on a healthy environment, and that action on behalf of the environment is necessary. It applies to individuals, communities, large and small companies and corporations, governments, and a coalition of nations. Environmental philosophers and environmental journalists can work together, in a symbiotic way, to foster discussions among citizens and policy makers about ideas as well as events, and thus, influence attitudes and policies, and continue to influence environmental citizenship. Environmental citizenship as an extension of democracy offers the best chance for undoing the manmade problems which are degrading the quality of life on Earth. A healthier environment is the will of the people. An informed, voting public will succeed in creating a healthier environment. Pioneering work by philosophers and journalists, especially over the last forty-five years has brought the dialogue about environmental problems to an unprecedented level and continues to offer encouragement to the mindful evolution of mankind. These ecological discussions of rights and responsibilities, intrinsic and economic values, pragmatism and utilitarianism, culture and spirit, are increasingly being applied to a developing idea of sustainability, and are, thus, helping to expand ideas about what it means to be a citizen in a democracy.

Thesis (PhD) -- University of Stellenbosch, 2002.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The dissertation traces the development of environmental assessment and environmental ethics as these disciplines have evolved independently in response to the global environmental crisis. The aim is to determine the extent to which they can promote the integration of the dissociated objective and subjective spheres of human valuation of the environment. This is a necessary condition, it is argued, for arresting the pathology in the human-environment relationship. The study concludes that both disciplines were initially trapped in narrow, monistic approaches, which rendered them largely ineffective. However, their evolutionary advancement, and a common grounding in a radical conceptualization of sustainable development, greatly enhances their usefulness in environmental decisionmaking.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die verhandeling ondersoek die evolusionêre ontwikkeling van omgewingsimpakbepaling en die filosofie van omgewingsetika, na die ontstaan van die twee disiplines in reaksie tot die globale omgewingskrisis. Die studiedoelwit is om te bepaal tot watter mate hulle die integrasie van die gedissosieerde objektiewe en die subjektiewe sfere van menslikeomgewingswaardering kan bevorder. Daar word geredeneer dat sodanige integrasie noodsaaklik is om die patologie in die verhouding tussen die mens en sy omgewing te stuit. Die belangrikste gevolgtrekking is dat beide disiplines, tydens hulle aanvangsstadia, vasgeval was in 'n monistiese benadering wat hul doeltreffendheid belemmer het. Die onlangse ontwikkeling van omgewingsimpakbepaling en omgewingsetika, sowel as 'n gemeenskaplike uitgangspunt binne 'n radikale vertolking van volhoubare ontwikkeling, versterk grootliks hulle bruikbaarheid vir omgewingsbesluitneming.

Besides constructing an explicit environmental management instrument of good practices about the business intervention borderlines on the environment and the ethical limits that must regulate this action, this exploratory paper systematizes a scientific model which analyzes the Social Business Responsibility of the natural, social cultural and economic resources in Conservation Units at a multi-disciplined way about the managers‟ perceptions criteria of ethic, environment, responsibility and environmental education. Thus, it was intentionally done a field research using semi-structured interviews with seventeen (17) travel agencies which needed to be registered on the Brazilian Travel Agencies Association BTAA of Sergipe- SE, as well as which act or eager to act in the Pólo Serras Sergipanas, roteiro turístico Trilhas no ParNa Serra de Itabaiana. The environmental evaluation of these travel agencies high administration is positive as a speech of how to use it; however it does not work practically, since the environmental subject is not strategically placed at these travel agencies, so it has few investments on this field. It is noticeable that the environmental education which has guided behaviors, attitudes and perceptions has a neoclassic economical approach only, therefore it cannot be considered as Environmental Education, specifically spread on the basis of the sustainable and globally responsible society pact (emancipated, transforming, participative, wide, permanent, contextualized, ethic and inter-disciplined). On a ethic point of view, it was discussed the epistemological aspect of the classic tendency of the moral philosophy delving into the analytical pragmatic conception exam, detailed on the functioning of the responsibility principle: essay of an ethic for a technologic civilization, checking the hypothesis that the managers‟ ethic and moral judgments are disconnected to the universal values idea of responsibility due to the relation man/nature perspective crisis, which difficult the effectiveness of a business environmental educational pedagogical project in Conservation Units. The research intends to contribute to the responsible business ethical culture at the Travel Agencies, not only in the state of Sergipe, since the future of the sustainable societies depend on the sustainable balance of the economic, social and environmental dimensions, in a global and local responsible way. Therefore, the research believes that it can even be utopia the surpassing of the responsible human being with the generations to come. However, any disciplined and educated human being in accordance to the reality of his/her environment can be an eternal changing agent if he/she is able to do an self-critic of his/her attitudes created in relation to the world.<br>Para além de construir um instrumento de gestão ambiental explícito de boas práticas sobre as fronteiras da intervenção empresarial no meio ambiente e os limites éticos que devem regular essa ação, este trabalho exploratório sistematizou um modelo científico que analisa a Responsabilidade Social Empresarial dos recursos naturais, socioculturais e econômicos em Unidades de Conservação de forma multidisciplinar aos critérios de percepção dos empresários sobre ética, meio ambiente, responsabilidade e educação ambiental. Neste sentido, foi realizado de forma intencional, um estudo de campo com entrevistas semi-estruturadas com dezessete (17) agências, tendo como pré-requisito serem registradas na Associação Brasileira de Agências de Viagem ABAV-SE e que já atuam e/ou desejam atuar no Pólo Serras Sergipanas, roteiro turístico Trilhas no ParNa Serra de Itabaiana. A avaliação da educação ambiental da alta administração das Agências de Viagem do Estado de Sergipe é positiva enquanto discurso de utilização do meio, mas não funciona na prática, uma vez que a questão ambiental não é estratégica para as empresas, havendo assim, poucos investimentos nessa área. Percebe-se que a educação ambiental que tem orientado comportamentos, atitudes e percepções tem uma abordagem prioritariamente econômica neoclássica não podendo ser considerada como uma Educação Ambiental, designadamente difundida na proposta do tratado das sociedades sustentáveis e responsabilidade global (emancipatória, transformadora, participativa, abrangente, permanente, contextualizada, ética e interdisciplinar). Do ponto de vista ético, discutiu-se o aprofundamento epistemológico das correntes clássicas da filosófica moral com aprofundamento do exame da concepção pragmática analítica, detalhado no funcionamento do princípio da responsabilidade: ensaio de uma ética para a civilização tecnológica, constatando a hipótese que a ética e os julgamentos morais dos gestores estão desassociados da idéia de valores universais de responsabilidade devido à crise perceptiva da relação homem/natureza, o que dificulta a efetivação de um projeto pedagógico de educação ambiental empresarial em Unidades de Conservação. A pesquisa espera ter contribuído com a cultura ética empresarial responsável nas Agências de Viagem não só do Estado de Sergipe, uma vez que o futuro das sociedades sustentáveis depende do equilíbrio sustentável em suas dimensões econômicas, sociais e ambientais de forma global e localmente responsáveis. Por fim, a pesquisa acredita que pode até ser utópico a superação do sujeito responsável com as gerações futuras. Contudo, qualquer indivíduo educado e disciplinado com a realidade do seu ambiente pode ser um eterno agente de mudanças se conseguir fazer uma autocrítica de suas atitudes criadas em relação ao mundo.

The field of environmental ethics has been in discussion and debate the past 40 years over how to best expand the circle of moral consideration away from a privileged human perspective to encompass the rest of the non-human world in order to change minds and social practices to address environmental degradation and destruction. One of the main methods is devoted to arguing for the intrinsic value of non-human lives and places as the means to do this. I argue that this method of environmental ethics because it, at best, is a lazy framework for moral deliberation that ignores the entangled sociopolitical and environmental complexity of a situation by reducing the answer to a single set of predetermined values and interests which (re)produces and reinforces social and environmental injustice. An environmental pragmatist approach geared towards addressing environmental injustice is a better way of addressing both environmental degradation and social inequalities.

A sociedade de risco mundial caracteriza-se por sua dimensão negativa de igualdade, uma vez que os cidadãos não são mais iguais em razão dos direitos ou benefícios que compartilham, mas, sim, pelos riscos comuns que a se encontram expostos. O desenvolvimento tecnológico, bem como o conhecimento científico, remeteu o homem a um contexto de modernidade, prometendo cumprir na integralidade com inúmeros e incontáveis benefícios ao bem viver. Porém, junto aos ganhos qualitativos de vida, o que se viu foram acidentes nucleares, guerras atômicas, danos ambientais e outros efeitos decorrentes da radicalização do modelo produtivo empregado. Esses fatos imergiram a sociedade num mar de dúvidas e incertezas, resultando em uma redemocratização forçada, que colocou todos os indivíduos do globo terrestre em uma mesma condição: vítimas de uma possível aniquilação. Nesse viés, a ambivalência decorrente dos riscos permeia os mais diversos segmentos da realidade social, sendo que nenhum saber apresenta mais o mesmo significado que detinha há pouco tempo atrás. Os próprios conceitos, paradigmas e instituições da contemporaneidade precisam, agora, ser repensados. A magnitude dos riscos obriga, assim, a uma nova forma de engajamento político e social em âmbito mundial: participação ativa e cidadã dos indivíduos, adoção de políticas globais calcadas em bases educacionais preventivas aos danos ambientais, inserção de empresas como agentes morais, melhoria na produção, alternativas ao consumo, debate crítico às descobertas da ciência, inclusão e valorização do outro, entre outras. Esta dura realidade que nos atemoriza é, ao mesmo tempo, o combustível que nos motiva em busca de melhores soluções e alternativas para a reconstrução dos modelos até então empregados de produção, consumo e convivência. A crise ambiental pode se tornar uma oportunidade. Nesse sentido, o saber científico e o conhecimento tecnológico, por mais contraditórios que possam parecer, detêm caráter central para a continuidade da vida humana no planeta, pois servem como meios para o reconhecimento dos novos riscos, criticando e aprimorando tanto em campo ambiental quanto em campo empresarial o desenvolver das novas políticas de produção. No mesmo contexto, as pessoas jurídicas sejam pequenas empresas ou grandes corporações abandonam o antigo estigma de culpadas pela degradação das condições da vida no planeta e passam a ocupar a posição de protagonistas nas questões socioambientais. Trata-se da adoção de uma política de duplo ganho (win X win). As empresas ganham em imagem corporativa positiva, expandem sua clientela, abordam novos nichos de mercado, melhoram e reduzem custos de produção e, ainda, incrementam seu lucro. Por sua vez, a sociedade ganha com a melhoria da produção, uso racional dos recursos naturais, alternativas às formas de consumo, bem como uma importante aliada aos projetos humanitários, sociais e ambientais. Agir ético, participação ativa e cidadã dos indivíduos, inclusão do outro e conduta fraterna são apenas alguns dos fatores que comprovam que a vida humana em sociedade pode ainda ter futuro.<br>Submitted by Marcelo Teixeira (mvteixeira@ucs.br) on 2014-05-30T17:26:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Diogo Petry.pdf: 1242603 bytes, checksum: f70e91c632cedd21604d79cf37825dfd (MD5)<br>Made available in DSpace on 2014-05-30T17:26:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Diogo Petry.pdf: 1242603 bytes, checksum: f70e91c632cedd21604d79cf37825dfd (MD5)<br>The world risk society is characterized for its negative dimension of equality, since citizens are not equal anymore for their rights or benefits that they share, but in detriment, for the common risks which they are exposed. The technological development as well as the scientific knowledge addressed the man to a modernity context promising to integrally accomplish the many and uncountable benefits to the well living. However, and with the qualitative life winnings, what we have seen are nuclear accidents, atomic wars, environmental damages and other effects caused by the radicalization of the inserted pattern. This fact filled the society with doubts and uncertainness, resulting on a forced redemocratization, which put all the terrestrial globe individuals in the same condition: victims of a possible annihilation. In this idea, the ambivalence that comes from the risks infiltrates the various segments of the social reality, not any knowledge has the same meaning as it had a few years ago. Concepts, paradigms and contemporaneity institutions need to be now rethought. Thus, the magnitude of the risks requires a new way of social and political engagement in a worldwide ambit: active participation of the individuals as citizens, adoption of global policies modeled in educational bases preventing environmental damages, insertion of companies as moral agents, production improvement, alternatives instead of consumption, critical debate about the science discoveries, inclusion and valorization of the other individuals, among others. This hard reality that terrorizes us is, at the same time, the fuel that gives us motivation in search of better solutions and alternatives for the reconstruction of the production, consume and living patters applied so far. The environmental crises may become an opportunity. In this idea, the scientific knowhow and the technological knowledge, although sometimes seem to be contradictory, detain central character for the human life continuity in the planet because they are used as means for the recognition of the new risks, criticizing and improving either in the environmental field or in the entrepreneurial field , in the development of new production policies. In the same context small companies or big corporations abandon the old label as responsible for the planet life condition degradation and thus, taking the position of protagonist in the socio-environmental issues. It´s about the adoption of a double winning policy (win x win). Companies win positive corporative image, expand customers, approach new market niche, improve and reduce production costs and also increase profits. The society, wins with the production improvement, rational natural resources use, alternative instead of consumption ways as well as wins an important support to humanitarian social and environmental projects. Ethical action, active individual´s participation as citizens, inclusion of the others and fraternal conduct, are just some of the factors that prove human life in society may still be have a future.

With the permission of Swedish Allemansrätten, the Right of Public Access, allows people to interact with the natural environment... . Environmental ethics, discuss about the relationship between man and nature, and is hence clearly connected to the questions of wildlife tourism. Great part of the previous literature has focused on the environmental ethics in tourism from the perspective of utilitarianism or deontology, with special concern in animal rights, animal ethics and animal welfare. However, questions like ‘what kind of people will do good to the environment?’, ‘What are the characteristics of these people?’ are among those that still need to be discussed in the field of wildlife tourism research. According to the theory of environmental virtue ethics, man's attitude towards nature originates from the internal quality and character of human beings. Whether it is the western scholars Thomas Hill and Geoffrey Frasz, or the ancient Chinese School of Confucianism and Taoism, they all put forward their own opinions on the characters required by the virtue ethics of the environment. In this thesis, documentary writing and network media records of wildlife tourists in Sweden are used as empirical materials to demonstrate the behavioral and psychological manifestations of the three characters of environmental virtues ethics. These three characters reflect the harmonious interaction between man and nature, and contribute in the theoretical discussions of of ethics in Tourism Studies.

A process-information approach is examined as a foundation for an environmental philosophy that is dynamic and elastic, with particular emphasis on value, beauty, integrity and stability supporting Aldo Leopold's vision. I challenge one of the basic assumptions of Western philosophy, namely the metaphysical primacy of substance. The classical, medieval and modern metaphysics of substance is presented with particular attention given the paradoxes of substance. Starting from the philosophy of Heraclitus, relatively ignored by the Western tradition of philosophy, a process philosophy is developed as an alternative to standard metaphysical attitudes in philosophy. A possible resolution of Zeno's paradoxes leads to consideration of other paradoxes of substance metaphysics. It is argued that substance metaphysics is incompatible with evidence found in the shifting paradigms of ecology and general science. Process philosophy is explored as a basis for an environmental philosophy, attempting to put the environment back into philosophy.