ENVIRONMENTAL

CONCERNS, DIMENSIONS,
AND WORLDVIEWS
Learning Objectives

 Explain the concept of sustainability and

its social, political, and cultural challenges
 Evaluate the main points of environmental
ethics
 Describe the concept of environmental
justice
 Differentiate
between developed and
developing countries
Environment and Sustainability

 Making Sense of Sustainable Development

“But what may be an advertiser’s dream can be a local authority’s

nightmare”
- Milton Friedman, Economist

Critics argue that for sustainable development to be regarded merely

as the summum bonum of human existence is to render it meaningless.

There will no doubt be winners and losers in the process and this must
be communicated honestly to prevent future conflicts.
Environment and Sustainability

 Sustainability in Evolutionary and Ecological Perspective

In evolutionary terms there is no such thing as “sustainability”.

One of the basic tenets of evolution is that the generation of new forms
of life outstrips the extinction of older species by a wide margin thus
ensuring strong biological diversity.

Homosapiens — has upset this balance to the degree that the rate of
species extinction is now estimated at 10,000 times the rate of species
renewal.
Environment and Sustainability
 Sustainability in Evolutionary and Ecological Perspective
Environment and Sustainability

 The Significance of Such Biospheric Intervention

Recent human development patterns have not only affected ecological

systems but are also rapidly changing social systems. Arguably two of the
most powerful forces of societal change in modern times have been:

COLONIALISM SCIENTIFIC ADVANCEMENT AND TECHNOLOGIES

Environment and Sustainability
 The Significance of Such Biospheric Intervention

 Despite the complexity and uncertainty of global

changes, there appears to be scientific consensus on
most of the following three points:

1. first, the magnitude of the impact that humans, a

juvenile species in evolutionary terms, are exerting on
life support systems;
2. second, as Gaia theoreticians—who view the
planet as a self-regulating system—point out: the Earth
is indifferent to humans, it will ultimately recover, even
though the timescale will be eons;
3. the need for change to ensure a future for
human beings.
Environment and Sustainability
 The Evolution of Sustainability Itself
Environment and Sustainability
 The Evolution of Sustainability Itself

For John Stuart Mill, the 19th-century political economist,

’stationary’ was not a static concept but referred to
“a balance between production and natural resources
implying equality of access to natural resources for
successive generations.”
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

 The need to arrest environmental degradation

and ecological imbalance;

 The need not to impoverish future generations;

 The need for quality of life and equity between

current generations.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

They are the products of conflicting worldviews,

differing ideologies, varied disciplinary
backgrounds, opposing knowledge traditions,
value systems and vested interests. Such
differences in understanding and approach make
consensus towards common agendas difficult.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

What is more unsustainable: population growth or car growth?

Population control has therefore been a central focus of

many international aid programs, which use an assortment of
incentives and inducements to lower fertility in poor countries

Car growth, on the other hand, is growing four times as fast as

the human population. There are, however, no population
control programs for cars.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Whose Common Future?

ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Environment OR Economy

Debate whether which is more important.

Defend your side
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
The Ecological Footprint

developed by Canadian ecologist

and planner William Rees, is
basically an accounting tool that
uses land as the unit of
measurement to assess per capita
consumption, production, and
discharge needs.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
The Ecological Footprint

developed by Canadian
ecologist and planner William
Rees, is basically an
accounting tool that uses
land as the unit of
measurement to assess per
capita consumption,
production, and discharge
needs.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
 CONNECTIVITY
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
 Precautionary Principle

“when an activity raises threats of harm to human health or

the environment, precautionary measures should be taken
even if some cause and effect relationships are not fully
established scientifically”.

it combats problems such as climate change, ecosystem degradation, and

resource depletion is too slow and that environmental and health problems
continue to grow more rapidly than society’s ability to identify and correct them

it seeks to minimize the limitations of a risk assessment based regulatory policy by

encouraging a search for alternatives whenever a potentially hazardous chemical
is identified.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

 Challenges to Environmental Sustainability

▪ No enactment of new policies and practices

▪ Environmental degradation
▪ Social inequality
▪ The future needs of humanity and the attainment of our aspirations
and goals are not assured.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
 Some Indicators of Global Environmental Stress

deforestation Fresh water

Biodiversity
Land degradation Marine Fisheries

Atmosphere

Toxic chemicals and wastes

Environmental Ethics

 These standards help to distinguish between behavior that is

considered right and that which is considered wrong.

 The ways in which humans interact with the land and its natural
resources are determined by ethical attitudes and behaviors.

 Some of those still subscribing to the frontier ethic suggest that outer
space may be the new frontier.
Environmental Ethics
 A sustainable ethic is an environmental ethic by which people treat the earth as
if its resources are limited.

 A sustainable ethic includes the following :

• The earth has a limited supply of resources.
• Humans must conserve resources.
• Humans share the earth’s resources with other living things.
• Growth is not sustainable.
• Humans are a part of nature.
• Humans are affected by natural laws.
• Humans succeed best when they maintain the integrity of natural processes
and cooperate with nature.
Environmental Ethics
LAND ETHIC

“Anything is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the
biotic community. It is wrong when it tends to do otherwise.” (Aldo Leopold, 1949)
Environmental Ethics
Categorizing Countries
Categorizing Countries
Categorizing Countries
A three-tiered classification system was developed to categorize countries
more precisely, especially those that are not easily classified as either
developing or developed. These three categories are:

less developed country (LDC),

moderately developed country (MDC);
and highly developed country (HDC).

Criteria used to determine a country’s category include: GNP per capita,

transportation and communication facilities, energy consumption, literacy and
unemployment.
Environmental Justice

Environmental Justice is defined as the fair treatment and meaningful

involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income
with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of
environmental laws, regulations, and policies.
(University of California College Prep, 2012)
Environmental Justice

In an ideal world, there would be no hazardous waste facilities, but we do not

live in an ideal world.

Until technology can find away to manage (or eliminate) hazardous waste,
disposal facilities will be necessary to protect both humans and the
environment.

All humans who help produce hazardous wastes must share the burden of
dealing with those wastes, not just the poor and minorities.
Indigenous People

Since the end of the 15th century, most of the world’s frontiers have
been claimed and colonized by established nations.
Indigenous People
The United Nations officially classifies indigenous people as those "having an
historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies," and
“consider themselves distinct from other sectors of the societies now prevailing
in those territories or parts of them.“

Many problems face indigenous people, including: lack of human rights,

exploitation of their traditional lands and themselves, and degradation of their
culture.
Indigenous People

Despite the lofty U.N. goals, the rights and feelings of indigenous
people are often ignored or minimized, even by supposedly culturally
sensitive developed countries

In the rainforest regions of Brazil, indigenous peoples of several tribes

are working 31 together to strengthen their common concern over the
impact of large development projects on their traditional lands

From the point of view of indigenous people, sustainable development

is a process that must integrate spiritual, cultural, economic, social,
political, territorial and philosophical ideals.
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