Environmental Systems and Societies

What the Syllabus tells us we need to know… State what is meant by an environmental value system. This is a particular world view or set of paradigms that shapes the way an individual or group of people perceive and evaluate environmental issues. This will be influenced by cultural (including religious), economic and socio ‑ political context. An environmental value system is a system in the sense that it has inputs (for example, education, cultural influences, religious doctrine, media) and outputs (for example, decisions, perspectives, courses of action) determined by processing these inputs Outline the range of environmental philosophies See figure on next page Discuss how these philosophies influence the decision ‑ making process with respect to environmental issues covered in this course Outline key historical influences on the development of the modern environmental movement. Consider major landmarks, for example, Minamata, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, Bhopal, whaling (Save the Whale), Chernobyl, leading to environmental pressure groups, both local and global, the concept of stewardship and increased media coverage raising public awareness Compare and contrast the environmental value systems of two named societies. The societies chosen should demonstrate significant differences, for example: First Nation Americans and European pioneers operating frontier economics, which involved exploitation of seemingly unlimited resources Buddhist and Judaeo ‑ Christian societies Communist and capitalist societies Justify your personal viewpoint on environmental issues.

One way to look at the spectra of environmental ideas……..

Environmental Value Systems (EVS) An Environmental Value System (EVS) is a particular worldview or set of paradigms that shapes the way an individual, or group of people, perceive and evaluate environmental issues.

Inputs The EVS Inputs are : Education Cultural influences Religious texts and doctrine The media

Outputs: The EVS Outputs are: Perspectives Decisions on how at act regarding environmental issues Course of action

Environmental value systems Inputs Outputs Education Media Religion Decisions Actions Attitudes Culture

Ecocentrism Nature-centered Minimal disturbance of natural processes Sustainability for the whole Earth Self-imposed restraint on resource use Somewhat the opposite of a technocentrist

Deep Ecologists – Nature is important for the humanity of people. – Ecological (natural) laws dictate human morality. – Belief in biorights - the right of endangered species or unique landscapes to remain undisturbed. – No faith in modern large-scale technology due to its dependence on elitist expertise, central state – Materialism is wrong. Economic growth should be geared to provide for the poorest people.

Soft Ecologists – Small-scale development builds better communities. – Integrate work and leisure through personal and communal improvement. – Important to participate in community affairs. – No faith in modern large-scale technology due to its dependence on elitist expertise, central state – Materialism is wrong. Economic growth should be geared to provide for the poorest people.

 The tendency for human beings to regard themselves as the central and most significant entities in the universe  The assessment of reality through an exclusively human perspective

 The underlying reason why humanity dominates and sees the need to “develop” most of the Earth  Central problematic concept in environmental philosophy  Sense of selfishness, not taking into consideration the impact their actions have on their surroundings  Puts humanity before everything

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Technocentrism- Cornucopain

Technocentrism Technocentrism: This is a personal value in which is when a person believes that technology should affect, control and protect the environment.

EcocentrismAnthropocentrism Technocentrism nature-centeredpeople-centeredtechnology-centered Holistic world view People as environmental managers of sustainable global systems. Technology can keep pace with and provide solutions to environmental problems. Minimal disturbance of natural processes Population control given equal weight to resource use. Resource replacement solves resource depletion. Integrates spiritual, social, and environmental dimensions Strong regulation by independent authorities required. Must understand natural processes in order to control them. Sustainability for the whole Earth Emphasizes scientific analysis before policies are put in place. Self-reliance within a framework of global citizenship Markets and economic growth are important. Self-imposed restraint on resource use

Cornucopians Cornucopains: A cornucopian is a futurist who believes that continued progress and provision of material items for mankind can be met by similarly continued advances in technology.

Buddhist and Judaeo-Christian Societies

Buddhist society Eccocentric Nature based Believes in living in balance with nature Believes in the importance of an intrinsic bond between man and nature Believes that ecology dictates human morality Believes that nature has its own right Very different from Judaeo-Christian societies, which are more human based and centered around the rights of human beings

Judaeo-Christian Societies Anthropocentric Human based Believes that God created nature for the sake and for the use of man Believes that man is in charge of ecology and determines the rules of ecology and how to deal with it Believes that it’s their responsibility to take care of the environment Believes that man can find a way out of any environmental difficulty (not to be confused with technocentrism.)

Communist Vs Capitalist Ideal For Equal Distribution and No Profit Restricted Voice For the public means that all parties are not heard Communist tends to be “for the people”, thus the environment comes in second. Free Market means that sound use of resources Civil Liberties Means Voice Is Heard For All Parties Capitalistic Lobbies mean that if one party with overt power, environmental protection not as large.

Communism Buna Chemicals In East Germany Chernobyl Helped protect interest of farmers, workers and fishers, who thrive of good environmental policies.

Capitalism Rise of capitalism may mean rise of polluters ensuring lobbies to protect their own needs. May exploit weaker economic nations through their environment

Reminders of important events in ecological history

Major landmarks A new disease was discovered in Minamata City in Japan, in It was found to be linked to the release of methyl mercury into the waste-water produced by a chemical factory. The mercury accumulated in shellfish and fish along the coast; the contaminated fish and shellfish were eaten by the local population and caused mercury poisoning.

American biologist Rachel Carson’s influential book Silent Spring was published in It remains one of the most influential books of the environmental movement. The book led to widespread concerns about the use of pesticides and the pollution of the environment.

Protests about environmental disasters and concern about the unsustainable use of the Earth’s resources have led to the formation of pressure groups. Greenpeace (one of the most influential) which made its name in 1975 by mounting an anti-whaling campaign. In the 1980s, Greenpeace made even bigger headlines with its anti-nuclear testing campaign.

In 1986, reactor number four at the Chernobyl plant in Ukraine exploded. A plume of highly radioactive dust was sent into the atmosphere and fell over an extensive area, which became contaminated. Caused increased incidences of cancer in the most exposed areas. The incident raised issues concerning the safety of Soviet nuclear power stations.

Bibliography silent-spring.jpg book-greenpeace.jpg the-chernobyl-nuclear-plant-in-ukraine-shows-damage-from-an- explosion-and-fire-in-one-of-the-reactors-that-sent-large-amounts-of- radioactive-material-into-the-atmosphere-april jpg