Conservation Values & Ethics

1. Conservation Values & Ethics Photo of Auguste Rodin’s “The Thinker” from Wikipedia

2. Ethics The philosophy of morality, which is concerned with what is right (good, legal, etc.) and wrong (bad, illegal, etc.) Ethical principles constrain self-serving behavior in deference to some other good Photo of Auguste Rodin’s “The Thinker” from Wikipedia

3. Value “Worth in usefulness or importance to the possessor” Photo of Auguste Rodin’s “The Thinker” from Wikipedia; Definition from The American Heritage Dictionary (1973)

5. Instrumental Value Value that Nature has as a means to another’s (i.e., mankind’s) end Anthropocentric viewpoint (i.e., from the perspective of Homo sapiens as “possessor”) Map from pubs.usgs.gov; photo of grizzlies from Wikipedia

6. Intrinsic Value Value that Nature has as an end in itself Biocentric or ecocentric viewpoint (i.e., from the perspective of Nature as “possessor”) E.g., biodiversity is valuable simply because it exists E.g., non-human species have rights Photos from Wikipedia

7. Instrumental & Intrinsic Value Instrumental - Material Anthropocentric - Non-material Value Intrinsic Biocentric

8. Conservation Biologists / Environmentalists in the U. S. Gifford Pinchot (1865 – 1946) First Chief of the U.S. Forest Service (1905 – 1910) Coined “conservation ethic” Resource Conservation EthicUtilitarian, anthropocentric “natural resource” philosophy;“the greatest good of the greatest number for the longest time” Photo from Wikipedia

9. Conservation Biologists / Environmentalists in the U. S. Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882)Nature (1836) Henry David Thoreau (1817 – 1862)Walden (1854) John Muir (1838 – 1914)Founded Sierra Club (1892) Romantic-Transcendental Conservation Ethic “Nature has uses other than human economic gain;” biophilia Image of Emerson, photos of Thoreau and T. Roosevelt with Muir from Wikipedia

10. Conservation Biologists / Environmentalists in the U. S. Aldo Leopold (1887 – 1948) A Sand County Almanac (1949) Evolutionary-Ecological Land EthicArose together with the Modern Synthesis and maturing ecological theory; recognizes the complexity, interconnectedness (including humans) and dynamism of Nature Photo from Oregon State University

11. William Wordsworth’s (1770-1850) “Daffodils” (1804) I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud That floats on high o'er vales and hills,When all at once I saw a crowd,A host, of golden daffodils;Beside the lake, beneath the trees,Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. Continuous as the stars that shine And twinkle on the Milky Way,They stretch'd in never-ending lineAlong the margin of a bay:Ten thousand saw I at a glance,Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. The waves beside them danced; but they Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:A poet could not but be gay,In such a jocund company:I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thoughtWhat wealth the show to me had brought: For oft, when on my couch I lie In vacant or in pensive mood,They flash upon that inward eyeWhich is the bliss of solitude;And then my heart with pleasure fills,And dances with the daffodils. Photo of a field of daffodils in Cornwall, England from Wikipedia

12. Instrumental Value Non-material Psycho-spiritual – (e.g., biophilia, as contrasted with biophobia) aesthetic beauty, religious awe, scientific knowledge, etc. Material… Goods – food, fuel, fiber, medicine, etc. Services – pollination, nutrient cycling, nitrogen fixation, decomposition, etc. Information – genetic engineering, applied biology, basic science, etc.

13. Instrumental Value Daily et al. (1997, Science) provide this list of ecosystem goods & services: Production of ecosystem goods (e.g., seafood, wild game, forage, timber, biomass fuels, natural fibers, many pharmaceuticals, precursors of industrial products); Purification of air & water; Mitigation of droughts & floods; Generation & preservation of soils and renewal of their fertility; Detoxification & decomposition of wastes; Pollination of crops & natural vegetation; Dispersal of seeds; Cycling & movement of nutrients; Control of the vast majority of potential agricultural pests; Maintenance of biodiversity; Protection of coastal shores from erosion by waves; Protection from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays; Partial stabilization of climate; Moderation of weather extremes and their impacts; Provision of aesthetic beauty and intellectual stimulation that lift the human spirit… Ecosystem goods & services illustrated with photos of wetland, pollinator & “decomposer” from Wikipedia

14. Instrumental Value Costanza et al. (1997, Nature) provide this list of ecosystem goods & services: Gas regulation; Climate regulation; Disturbance regulation; Water regulation; Water supply; Erosion control & sediment retention; Soil formation; Nutrient cycling; Waste treatment; Pollination; Biological control; Refugia; Food production; Raw materials; Genetic resources; Recreation; Cultural… Ecosystem goods & services illustrated with photos of wetland, pollinator & “decomposer” from Wikipedia

15. Monetizing Instrumental Value of Nature Costanza et al. (1997, Nature) provide this estimate for the value of these ecosystem goods & services: ~ $33,000,000,000,000 / yr […and the gross world product (the sum of all nations’ gross national products) is ~ $18,000,000,000,000 / yr] Ecosystem goods & services illustrated with photos of wetland, pollinator & “decomposer” from Wikipedia

16. Monetizing Instrumental Value of Nature Balmford et al. (2002) refined the estimate of Costanza et al. (1997) and concluded: “We estimate that the overall benefit:cost ratio of an effective global program for the conservation of wild nature is at least 100:1” Ecosystem goods & services illustrated with photos of wetland, pollinator & “decomposer” from Wikipedia

17. Monetizing Instrumental Value of Nature …. Generally Ignores Intrinsic Value Immanuel Kant (1724 – 1804) German philosopher – among the most influential thinkers of the Enlightenment “Everything has either a price or a dignity [intrinsic value]. Whatever has a price can be replaced by something else as its equivalent; on the other hand, whatever is above all price, and therefore admits of no equivalent, has a dignity” Image from Wikipedia; quote from Kant (1785) Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals

18. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Judeo-Christian Worldview God apparently conferred intrinsic value on every living creature by pronouncing Creation to be “good” (see Judeo-Christian Bible: Genesis) Images from Wikipedia

19. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Islamic Worldview The Koran teaches that Allah (God) calls for man’s stewardship to provide a just distribution of natural resources across generations Images from Wikipedia

20. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Hindu Worldview All beings are a manifestation of the one essential Being (Brahman), so human beings are to identify with & respect other forms of life Images from Wikipedia

21. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Jaina Worldview Parallel paths of asceticism (eschewing physical pleasure) and noninjury of all living things (ahimsa) free the soul from future rebirth in the material realm Few adherents, but Jainism has great influence, especially in India Images from Wikipedia

22. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Buddhist Worldview Regards other organisms as companions on the path to enlightenment (nirvana), through an explicit ethic of non-injury of and boundless loving-kindness for all beings Images from Wikipedia

23. Religion-Based Conservation Ethics Buddhist Worldview “Our beautiful world is facing many crises.... It is not a time to pretend everything´s good” 14th Dalai Lama (b. 1935) The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism is arguably the foremost conservationist among the world’s religious leaders Photo from Wikipedia

24. Human enterprise created the modern Biodiversity Crisis and threatens a vast array of Ecosystem Services Why should we care? Ehrlich & Wilson (1991, Science) provide their three-point answer… Photo of P. R. Ehrlich from Stanford U.; photo of E. O. Wilson from Wikipedia

25. Human enterprise created the modern Biodiversity Crisis and threatens a vast array of Ecosystem Services Why should we care? Ehrlich & Wilson (1991, Science) provide their three-point answer… 1. Ethical & esthetic reasons (instrumental & intrinsic value) E.g., would you rather live in a world with or without grizzly bears, orchids, and dragonflies? E.g., do we humans have the right to drive species to extinction? E.g., do we humans have the right to leave the world in worse shape for our children and grandchildren than it was in when we were born?

26. Human enterprise created the modern Biodiversity Crisis and threatens a vast array of Ecosystem Services Why should we care? Ehrlich & Wilson (1991, Science) provide their three-point answer… 2.Potential for new discoveries (instrumental value) …in food science, the pharmaceutical industry, and manufacturing owing to the vast riches of genetic biodiversity 3. The economic value of ecosystem services (instrumental value) (see Costanza et al. [1997] & Balmford et al. [2002])

27. Valuing nature and assessing the reliability of sources [please view for next time]… “Mountaintop Mining” Stephen Colbert interview with Margaret Palmer January 18, 2010 http://www.colbertnation.com/ coal-comfort-margaret-palmer