Free About 1 hr0 learners Rev. 2026-10-10 0

An introduction to environmental ethics, the branch of philosophy that asks what we owe to the natural world. This course covers the basic questions of moral status and value, the debate between human-centered and nature-centered views (including Lynn White's famous thesis), the moral status of animals, life-centered and ecosystem ethics from Schweitzer and Leopold to deep ecology, obligations to future generations, climate change as an ethical problem, environmental justice, and the practical debates over conservation, sustainability, technology and growth.

The aim is understanding, not persuasion: you should finish able to explain the main positions as their best defenders would, the strongest objections to each, and how they apply to real decisions. No background needed.

Levels

  1. 1 1. What Environmental Ethics Asks 5-question quiz
  2. 2 2. Whose Value? Anthropocentrism and Its Rivals 5-question quiz
  3. 3 3. Animals and Moral Status 5-question quiz
  4. 4 4. Life-Centered and Ecosystem Ethics 5-question quiz
  5. 5 5. Future Generations 5-question quiz
  6. 6 6. Climate Change as an Ethical Problem 5-question quiz
  7. 7 7. Environmental Justice 5-question quiz
  8. 8 8. From Principles to Practice 5-question quiz

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