Moving Beyond Anthropocentrism: Environmental Ethics, Development, and the Amazon
Author(s)
Katz, Eric; Oechsli, Lauren
Abstract
Anthropocentrism, the idea of a man-centered universe is, according to this article, irreconcilable with environmentalism. This clash can be seen clearly in Third World environmental issues like the Amazon rainforest. Following an anthropocentric philosophy, man in such poor conditions is too consumed by the need to survive to dedicate anything substantial to the saving of the environment. It is therefore necessary, explains the authors, to adopt a nonanthropocentic moral philosophy in environmental policy to preserve the environment for of its instrinsic value. This paper is also an attempt to sketch a “postmodern” ethic by evaluating Kantian-type ethics and then combining these insights with the environmental holism of environmentalist Aldo Leopold.
