Module VI·Article III·~2 min read
Environmental Ethics and the Rights of Future Generations
Ethics in the Face of Evil
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To Whom Are We Obligated?
Traditional ethics are interpersonal and synchronous: I am responsible to people who live now and whom I know. The ecological crisis calls these boundaries into question: our actions today determine the quality of life for people who have not yet been born. Can we have obligations to those who do not exist?
Edmund Burke (an eighteenth-century conservative) formulated: society is a partnership of the dead, the living, and the yet unborn. The modern state is only a temporary steward of resources belonging to the chain of generations. This is a conservative argument in favor of sustainability.
Hans Jonas ("The Principle of Responsibility", 1979): a new categorical imperative for the technological age — "Act so that the effects of your actions are compatible with the continued genuine human life on Earth." This is responsibility without reciprocity: future generations cannot demand from us — we bear responsibility unilaterally.
Rights of Nature and Biocentrism
Peter Singer ("Animal Liberation", 1975) expanded the circle of moral concern: the capacity to suffer is a sufficient criterion for moral consideration. If animals suffer, this is morally significant, regardless of their rational status. This is utilitarianism applied to nonhuman beings.
Aldo Leopold's "Land Ethic": the ecosystem as a moral unit. That which preserves the biotic community is right. This is "ecocentrism" — extending the moral circle from humans to species and ecosystems.
The constitutions of Ecuador and Bolivia recognize "the rights of Nature" as a legal subject (Pachamama). Rivers in New Zealand (Whanganui), Colombia (Atrato), India (Ganges) have received the legal status of persons. This is a radical change in legal ontology.
The Precautionary Principle
When scientific uncertainty is high, but potential consequences are catastrophic — how to act? Precautionary principle: in the case of serious or irreversible risks, the lack of full scientific certainty is not grounds for postponing protective measures.
Criticism: the precautionary principle may hinder innovation. Any new technology entails uncertainty. Response: the precautionary principle is applied to risks of irreversible and large-scale harm — not to any uncertainty.
Question for reflection: What "risks to future generations" does your business or industry create? How does your organization make decisions under uncertainty with long-term consequences?
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