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Business and the Natural Environment > Environmental Ethics > Flashcards

Environmental Ethics Flashcards

1
Q

Wha are environmental ethics?

A

Application of ethical standards to relationships between humans and the world around us

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2
Q

What is the difference between morals and ethics?

A

Judgement or right/wrong

Morals - an individual’s own principles regarding right and wrong, our own values that she judgments

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3
Q

How does the Coal Creek Mine in the Puerto Madryn area give rise to the trade off between right and wrong?

A

Local protectors protesting the environment vs those wanting economic growth.

Trade off between environmental protection and economic growth

Create jobs vs protect environment

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4
Q

What are typical questions regarding environmental ethics?

A
  • Are natural resources truly limited?
  • Should we conserve them for future generations? Is there much need?
  • Should humans drive other species to extinction?
  • Is it ok to destroy the Puerto Madryn area to create jobs for people?
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5
Q

How does culture influence ethical dilemmas?

A

The environment in which we grow up in informs right and wrong

“Collective programming of the mind which is largely invisible and unconscious” (Hofstede, 1987)

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6
Q

How is culture a living set of relationships?

A

Between community, global humanity, society, environment, self awareness - constantly being renegotiated

Relationship dynamic depends on feedback loops

Culture is messy, not limited to impersonal collective but core unit is individual

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7
Q

What is individualism as a social culture dimension?

A

A society in which the ties between individuals are loose - everyone is expected to look after self and immediate family only
E.g North America and North Europe

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8
Q

What is collectivism as a cultural dimension?

A

A society in which individuals from birth onwards are part of strong groups

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9
Q

What are individualist groups of self?

A
  • Independent view
  • Emphasis on personal traits
  • Contstrued as autonomous entity
  • Consistent between moral judgements and moral behaviour
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10
Q

What are collectivist views of self?

A
  • Defined in terms of we rather than I
  • Individuals belong to in groups
  • People perceive themselves as members of their in group
  • Moral judgement and moral behaviour less clear
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11
Q

What are our perceptions of environmental protection as a cultural matter rooted in?

A
  • Our morals
  • Our behaviours
  • Our attitudes
  • Our priorities
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12
Q

How are those in responsible careers not driven by the desire to make a change in individualist cultures?

A

People take jobs because they need jobs not because they want to make change

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13
Q

How is the drive for responsible careers different in collectivist cultures?

A

Driven by in-group influences - senior CSR consultants developing environmental managements systems in line with client requirements regardless of reason why

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14
Q

How does culture inform ethical viewpoints?

A 
World views are shaped by 4 cultural descriptors which inform 4 main views of ethics:
Universalists
Relativsts
Nihilists
Utilitarians
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15
Q

What are the ethical views of universalists?

A
  • Principles of ethics are universal, unchanging and eternal
  • Morally obligated to act in accordance with a certain set of principles regardless of outcome
  • Based on insights from Plato Kant
  • Religious, we are not social entities, something higher defines right and wrong
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16
Q

What are the ethical views of relativists?

A
  • Moral principles relative to a particular person
  • Ethical views are contextual - depend on the person, society and situation
  • There is a right and wrong, a better and worse, no principles are absolute
  • Based on insights from sophists: depends on the situation
17
Q

How do individualists and collectivists differ in terms of cultural ethical views?

A

Individualists more black and white. They don’t want anything to sacrifice their freedom or success.

In collectivist societies, they are more relativist because they think for the community - I becomes We

18
Q

What are the ethical views of nihilists?

A
  • There is no mean or purpose to life other than the instinctive struggle for survival
  • There is no reason to behave morally
  • There is no such thing as the good life
  • Life is uncertain
  • Based on insights from Schopenhauer
  • Those who suffer the most from environmental degradation most likely to have these views
19
Q

What are the utilitarian views of environmental ethics?

A
  • An action is right that produces the greatest good for the greatest number of people
  • Based on insights from Bentham and Mill
20
Q

How do the cultural and ethical insights form different perceptions of the environment?

A
  • Planetary management: prevalent in the west i.e Donald Trump
  • Stewardship: developing countries as environmental impacts are worse
  • Environmental wisdom
21
Q

What is planetary management?

A
  • Believing we have the knowledge to ensure resources aren’t limited
  • We are the most important species, in charge of the earth
  • We can use nature to satisfy our economic needs, potential for economic growth unlimited
  • Use natural environment to satisfy our needs, success depends on how we manage earth resources for our own benefit
22
Q

What is stewardship?

A
  • Most important species but ethical responsibility to care for the rest of nature
  • We probably won’t run out of resources but shouldn’t waste them
  • We should encourage environmentally beneficial forms of economic growth and discourage harmful ones
  • Success depends on how well we manage the earth;;s life support systems for our benefit and the rest of nature
23
Q

What is environmental wisdom?

A
  • Nature exists for all species and we are not in charge
  • Resources are limited, should not be wasted and are not ours
  • We should encourage earth-sustaining forms of economic growth and discourage degrading forms
  • Our success depends on learning how the earth sustains itself and integrating such lessons into our behaviour
24
Q

What are the three different environmental ethics and which environmental perception informs them?

A

Conservation ethic: use natural resources wisely for the good of most people (planetary management)

Preservation ethic: unspoiled nature should be protected for its own inherent value (stewardship)

Land ethic - healthy ecological systems depend on protecting all parts (environmental wisdom)

25
Q

What is the concept of environmental justice?

A
  • The poor and minorities are exposed to more pollution, hazards and degradation
  • There is nothing moral about tempting a starving man with money
  • Rich people don’t want to deal with environmental impacts of production - the reason why factories end up in poor communities e.g North England
26
Q

How can social and environmental sustainability be a solution?

A
  • Sustainable development
  • Meet the needs of the present without sacrificing the ability of future generations to meet theirs
  • Development differs to growth - implies critical need to use natural resources
27
Q

What are the fundamental challenges with environmental sustainability?

A
  • We live on a planet with limited natural resources
  • Flaws in economic thinking, globalisation, populism and the way we assess knowledge intensifies pressures
  • Environmental justice
28
Q

What does Tilley (2000) say about small firm environmental ethics?

A

Two approaches to environmental ethics:

  • Define code of conduct for ethics: environment valued from a human-centric perspective and moral justification for protection is to minimise human cost
  • Ecologically sound ethics will only emerge from a new paradigm - new way of thinking about sustainability. Promoting the need for a new world view
29
Q

What does Tilley (2000) outlines as the most common attitudinal barriers to ethics among small firms?

A
  • Ethics and business don’t mix
  • It doesn’t pay to be ethical
  • If it is legal, it is ethical
  • Compared to others, this economy is ethical
30
Q

What does Tilley (2000) argue about state regulation and self regulation for small firm ethics?

A
  • Managers don’t support self regulation due to resource demands needed to administer and enforce
  • Firms thought they weren’t educated enough to identify what actions they need to take in order to manage environmental responsibilities
  • Need state regulation as well as self
31
Q

What do Cambra-Fierro, Hart and Polo-Redondo (2007) conclude about environmental ethics?

A
  • Market forces are insufficient to regulate the impact of companies: need a set of norms for each industry
  • Some companies will increase commitment because of CA, management philosophy, economic profit
  • Need to identify value system of owners in order to rectify potential deviations from environmental respect
  • Investment in public institutions and specific training essential

Business and the Natural Environment (10 decks)

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