Biocentrism
Environmental Philosophy Part 3
Pre-Activity:
Video Analysis
Anthropocentric vs Biocentric
• Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrBvYS8Om9A
• Guide Questions:
• 1.What is Anthropocentric?
• 2.What is Biocentric?
• 3.How they differ with each other?
• 4. Write this in a 1/2 crosswise sheet of paper.
Definition of
Terms
Biocentrism:
Etymological
Meaning
from Greek
βίος bios, "life"
and κέντρον
kentron,
"center"
Biocentrism
in a political and ecological sense, as
well as literally, is an ethical point of
view that extends inherent value to all
living things.
Biocentrism
The term biocentrism encompasses all
environmental ethics that "extend the
status of moral object from human beings
to all living things in nature".
Biocentrism
Biocentric ethics calls fo a rethinking of the relationship
between humans and nature. It states that nature does not
exist simply to be used or consumed by humans, but that
humans are simply one species amongst many, and that
because we are part of an ecosystem, any actions which
negatively affect the living systems of which we are a part
adversely affect us as well, whether or not we maintain a
biocentric worldview.
Biocentrism
Biocentrists observe that all species
have inherent value, and that humans
are not "superior" to other species
in a moral or ethical sense.
Philosophical
Views of
Biocentrism
Four Pillars of Biocentric Outlook
•Humans and all other species are
members of Earth's community.
•All species are part of a system of
interdependence.
Four Pillars of Biocentric Outlook
•All living organisms pursue their own
"good" in their own ways.
•Human beings are not inherently
superior to other living things.
Albert Schweitzer's ethics of
"Reverence for Life"
• Albert Schweitzer's "reverence for life" principle
was . In
contrast with traditional ethics, the ethics of
"reverence for life" denies any distinction between
"high and low" or "valuable and less valuable" life
forms, dismissing such categorization as arbitrary
and subjective.
Albert Schweitzer's ethics of
"Reverence for Life"
• "Reverence for life" was a "new ethics,
because it is not only an extension of
ethics, but also a transformation of the
nature of ethics".
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
•Peter Singer argues that non-human
animals deserve the same equality of
consideration that we extend to
human beings.
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
•Membership in the species Homo
sapiens is the only criterion of moral
importance that includes all humans
and excludes all non-humans.
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
•Using membership in the species
Homo sapiens as a criterion of
moral importance is completely
arbitrary.
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
•Of the remaining criteria we might
consider, only sentience is a
plausible criterion of moral
importance.
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
• Using sentience as a criterion of moral
importance entails that we extend the same
basic moral consideration (i.e. "basic principle
of equality") to other sentient creatures that
we do to human beings.
Peter Singer's ethics of Animal Liberation
•Therefore, we ought to extend to
animals the same equality of
consideration that we extend to
human beings.
Paul W. Taylor's ethics of
biocentric egalitarianism
• Taylor maintains that biocentrism is an
"attitude of respect for nature", whereby one
attempts to make an effort to live one's life in
a way that respects the welfare and inherent
worth of all living creatures.
Paul W. Taylor's ethics of
biocentric egalitarianism
•Taylor states that:
•Humans are members of a community
of life along with all other species, and
on equal terms.
Paul W. Taylor's ethics of
biocentric egalitarianism
• Taylor states that:
• This community consists of a system of
interdependence between all members, both
physically, and in terms of relationships with
other species.
Paul W. Taylor's ethics of
biocentric egalitarianism
• Taylor states that:
• Every organism is a "teleological centre of life",
that is, each organism has a purpose and a
reason for being, which is inherently "good" or
"valuable".
Paul W. Taylor's ethics of
biocentric egalitarianism
•Taylor states that:
•Humans are not inherently superior to
other species.
Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species (1859)
• This publication sparked the beginning of
biocentrist views by introducing evolution and
"its removal of humans from their supernatural
origins and placement into the framework of
natural laws".
Aldo Leopold, “The Lank Ethics” -
Sand County Almanac (1949)
•He asserts that ethics should be
extended to the land as "an
evolutionary possibility and an
ecological necessity".
Aldo Leopold, “The Lank Ethics” -
Sand County Almanac (1949)
•He argues that while people's instincts
encourage them to compete with
others, their ethics encourage them to
co-operate with others.
Aldo Leopold, “The Lank Ethics” -
Sand County Almanac (1949)
• He suggests that "the land ethic
simply enlarges the boundaries of the
community to include soils, waters,
plants, and animals, or collectively:
the land".
Aldo Leopold, “The Lank Ethics” -
Sand County Almanac (1949)
• In a sense this attitude would
encourage humans to co-operate
with the land rather than compete
with it.
Enrichment
Activity
My Culture and My Environment
“My Culture and My Environment”
1. Fill up the table of information like our own culture, customs and traditions
that may affects our environment, positively or negatively. Write this in a 1
whole sheet of paper
2. Give at least 3 culture and traditions and give its impact in the environment.
Write on the remarks if it is Positive or Negative.
3. Format:
Filipino Culture and Impact in our
Remarks
Traditions Environment
Ex. Pagsisiga ng mga basura Dark Smoke Negative - Air Pollution
Thank you
