Pro Environmental Ethics

Great Essays
Concern for the environment is an ongoing theme marked with contention over whether or not humans have an ethical or moral obligation to take pro-environmental actions. Theorists, such as Aristippus and his Cyrenaic school argue that the highest good is self-pleasure, and lacking future concern they argue that individuals should take actions to ensure pleasure in the short term. According to the Cyrenaics, there is not an ethical or moral obligation to engage in pro-environmental actions. However, Jeremy Bentham disagrees, arguing that an ethical action is one which promotes the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Despite the Cyrenaic view, people do have a moral and ethical obligation to take pro-environmental actions. This …show more content…
This is evident due to the negative consequences of poaching, which not only contribute to the extinction of species, but have devastating effects on ecosystems. For example, Tigers are becoming increasingly close to extinction, and because they are apex animals they play a vital role within their ecosystem . Apex animals, such as Tigers are responsible for controlling and regulating animal populations, and if they were to become extinct, then prey animals would dramatically increase in numbers. Herbivores for instance, who influence the rest of the food chain would threaten to exhaust the food supply. Furthermore, should a species become extinct the repercussions of its disappearance may be irreversible. Essentially, poaching results in tremendously detrimental impacts on ecosystems, which not only result in the extinction of animals, but depending on which animal may lead to the uncontrolled reproduction of prey species, and in turn the food supply of an entire ecosystem may be eliminated. However, pro environmental actions such as the protection of endangered species and the aversion of poaching would have the positive consequences of promoting a species survival. It is because of this that poaching by no means results in better consequences than pro environmental action, and therefore there is consequentialist, moral obligation to partake in environmental

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