Environmental Philosophy

Catalog description

This course looks in-depth at topics prominent in the first forty-five years of professional environmental philosophy. These include the intrinsic value debates, ecological feminism, environmental virtue ethics, environmental justice, indigenous perspectives, the wilderness debates, and climate ethics. Students with some background in environmental ethics will develop a sophisticated understanding of existing work in the field appropriate for a graduate degree.The work students will read appeared in English language journals and came out of university systems, professional associations, and a particular understanding of what philosophy looks like. We should be aware this gives it a distinctive bias. We will give regular consideration to this bias and consider what environmental ethics might look like without it. Although environmental philosophy is clearly connected to the practical goal of living justly within a healthy and sustainable environment, the discipline is also a serious theoretical endeavor in its own right. Students should be prepared to delve deeply into the theoretical aspects while staying alert to how they might tie these discussions back into practice. Co-convenes with PHL 422 . Level: Graduate