Aldo Leopold And Schaeffer's Personal Land Ethic

Aldo Leopold is another American environmentalist who was dominant in the development of modern environmental ethics. Aldo was more for holistic ethics regarding land. According to him, “An ethic, ecologically, is a limitation on freedom action in the struggle for existence. An ethic, philosophically, is a differentiation of social from anti-social conduct.” He describes in his article that politics and economics are advanced symbioses in which free-for-all competition has been replaced by co-operative mechanism with an ethical content.” He thought that ethics direct individuals to cooperate with each other for the mutual benefit of all. Also he believes that community should be

Man was created to keep the earth but we have failed at that, we have not listened to the Genesis myth about being the caretakers, we have destroyed and pillaged the land. The creation myth was supposed to keep the earth pure but we justified it as a way to do what we want with it(Earth) and therefor have had a negative effect on the earth due to the genesis creation myth.

The relationship between people and their environment in A Land Remembered is one where the profit from land exploitation is naturally corrupting and exponentially increases the exploiters lust for larger profit, leading to the exploiter planning larger scale endeavors in the future. The author, Patrick D. Smith (1984), suggests the idea that communities naturally grow in a hedonic cycle to crave more resources to fuel loftier endeavors that require even more resources from the environment, an idea that is also discussed by Aldo Leopold in the Land Ethic as wholly negative, and that is also part of my world view that is rather more optimistic.

These can be simple activities such as turning off the water while brushing your teeth or simply walking to work. We can also be more mindful about how much trash we make in a week and to always recycle. Although no amount of recycling will forestall the end that God has planned for the earth, we are still called to preserve earth’s natural resources to the best of our capability. Psalm 24:1 (New International Version) states, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” This passage teaches us that although God gives people the power to utilize elements of the environment, God is still the ultimate owner of all of his creations. Therefore, we are called to respect his creations because they are not ours but God’s.

Aldo Leopold is on the forefather of modern environmentalism. His book, A Sand County Almanac, is based on the notion of viewing land as a community and as a commodity. In the chapter “The Land Ethic”, Leopold invokes a rethinking of our relationships to our world and is based on the principle that ethics are “a process in ecological evolution” (238). Leopold describes the stages of ethic evolving and explains that the rules for socializing were originally defined for human beings. These rules are expanded upon in the next stage of “Ethical Sequence” (237-238), describing how humans interact toward their community. The third stage is the ethics between humans and the land. Upon analyzing “The Land Ethic” I have come to the conclusion that in order to have respect and ethic for land, or anything, one must make a personal connection.

“One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise,” said by none other, Aldo Leopold. In A Sand County Almanac, Aldo Leopold, an American environmentalist, brought a new idea to the environmentalist’s table: “land ethic.” His idea of a land ethic is a moral responsibility of humans to the natural Earth. Leopold’s idea has been discussed since the publication by a wide variety of people, from the public to scholars. Since

Therefore, the individual’s responsibility is to take care of the earth they live in. for instance, taking care of family and friend and others with dignity is a way to show sign of our respect for the god, who created the earth and the human (Catholic Charities, 2016).

Leopold expresses, “a system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopesided,” (p. 251). The self-interest economists who are only interested in the profit of which they gain from the land cannot spread the importance of the respect for the community. The people who share a knowledge and passion for the environment will educate those who are unaware. As well as being educated on the land, it is essential for humanity to understand that we are not users of what Earth has to offer us, but associates,

“A land ethic is a moral code of conduct that grows out of these interconnected caring relationships (TALF).” Currently humans are using more fossil fuels then we ever had which is leading to the destruction of habitats but also the extinction of thousands of species. Certain organizations are being to fight the commercialization of America. Fossil Fuel companies are wiping out thousands of ecosystems and species because of the increase of industry. There are three major land ethic organizations like the Sierra Club, Bureau of Land Management and Ducks Unlimited which use specific land ethics to represent their specific ideals.

What exactly is land ethics? According to Leopold, “Land ethics expands the boundaries of ethics by including soils, waters, plants, and animals,” (Leopold, page 239). However, a land ethic cannot prevent the alteration, management, and the use of the resources stated above. Basically, Leopold states that land ethics change the role that we humans play from that of a land-conqueror to that of a citizen and member. In class, we learned that land ethics imply respect for the surrounding community. We as humans are important, and thus, have more responsibility to protect the environment.

Our human community is more than the town one is in, the state or a nation. From A Sand County Almanac (Leopold, 1948) the concept of land ethic was coined, “Enlarge the boundaries of community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals.” A moral and ethical government’s policies should view our communities in the multi-faceted spectrum that they truly are. We all need

The life-sustaining bond of human beings with the land has a strong connection. Centuries have gone by… throughout the many years, humans have relied on the land to provide, evolve, help survive, and move forward with their lives. The land provides for humans in a non costly manner. The land provides humans free shelter. For example, Humans use the dirt we walk on to build shelter. The Earth provides humans natural resources, such as water from lakes, streams and rain. The land gives humans bountiful, healthy nourishing food. The Earth provides free healthcare for every living creature. The land has a bond with humans because the land provides natural resources, it provides shelter, and it evolves the human body.

"Treat the Earth well. It was not given to you by your parents. It was loaned to you by your children."    Kenyan proverb.

Humans have an ethical responsibility to care for the earth, they should make a better world and repay the earth by

“The Land Ethic” written by Aldo Leopold was critiqued by J. Baird Callicott. “The Land Ethic” in short explained the idea that humans are not superior to animals or species on earth, but humans should live on earth as simple members. (Leopold, 2013) Callicott found three things that lead to the confusion, contempt, and contempt of Leopold’s writings.