Sci 362 Wk 1 Terms and Definitions Wksht

Course Description This course focuses on the causes of, impacts of, and solutions to environmental issues. Students identify global environmental issues as well as develop and critique environmental action plans. Topics include ecosystems, energy, populations, resources, pollution, and sustainability. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • • University policies: You must be logged into the

Anthropocentrism are people who have centered view of our relationship with the environment. People who follow this ethic are described as those who deny, or overlook and devalues the notion of nonhuman things. Biocentrism is defined as intrinsic value to certain living things or to biotic realm in general. In this life the human life and nonhuman life both have ethical standing. Ecocentrism judges actions in terms of their effects on whole ecological systems which consists of living and nonliving elements and their interrelationships (Wihgottt & Laposata, Environment, page

The book defines ecological, as “a type of sociological approach that emphasizes demographics and geo

One known research method is the Scientific Method which is a uniform way of creating observations, assembly data, establishing concepts, testing predictions, and understanding outcomes. These observations are made in order to observe and define behaviors. The first step to take in using a scientific method is to develop an issue or question. Next step is to perform a research and observation on the issue or question that was developed. Then a hypothesis needs to be formulated after these steps have been made.

Environmental Studies is the academic field, which systematically studies human interaction with the environment in which we live in. It is a broad field of study that includes the natural environment, built environment, and the sets of relationships between them. Environmental studies takes into account many different factors that help provide an enjoyable, fruitful way of life, such as national policies, politics, laws, economics, sociology and other social aspects, planning, pollution control, natural resources, and the interactions of human beings and nature.

Knowledge through education and communication is the key to understanding, and global unity and happiness. Ecological perspectives challenges the notion that intelligence is a measure of worth that distinguishes humans from other beings by repeating the concept of hierarchy, humans ability to ask why, and our ability to think beyond what is right in front of us.

Ecology today can be defined as “the study of the interrelationships between living things and their environment”. It is important to understand that when we say that ecology includes the “environment”, we are talking about everything that is external to an organism, all the biotic and abiotic. Nowadays it also attempts to understand and explain the how and why of the origins and mechanisms of interactions.

The Scientific Method is the standardized procedure that scientists are supposed to follow when conducting experiments, in order to try to construct a reliable, consistent, and non-arbitrary representation of our surroundings. To follow the Scientific Method is to stick very tightly to a order of experimentation. First, the scientist must observe the phenomenon of interest. Next, the scientist must propose a hypothesis, or idea in which the experiments will be based around. Then, through repeated experimentation, the hypothesis can either be proven false or become a theory. If the hypothesis is proven to be false, the scientist must reformulate his or her ideas and come up with another hypothesis, and the experimentation begins again. This

Another adjustment to the microscope, and we can examine Leopold's biocentric opinion of how environmental ethics should be governed. His approach enlarges the moral category to include soils, waters, plants and animals and claims our obligation is to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. Philosophers Devall and Sessions further define the biocentric view with the concept of deep ecology. Devall and Sessions argue that "the well-being and flourishing of human and non-human life have value in themselves. These values are independent of the usefulness of the non-human world for human purposes." (503)

The ecological perspective conveys the elaborate transactions between people and their environments (Greene, 2008). In order to understand someone, one must be able to understand the environment that he/she is a part of. Relatedness, competence, niche and habit, goodness-of-fit, and power are all important concepts that contribute to the ecological perspective.

Deep ecology is a contemporary ecological philosophy that recognizes the inherent worth of other beings aside from their utility. The philosophy emphasizes the interdependent nature of human and non-human life as well as the importance of the ecosystem and natural processes. It provides a foundation for the environmental, ecology and green movements and has fostered a new system of environmental ethics.

Over time Western culture has been obsessed with dominance. Humans over non-humans, masculinity over femininity, wealthy over poor, western over non-western cultures. Deep ecological consciousness allows us to see through the perception of this dangerous illusion. A dominant world view is centered around maximizing and using natural resources for our destructive consumerist habits. Deep ecology is about minimizing and finding harmony with nature.

These perspectives are anthropocentric or human centered and view all non-human life as less important than humans themselves. Environmental ethics challenges these beliefs by questioning the assumed moral superiority of human beings to members of other species on earth (SEP, 2008). Preservation of the environment is essential to the preservation of the human race.

The concept of sustainability is becoming an ever more relevant and popular ideology today. Many college campuses take great pride in their sustainability, they take many steps to ensure that their garbage output, water usage and other various items are sustainable or working towards that goal. In areas outside of the college camps setting however, sustainability is often hard to reach due to a wide array of concepts, including deep ecology and environmental pragmatism. I believe the two “key points” (of the 8) behind deep ecology is that humans have no right to reduce the richness and diversity of our natural resources, and that human interference with the non-human world is excessive (Naess 3). Simply put, deep ecology is a push back against our over use of resources, with a goal to hardly use them at all. This concept occasionally goes together with the view held by many on environmental pragmatism, but the two often collide with each other. Environmental pragmatism involves the basic concept that humans are part of the environment and that this must be taken into account with its management (Light 3). This means that humans historical and cultural uses of the land must be taken into account with its management, even if it is not the “best” option for the land management. These two perspectives can come together to create a more sustainable environment, but they more often have very extreme differences of how to manage an area, and this is when “wicked problems” can

Ecofeminism is a multicultural perspective on the interconnectedness of social systems of domination and the domination of non-human nature. It recognizes the cultural and political links between ecology and