Environmental Virtue Ethics

In recent years, many philosophers have come to believe that virtue ethics is a particularly valuable approach to take within environmental ethics, although they do so for different reasons.Some philosophers, such as Rosalind Hursthouse, see standard attempts to prove the intrinsic value or moral considerability of non-human beings as inconclusive or outright failures. In environmental virtue ethics they seek a more solid rational foundation for environmentalism: protecting the environment will promote human wellbeing. Others, like John O'Neill, think some intrinsic value claims are convincing, but believe that the roles healthy ecosystems play in supporting human flourishing provide further arguments for environmental protection. They seek to supplement appeals to altruism with appeals to people’s enlightened self-interest. Yet other philosophers, such as Lisa Newton, see an urgent need to specify the kinds of character traits that can help people live environmentally decent lives. For this group environmental virtue ethics provides the proper framework within which to discuss creating sustainable societies ...