IB Environmental Systems and Societies

1. Topic 1
Foundations of Environmental
Systems and Societies
1.1 Environmental Value Systems
http://edroness.blogspot.mx/2016/01/why-
environmentalism-is-duty.html
http://edroness.blogspot.mx/2013/10/putting-value-on-
nature.html

3. Environmental Value Systems
• A set of paradigms which shapes the way individuals or societies
perceive and evaluate environmental issues
• This is affected by:
– Cultural concerns
– Religious concerns
– Economic issues
– Whether a society belongs to an MEDC or an LEDC
• As with any system, they have
– INPUTS (e.g. education, media, religious doctrines)
– OUTPUTS (e.g. environmental mediation)
– PROCESSING (e.g. political decisions)
– FEEDBACK LOOPS (e.g. scientific advice)
Rather than being based on energy and/or matter, environmental value systems
are based on the flow and processing of information

4. Environmental Value Systems
• Since EVSs vary, different cultures, societies, and special-
interest groups often come into conflict over them
• e.g. The U.N. moratorium on whaling is seen very
differently in Japanese society compared to European
nations
• e.g. The oil lobby in the U.S. sees attempts to switch to a
greener economy differently to environmental groups

5. Environmental Value Systems
• There are 3 general categories:
– Ecocentric (centred on the environment)
– Technocentic (centred on technology)
– Anthropocentric (centred on humans)
ecocentrism anthropocentrism technocentrism

6. Ecocentrism
• Ecocentrists are likely to distrust technology
• They would stand against large-scale production and
corporations
• They would view nature as having control over human
society rather than the other way round
• They would view the world as having very finite natural
capital which should be protected rather than exploited
• They believe that ecology is too complex for humans to
fully understand and therefore be able to manage it
• Some believe that nature has more value than humanity
(an extreme view referred to as “deep-ecology”)

7. Technocentrism
• Technocentrists trust in technological advances to
solve environmental problems
• They trust in the resourcefulness of humans
• They believe that humans are able to control nature
• They believe that scientific thinking and scientific
research is important in making public policy
• Extreme technocentrists are referred to as
‘cornucopians’. They believe that the world has
infinite resources to support a growing population
and that this is achievable through a free-market and
reliance on technology

8. Anthropocentrism
• Anthropocentrists would include aspects of both
ecocentrism and technocentrism and in their
worldview
• They would view humans as managers rather than
controllers of nature
• They believe that population control is as important
as use of natural capital
• They believe that government has an
important role to play in regulating
human action in relation to the
environment
Silent Running, 1972

9. Religion
• The Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Islam and Judaism)
set out a concept of ‘dominion’ and ‘stewardship’ of nature
in the Book of Genesis
• This is an extreme version of anthropocentrism in which
nature has value in terms of its usefulness to humans and
the pleasure and profit it can provide
• However, a belief in creationism also endows the
responsibility on humans to look after God’s creation
• It could be argued that this is a religious responsibility
rather than a moral one

10. Deep-Ecology
• A school of philosophy (ethics) founded
by Norwegian intellectual Arne
Næss(1912-2009)
• He believed humans should do nothing
unless they are fully aware of the
outcomes of an action and can take
responsibly for it
• He was profoundly influenced by Gandhi
and the book ‘Silent Spring’ by Rachel
Carson

11. Deep-Ecology
• The tenets of deep-ecology are:
– The well being of human and non-human life has no value in
itself which is independent of the usefulness of the non-human
world to humans
– The richness and diversity of life contributes to these values
– Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity
except to satisfy vital needs
– For human (and non-human) life to flourish a substantial
reduction in human population is required
– Human interference with the non-human world is excessive
– A substantial change in world policy is needed in terms of
economics, technology and ideology
– Humans should appreciate the quality of life rather than aspire
towards higher standards of living
– People with ecocentric views need to constantly work to make
these changes to improve the well-being of the Earth

12. Environmental philosophy and
decision-making
• Many of the issues covered in the course require
public policy decision-making
• The decisions made by politicians may depend on
their own philosophies and those of others that
influence them
• We can discuss a few case-studies here:
– Water demand and exploitation
– Climate change
– Fossil fuel use
– Ecological footprint

13. Water demand and exploitation
• Ecocentric view
– Water should be conserved and recycled so that it can be used
sustainably
– Meters, monitoring and quotas should be imposed on
individuals and businesses
• Technocentric view
– Water should be freely available now and in the future
– Innovative methods need to be explored to ensure this
(including recycling, desalination, development of crops which
require less water)
– All sources of water should be tapped (including seawater and
groundwater)
– If problems arise from exploitation, technologies can be
developed to overcome them

14. Climate change
• Ecocentric view
– Limits should be imposed on the consumption of
fossil fuels
– Farming methods need to be modified to reduce
our dependence on meat
– Reforestation is necessary
– We need to switch to greener sources of energy.
(There is some cross-over here with
technocentrism)
• Technocentric view
– Technologies can be employed such as ‘artificial
trees’ to sequester carbon or fleets of unmanned
ships spraying salt water into the atmosphere to
increase the Earth’s albedo

15. Fossil Fuels
• Ecocentric view
– Carbon dioxide emissions need to be reduced
– There is a need for alternative energy sources but there is also a
role for initiatives such as carbon credits and carbon trading
• Technocentric view
– We can continue to develop a high standard of living
– Greener technologies can be developed so that there is no
effect on industrial production
– These technologies will include ways to sequester existing
carbon from the atmosphere and the exploitation of low carbon
alternatives
– Fossil fuels may continue to play a role

16. Ecological Footprint
• Ecocentric view
– Humans need to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels
and reduce actions which cause pollution or other
harm to the biosphere
– To achieve this a change in lifestyle (certainly in
MEDCs) is required
• Technocentric view
– There is no need to change our lifestyle
– We can all aspire to better standards of living
– Economic growth, prosperity and scientific advances
will achieve this

17. Questions
1. What is an environmental value system. How
is it similar to other systems we have looked
at earlier in the course
2. Define technocentrism, ecocentrism and
anthropocentrism.
3. Discuss how environmental philosophies may
affect decision-making by politicians.