Vol. 2, Issue 7, Part M (2016)

The word environment is derived from an old French word ‘Envorn’. This means Circle. According to Gisbert, “Environment is anything immediately surrounding an object and exerting a direct influence on it”. Hence, the word ‘Environment’, consists of the physical, biological and socio-cultural environment. Man is intimately related to this Environment. He is so much related to the Environment that his acts have come under the purview of ethics and hence the name “Environmental Ethics”. In this connection, it can be said that Ethics is a branch of Philosophy. It deals with man’s action. The discussion of Ethics is sub-divided into 3 fields – Normative, Descriptive and Meta-Ethics. When we try to apply Normative Ethics in everyday life, we come to Applied Ethics. Environmental Ethics comes under this discussion. It is a type of Applied Ethics. The discussion of Environmental Ethics clarifies and distinguishes the difference between Intrinsic value - Instrumental value, Valued Object – Valuing Subject. It clarifies whether value is subjective, does value pre-suppose a valuer? What is moral standing? What kinds of things have moral standing?

Philosophers differ with respect to this last question and different theories have come up viz. Anthropocentrism, Non-anthropocentrism, Bio-centrism, Individualism, Holism, etc.

In the end, it is concluded that Environmental Ethics has a future, as long as there are moral agents on earth and the value of these agents are at stake in their environment. Environmental Ethics can be developed by appreciating nature for its own sake.