2 environmental ethics 环境学 环境伦理.ppt

Personal Choices Eating food produced locally, that is low on the food chain, and is grown with a minimum of chemical fertilizers and pesticides reduces the environmental impact of food production. Buying durable consumer products and reusing or repairing products with usable life reduces the raw materials that must be extracted from the ground. Conserving energy at home and on the road can lessen the amount of fossil fuels used to support your lifestyle. Living in town rather than in the suburbs can reduce your impact on the environment. Lobbying（游说） for protection of wild areas and voting for officials who take environmental issues seriously are other ways you can contribute to a reduced environmental impact. * Global Environmental Ethics Ecological degradation in any nation inevitably impinges（影响） on the quality of life in others.（global warming, ozone depletion, acid rain, water rights） Much of the current environmental crisis is rooted in the widening gap between rich and poor nations. Environmental ethics suggests that we may have an obligation beyond minimizing the harm we cause to our fellow human citizens. It suggests we may also have an obligation to minimize the harm we cause to the ecological systems and the biodiversity of the Earth itself. * * Lifestyle and Environmental Impact Significant differences in lifestyles and their environmental impact exist between the rich and poor nations of the world. The ecological footprint （生态足迹）of those in the industrialized world can be 20 to 40 times higher than the footprint of those in the developing world. What would be the environmental impact on the Earth if the citizens of China and India and other less-developed countries enjoyed the standard of living in North America? Can we deny them that opportunity? * * The ecological footprint is defined as the biologically productive area needed to provide for everything people use: fruits and vegetables, fish, wood, fibers, absorption of carbon dioxide from fossil