The value of beings and its relevance to environmental ethics

Abstract

In this paper I argue for a naturalist theory of value. I show how value is based on ‘good for’ relations between entities which are recognized by human reflection and consciousness. Through a brief analysis of living beings within their environmental conditions I show that there is a web of value within nature connecting all living beings. I show that the conceptual split between ‘Society’ and ‘Nature’ is false and that human beings are intimately connected with their embodied nature, and that sociality is an emergent property of our physical reality. I also outline some aspects of what it means to be a human being. The final chapter discusses my conception of an environmental ethics which I believe should not solely concern our relation with the environment but is also a method by which to drive the environment to the most desirable state of affairs – the flourishing of life. I claim that this is possible through our economic systems and industrial activities, for these are primarily the ways in which we interact with the environment and are now the main drivers of global change. I also briefly show how these insights serve as an argument against various other positions.