Human Meets Nature: Key Concepts in Environmental Philosophy

Introductory video lecture to John Muir's Philosophy of Nature.

A short biographical account of John Muir. At the end of this lecture you'll understand who John Muir was and why he is a significant figure in the history of environmental thinking.

At the end of this lecture you'll be able to state Muir's key ideas about the relationship between humans and nature, be able to recognize some of Muir's important writings, and be familiar with some of his most well-known statements about the natural world. 

At the end of this lecture you'll be able to put together John Muir's ideas about nature to state in general terms what his philosophy of nature was.

At the end of this lecture students will understand the influence that Muir's work had during his lifetime and continues to have today.

A one page text summary of the lectures in this section.

Introductory video lecture to Deep Ecology

This lecture introduces Deep Ecology by contrasting it with shallow ecology. By the end of this lecture you'll understand that Deep Ecology is a world view and that it was developed primarily by Arne Naess.

A short biographical account of Arne Naess. By the end of this lecture you'll know some key facts about Arne Naess and understand why he was positioned to propose Deep Ecology.

This lectures expands on the deep ecological world view introduced in the first lecture of this section. By the end of this lecture you'll understand that deep ecology proposes a metaphysical world view in which everything is connected to, and defined by, everything else.

This lecture introduces the idea of intrinsic value as a key feature of Deep Ecology. By the end of this lecture you'll be able to give examples of intrinsic values and non-intrinsic values.

This lectures takes the deep ecological world view and makes it personal by applying it to the individual. By the end of this lecture you'll understand that the ecological self embeds humans within nature rather than being outside of it.

This lecture describes Aldo Leopold's epiphany when he witnessed the an wolf dying and explains that Leopold's reflection on the experience was an example of deep ecological thinking. By the end of this lecture you'll understand deep ecology from a more practical perspective and be able to apply deep ecological thinking to their own experiences with nature.

This lecture extends the idea introduced in the previous one through a brief exploration of the Gaia Hypothesis. At the end of this lecture you'll understand what the Gaia Hypothesis is and how it relates to Deep Ecology.

This lecture is a one page text summary of the lectures in this section. Students are directed to the supplementary resources if they wish to dive deeper into these ideas.

Video introductory lecture to the Land Ethic.

A brief introduction to what The Land Ethic is, when it was written, who it was written by and what its broad aims were.

A brief biographical account of Aldo Leopold focusing on why he was ideally qualified to write the Land Ethic. By the end of this lecture you'll be familiar with key information about Aldo Leopold and understand how he came to write the Land Ethic.

This lecture introduces Leopold's assertion that we should consider our ethical relationship with the land rather than thinking about it solely in economic terms. It focuses on Leopold's belief that we must consider the land to have intrinsic rather than instrumental value. By the end of this lecture you'll understand that Leopold proposed that conservation should be driven by intrinsic rather than instrumental values.

This lecture introduces Leopold's idea of a land mechanism in which all members of the biotic community participate. Also, that Leopold considered the integrity of this mechanism as more important than any one species or ecosystem within in. And finally, that humans are part of this biotic community. By the end of this lecture you'll understand what Leopold meant by a biotic community and why it is important that he included humans within in.

This lecture explores the idea of whether an ethic can be applied to 'wholes' rather than individuals. By the end of this lecture you'll understand what is meant by holistic ethic and be able to produce some examples.

An examination of Leopold's famous dictum as presented in the Land Ethic. By the end of this lecture you'll be familiar with the central principle of the Land Ethic.

A one page text summary of the lectures in this section. Students are directed to explore the additional resources for this section.

Video introductory lecture to ecofeminism.

A broad overview of ecofeminism as introduction to the topic. At the end of this lecture you'll be able to outline what ecofeminism is and how it can be used to explore environmental issues.

An exploration of the paradigm of humanity's attempt to dominate, master and control nature. At the end of this lecture you'll understand why this paradigm emerged and see the importance of it in consideration of contemporary environmental issues.

Explores the parallels between the subjugation of woman and the subjugation of nature. At the end of this lecture you'll recognize the significance of patriarchal attitudes in environmental issues.

Exploring the idea that humanity's attempt to dominate nature is consistent with the ideologies of racism and colonialism. At the end of this lecture you'll appreciate that the environmental issues we see today are not isolated events but may be part of a continuing trend of behaviour.

We use geoengineering as an example of humanity's attempt to dominate nature. At the end of this lecture you'll understand what geoengineering is and see why it provides an example of the paradigm that ecofeminism cautions against.

Explores the importance of including social benefits in any approach to tackling the environmental crisis. At the end of this lecture you'll understand why ecofeminism demands the inclusion of social benefits in any approach to solving environmental problems.

Examination of the concept of the generalized other which is key to ecofeminist thinking. At the end of this lecture you'll understand what is meant by the generalized other and why it is important in this discussion.

An exploration of the contrast between feminine qualities of nature and patriarchal attitudes in society. At the end of this lecture you'll understand what is meant by saying that nature is imbued with feminine qualities and recognize that these qualities conflict with the dominant paradigm of human society.

A one page text summary of the lectures in this section. Students are encouraged to use the additional resources provided.

Video introductory lecture to Silent Spring.

Broad overview of Silent Spring as way of introduction. At the end of this lecture you'll know some basic information about silent spring and appreciate its importance as an environmental text.

A brief biographical account of Rachel Carson. At the end of this lecture you'll have a broad understanding of who Rachel Carson was and what motivated her to write Silent Spring.

Carson is critical of the use of agricultural chemicals and proposes that they interrupt nature's built-in checks and balances. At the end of this lecture you'll understand why Carson was critical of the use of agricultural chemicals.

A key theme of Silent Spring is to argue that humans are not separate from nature; whatever we introduce into nature will somehow come back to us. At the end of this lecture you'll understand that Carson is heavily critical of the idea that there is a nature / culture divide.

Despite our attempts at the chemical control of nature, nature adapts and fights back. At the end of this lecture you'll be able to give examples of nature fighting back and realize that this is an example of what Carson meant by suggesting we have a flawed approach to nature.

One of the key themes of Silent Spring is that those who hold institutional power can not necessarily be trusted to do what is right for nature. By the end of this lecture you'll understand Carson's critique of institutional power.

Silent Spring was intended as a moral call to arms. Carson suggested that personal choices could overwrite society’s wrongs. At the end of this lecture you'll understand that Silent Spring was intended to inspire action and some would argue that it fuelled the environmental movement.

Silent Spring wasn’t just a popular book at its time of writing but has endured to continue to inspire subsequent generations. This lecture explores the legacy of Silent Spring. 

A one page text summary of all of the lectures in this section. Students are directed to the supplementary resources if they wish to delve further.

Video introductory lecture to environmental aesthetics.

A brief exploration of what is meant by aesthetics of the natural environment and why it’s important. By the end of this lecture you'll broadly understand what is meant by environmental aesthetics and have a sense for why it may be an important area of consideration.

An introduction to the historical background that has contributed to contemporary thinking in environmental aesthetics. By the end of this lecture you'll appreciate the major historical trains of thought on environmental aesthetics.

A comparison of different attitudes towards nature in different parts of the world and how they progressed. By the end of this lecture you'll understand how dominant attitudes towards nature progressed over time in various parts of the world.

What does it mean to say nature is beautiful or sublime? This lecture digs into these issues to reveal the role of perception and imagination. By the end of this lecture you'll be able to broadly define beauty and sublimity in relation to nature - and be able to form their own ideas of what these concepts mean to them.

This lecture defines the picturesque and scenic and explores why these values may be problematic. By the end of this lectures you'll understand the problems of using the picturesque and scenic to value nature.

An exploration into the multi-sensory appreciation of nature. What does it mean to be immersed in an environment? By the end of this lecture you'll have an appreciation for what it means to experience nature using the multi-senses.

Does imagination and emotion have a part to play in our aesthetic appreciation of nature? Do we have to use these tools carefully or can we allow them to have free reign? At the end of this lecture you'll be equipped to form a developed opinion of the role of imagination and emotion in our aesthetic appreciation of nature.

Is scientific knowledge necessary for forming an aesthetic appreciation of nature? How? At the end of this lecture you'll be equipped to form a well developed position on the role of scientific knowledge in the aesthetic appreciation of nature.

Explores the link between the aesthetic appreciation of nature and ethical attitudes towards it. At the end of this lecture you'll understand how aesthetic appreciation of nature is strongly linked to ethical attitudes towards it.

So how do we value nature on its own terms? Which framework should we use to value nature? Scientific? Multi-sensory? Objective or subjective? At the end of this lecture you'll have the tools to form your own opinion about how to value nature.

A one page text summary of all of the lectures in this section. Students are directed to the supplementary resources to dig further into these topics.

Video Introductory lecture to ecophenomenology.

What is phenomenology and what does it have to do with the natural world? By the end of this lecture you'll be familiar with how concepts from phenomenology can be put to use in considering humanity's relationship with the natural world.

A broad overview of Husserl’s Lebenswelt concept and how it might be useful in considering the natural environment. By the end of this lecture you'll understand what the Lebenswelt means and appreciate how it might be used to think about human / nature relationships.

A broad overview of what Merleau-Ponty meant by ‘the flesh of the world’ and what distinguishes it from Husserl’s Life-World. At the end of this lecture you'll understand what Merleau-Ponty's concept of Flesh and what makes it different from Husserl's Lebenswelt.

What is the significance of our corporeal experience? What does embodiment have to do with environmental ethics? At the end of this lecture you'll understand why this is an important line of enquiry into exploring human / nature relationships.

How do we experience Leopold's biotic community? At the end of this lecture you'll understand how we might take Leopold's biotic community concept one step further.

Our bodies make sense only in the context of the Earth environment. We are immediately in perceptual community with the Earth. By the end of this lecture you'll understand what it means to say that we are in perceptual community with the Earth.

Community psychology tells us that feeling a ‘sense of community’ engenders certain behaviours towards that community. How does this fit into human / nature relationships? At the end of this lecture you'll understand how the idea of the 'sense of community' is important is engendering ethical attitudes towards nature.

Many indigenous cultures live in close ‘community’ with nature; this lectures examines several examples and what they have to teach us about living ethically towards the Earth. At the end of this lecture you'll be familiar with case studies of cultures who live closely with their natural environment.

A discussion of the argument that philosophy alone cannot help engender ethical attitudes towards the natural environment. At the end of this lecture you'll be familiar with the argument that philosophical ideas alone are insufficient to change attitudes towards the natural environment.

We bring together the threads of the previous lectures in this section to draw a coherent conclusion about how phenomenology can be useful in considering human / nature relationships. At the end of this lecture you'll be able to see how the various threads presented in this section fit together to form a coherent and useful means of considering human / nature relationships.

A one page text summary of the lectures in this section. Students are directed to the supplementary resources to dig deeper into these topics.

Complete list of the supplementary resources.