Ecocentrism, Antrophocentrism In Philosophy and Environmental Ethics

Introduction

The environmental catastrophe that humanity faces on a worldwide scale at the start of the twenty-first century has sparked a renewed awareness of how to handle nature and the environment as habitats and sources of life. The environmental catastrophe is ultimately what will cause humanity to become its own victim, not an attempt to increase the welfare of mankind. 

The numerous catastrophes that always appear in news reports---wars, floods, illnesses, famines, and conflicts---become proof that the effects of the environmental crisis have already materialized and are happening right in front of our eyes. 

The environmental problem and efforts to advance human welfare both call for fundamental rethinking. Is it ethical to treat the environment poorly in order to advance human welfare? Is there a theory that can be utilized as a guide for evaluating the environment?

The notion of ecocentrism holds that everything, both living and nonliving, has intrinsic value. Ecocentrism, which arranges human moral standing in relation to all life and things by treating all of them equally, is a philosophy within environmental ethics. While anthropocentrism, as it is commonly known, is an environmental ethical theory that places man at the center of the cosmos.

Discussion

Humans use the environment as a place to move around in while engaging in social activities that utilize all areas of the space in accordance with the basic human requirements that motivate these activities. A specific space is occupied by people, along with bodies, plants, and animals. 

Non-living things like air, which is made up of many gases, water in the forms of liquid, solid, and steam, soil, and stone are also present in that area. The environment of a living thing is the area that a living thing occupies, along with any other living or non-living things that may be present. In addition, Campbell asserted that there are, generally speaking, two different types of environments: the biotic environment and the physical environment. 

First, the physical environment is made up of all inanimate items and natural phenomena that surround a person, such as air, water, rocks, minerals, and other liquids. This physical environment has a close relationship with the living things that live there. 

For instance, the minerals in a soil affect its fertility, which has a close relationship with the plants that thrive there. Second, the biotic environment includes everything that is alive and surrounds people, including plants, animals, and humans. Each biotic component engages in interactions with other biotics, with the physical environment, and with the abiotic environment.

Environmental history as a field of study is not new. According to Western experts, environmental history dates back to the time of Plato and Lao Tse (Krech III, McNeill, Merchant [ed], 2004). There was a presumption during Plato's time that man's involvement in the environment's evolution could not be separated. Many scientists later on focused their research on environmental issues.