Environmental Ethics: Duty to Nature
Ethics applied to the Relationship between humans and the natural world.
Environmental Ethics: Duty to Nature
| Cue Words | Notes |
|---|---|
| Definition of Environmental Ethics | - Moral philosophy regulating the ethical relationship and duties of humans toward the natural ecosystem |
| Anthropocentrism vs Biocentrism | - Anthropocentrism: nature exists primarily for human utility; conservation is pursued solely for human welfare - Biocentrism / Ecocentrism: nature and non-human species possess intrinsic value independent of human utility |
| Legal Personhood of Nature | - Granting legal rights to natural entities (e.g. Rivers Ganga & Yamuna as legal persons) under ecocentric jurisprudence |
| High-Yield Ethics Data & Exemplars | - Article 48A & 51A(g) Fundamental Duty to protect natural environment - National Green Tribunal (NGT) Act 2010 6-month disposal mandate & Public Trust Doctrine |
| Conclusion | - Success lies in moving from resource exploitation to **"Respect-Saturated and Ecological Harmony Stewardship"** |
| Real-World Precedent | - The Uttarakhand High Court's 2017 ruling declaring the Ganga and Yamuna rivers as "living legal persons" (later stayed on implementation grounds by the Supreme Court, but philosophically influential) drew directly on New Zealand's Whanganui River personhood law (2017), making it a key comparative ecocentric-jurisprudence exemplar for mains answers |