Environmental Ethics and History – Key Terms (Video Lecture Notes)

A set of vocabulary-style flashcards covering the key people, concepts, and debates from the lecture notes on environmental ethics, history, and contemporary perspectives.

Hetch Hetchy Valley

A Yosemite valley flooded to create a dam and reservoir to supply San Francisco; central case study in environmental ethics between preservation and conservation.

John Muir

Preservationist who argued for protecting natural places like Hetch Hetchy for their intrinsic value; founder of the Sierra Club.

Gifford Pinchot

Conservationist who advocated the sustainable use of natural resources to provide the greatest good for the greatest number.

Preservation

Ethical view that natural areas should be kept in their pristine state for their own sake, often independent of direct human use.

Conservation

Ethical view that natural resources should be managed to use them sustainably for broad human benefits.

Anthropocentric ethics

Ethical perspective that assigns intrinsic value to nature primarily for its usefulness to humans.

Biocentric ethics

Ethical perspective that assigns intrinsic value to all living beings, regardless of their utility to humans.

Ecocentric ethics

Ethical perspective that extends intrinsic value to ecosystems as wholes, not just individual organisms.

Intrinsic value

Value something has in itself, independent of any use it provides to humans.

Instrumental value

Value of something as a means to achieve other ends or benefits for humans.

Virtue ethics

Ethical framework focusing on character and motives (originating with Aristotle).

Consequence-based ethics (utilitarianism)

Ethical framework judging actions by their results, aiming for the greatest good for the greatest number.

Duty-based ethics (deontological)

Ethical framework judging actions by adherence to rules or principles, regardless of outcomes.

Raker Act

1913 U.S. law signed by President Woodrow Wilson permitting the damming of Hetch Hetchy and flooding the valley.

Hetch Hetchy restoration

Debate and proposals to restore the valley after dam removal while maintaining water supply and power.

Wangari Maathai

Kenyan environmentalist who founded the Green Belt Movement and linked environmental action with women's empowerment (eco-feminist).

Green Belt Movement

Kenyan grassroots program mobilizing women to plant trees, restore ecosystems, and empower communities.

Environmental Justice

Principle of fair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens across all people, addressing inequities.

Deep ecology

Ecocentric philosophy emphasizing the intrinsic value of ecosystems and advocating for limited human domination.

Rachel Carson

Author of Silent Spring; catalyzed the modern environmental movement and policy changes (EPA) with an ecocentric emphasis.

Great chain of being

Aristotle’s hierarchical view placing humans at the top, reflecting an anthropocentric worldview.

Tuolumne River

River that provides water and power for San Francisco; its watershed is central to the Hetch Hetchy debate.