From environmental to ecological ethics: toward a practical ethics for ecologists and conservationists

Area of Science:

• Ecological research and conservation science.
• Environmental ethics.
• Applied ethics.

Background:

• Ecological research and conservation present complex ethical questions concerning public welfare, nonhuman individuals, populations, and ecosystems.
• Environmental ethics offers general principles but lacks specific resources for the practical concerns of ecologists and conservation managers.
• Existing ethical frameworks are insufficient for the unique, field-based challenges faced by ecological practitioners.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and define the emerging field of "ecological ethics" as a specialized, practical approach to ethical dilemmas in ecology and conservation.
• To highlight the limitations of current environmental ethics in addressing the specific needs of ecological researchers and managers.
• To propose ecological ethics as a superior analytical tool for navigating complex ethical situations in environmental science and practice.

Main Methods:

• Drawing from mainstream environmental ethics, animal ethics, research ethics, and professional ethics.
• Adopting a normatively pluralistic and methodologically pragmatic approach.
• Focusing on the practical problems encountered by researchers and managers in the field, lab, and conservation settings.

Main Results:

• Ecological ethics provides a superior framework for addressing the diverse and unique ethical concerns of ecologists and conservation managers.
• This practical ethics model is normatively pluralistic and methodologically pragmatic.
• It serves as a valuable analytical tool for identifying, clarifying, and harmonizing diverse values and positions in ecological research and management.

Conclusions:

• Ecological ethics offers a vital intellectual and problem-solving service to the ecology and conservation communities, analogous to bioethics in biomedicine.
• It enhances ethical decision-making for environmental scientists and practitioners.
• The field promotes a more robust and applicable ethical approach to ecological research and conservation challenges.