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Published on: November 6, 2016
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Revisiting two dogmas of conservation science.
Kristy M Ferraro1,2, Anthony L Ferraro3, A Z Andis Arietta1
1Yale School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
Summary
Conservation science should value individual animals and embrace critical anthropomorphism. Re-evaluating these core ethics leads to more robust, compassionate, and scientifically sound conservation practices.
Area of Science:
- Conservation science
- Environmental ethics
- Ecological science
Background:
- Conservation science is guided by implicit and explicit values.
- Established norms include valuing ecological collectives over individuals and avoiding anthropomorphism.
- These norms require ethical interrogation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To re-examine two dogmatic norms in conservation science: the value of collectives vs. individuals, and the avoidance of anthropomorphism.
- To integrate insights from cutting-edge ecological science and contemporary ethics.
- To propose updated normative values for enhanced conservation practice.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of current ecological research on the value of individual variation.
- Review of contemporary environmental philosophy regarding the moral worth of individuals.
- Critical examination of the role and impact of anthropomorphism in scientific inquiry.
Main Results:
- Emerging evidence highlights the instrumental value of individual animals and their intraspecific variation for conservation.
- A growing consensus supports the moral worth of individual animals.
- Avoiding anthropomorphism hinders nuanced scientific approaches, while critical anthropomorphism fosters creativity and compassion.
Conclusions:
- Conservation science should explicitly recognize the value of individual animals.
- Avoiding anthropomorphism is detrimental; critical anthropomorphism enhances scientific inquiry.
- Outdated norms should be replaced with updated values for more robust and ethical conservation science.
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