Two such areas of applied ethics are of direct concern to us. The first, development
ethics, emerged as a field of study in the second half of the 20th century. It
questions and looks at the ethical implications of ideas such as ‘progress’ and at the
implications of various types of social change. It considers the costs and gains from
major socioeconomic changes, and whether those in wealthier countries have a duty
to help those in poorer parts of the world. As with most areas of applied ethics, it has
a purpose: to ‘help in identifying, considering and making ethical choices about
societal “development”, and in identifying and assessing the explicit and implicit
ethical theories’. In other words, it aims to give clearer
understanding of the key issues surrounding socioeconomic development, and to
unpick the many hidden assumptions about what is the ‘right’ or ‘good’ thing to do.
Key issues include social and human rights, poverty reduction, the gap between rich
and poor, and planned international intervention by some nations in the development
of others.
A second area of applied ethics is environmental ethics. Environmental ethics emerged as a separate area of philosophical study during the 1970s. The approaches of environmental philosophers are varied, but most take as their starting point the belief that we are facing a critical point in our relationship with the non-human world, and that in order to avert (or reverse) an ecological crisis, we need to reassess the ways in which we value the non-human world. While not all environmental philosophers suggest that we need a new approach to the ethical values we assign to nature, many varied suggestions have been made as to which alternative frameworks we should use for valuing nature. These two important areas of applied ethics are central to understanding many important contemporary issues, such as those related to sustainable development, climate change, and environmental management. Issues are also raised by environmental and development ethicists in relation to another important area of applied ethics: corporate ethics (although some would regard business/corporate ethics as a further area of applied ethics in its own right).
A second area of applied ethics is environmental ethics. Environmental ethics emerged as a separate area of philosophical study during the 1970s. The approaches of environmental philosophers are varied, but most take as their starting point the belief that we are facing a critical point in our relationship with the non-human world, and that in order to avert (or reverse) an ecological crisis, we need to reassess the ways in which we value the non-human world. While not all environmental philosophers suggest that we need a new approach to the ethical values we assign to nature, many varied suggestions have been made as to which alternative frameworks we should use for valuing nature. These two important areas of applied ethics are central to understanding many important contemporary issues, such as those related to sustainable development, climate change, and environmental management. Issues are also raised by environmental and development ethicists in relation to another important area of applied ethics: corporate ethics (although some would regard business/corporate ethics as a further area of applied ethics in its own right).
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