Why this matters now
Environmental ethics bridges GS-3 (environment) and GS-4 — tested for the human-nature relationship, the approaches, and the ethics of sustainable development and climate justice.
What is environmental ethics?
Environmental ethics studies the moral obligations of humans toward the natural environment — questioning whether nature has intrinsic value (worth in itself) or only instrumental value (worth for human use), and what duties we owe to other species and future generations.
Key approaches
Anthropocentric — human-centred; nature matters because it serves human needs. Ecocentric/biocentric — nature and all living beings have intrinsic value (e.g. deep ecology). Key principles: intergenerational equity (duty to future generations), the precautionary principle, polluter pays, and sustainable development (balancing needs and limits).
Indian traditions and application
Indian thought has a deep ecological ethic — reverence for nature, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, sacred groves, Gandhi’s “enough for need, not greed”, and the LiFE movement. For administrators, environmental ethics means balancing development with conservation, climate justice, and the rights of communities and future generations.
UPSC angle
Know environmental ethics (moral duty to nature, intrinsic vs instrumental value), anthropocentric vs ecocentric/deep ecology, principles (intergenerational equity, precaution, polluter pays), and Indian/Gandhian traditions.
Frequently asked questions
What is environmental ethics?
The study of humans’ moral obligations toward the natural environment and other species.
What is the difference between anthropocentric and ecocentric views?
Anthropocentrism is human-centred (nature matters for human use); ecocentrism holds that nature has intrinsic value of its own.
What is intergenerational equity?
The principle that the present generation has a duty to preserve resources and the environment for future generations.
How does Indian tradition view nature?
With reverence and harmony — reflected in sacred groves, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” and Gandhi’s idea of enough for need, not greed.