Philosophy

Alright — the knee-jerk reaction is the way of society, right now; Have you learned consider, to look deeper into things — to do some philosophy??

Consider this URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unsolved_problems_in_philosophy (Links to an external site.)/ (Links to an external site.) – you see that uncertainties run deeper than racism, politics, religions, and inequality. What is yours — what issue is your passion?

DIG INTO something you really care about: sports, fashion, engineering, dogs, cooking… whatever you have a passion for — a show me in five or so pages that you can understand it with some philosophical depth when it comes to the ethics involved. Need at least five quotes from respected thinkers to back your ideas up, MLA heading, abstract, cites, works cited — the usual stuff.

RUBRIC:
❖ MLA HEADING –
o Your name
o My name
o Class: PHIL 2316
o Date: 13 November 2020 (Day Month Year) Worth 10 points

❖ WHERE IS YOUR ABSTRACT??? – Lets me know your approach. Frames your contentions for you, and me.
o Problem statement: What problem are you trying to solve?
o Motivation: Why do we care about the problem and the results?
o Approach: How did you go about solving or making progress on the problem
o Results: What’s the answer
o Conclusions: What are the implications of your answer? 10 point

❖ CITATIONS – All evidence must be MLA-format; example: (Smith 2) — After all info, agreeing with works cited; (But just two or maybe three is too little — too lean and weak.) 20 points

❖ SOURCES IN A MLA FORMAT, ALPHABETIZED – First thing I always do is look at sources – make sure that you do MLA format – see previous lesson: books and websites require different things, very specific things, otherwise illegal. 10 point

❖ REQUIREMENTS – looking for the particulars:
1) How much does our personal developmental history effect our moral behavior?;
2) How much should we do for our fellow man?. 20 points

❖ PERSUASION – When I read your paper I am looking for persuasion backed by reasoning and evidence – facts, quotes, anecdotes… arguments; see cluster papers and ML

WE DO NOT NEED SOME MUCH A SUMMARY OF THE GUIDING ESSAY PROMPT, ABDOUL — WE ALREADY HAVE THE SHORT ESSAY, “SHAME”.
 NEVER LEAVE IT TO YOUR READER TO INTERPRET YOUR CLAIMS AND ARGUMENTS – BE CLEAR AND DIRECT.
 AS ALWAYS, EXPLAIN HOW YOUR QUOTES/FACTS/DATA CONNECTS TO AND SUPPORTS YOUR CLAIMS. MOST IMPORTANT ARE THE CONNECTIONS: SEE MODULE ONE.
 RESEARCH, FIND OUT, AND DEVELOP A CONSISTENT VIEW FROM YOUR RESEARCH.

 HERE IS EXACTLY ON WHAT WE NEED TO WORK:
 CLAIM(S) – YOUR MAIN IDEAS
o SUPPORT — FACTS/QUOTES
 CONNECTIONS — HOW FACTS SUPPORT, TIE TOGETHER WITH CLAIM
 AS ALWAYS, HOW MUCH CAN BE APPLIED TO GREGORY, THEN (OF COURSE) GENERALIZING THIS TO THE QUESTION ON THE QUANTITY OF AID ALL OF US SHOULD GIVE TO EACH OTHER.

 NOW, LET US CONSIDER EGO-STRENGTHS.
40 points

ANSWER

The Philosophical Debate of Environmental Conservation

Environmental conservation refers to the practice of human beings to save the environment from imminent collapse through a gradual loss of species and ecosystems due to human activity that causes pollution. The philosophical debate about environmental conservation is methods and ways to fix a planet that is already experiencing global warming and environmental degradation. Two strategies can be applied, mitigation or adaptation. Measures to mitigate comprises actions aiming at the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and therefore refers to dealing with the causes, while measures to adapt are actions aiming at the reduction of vulnerability to the effects of the change and therefore addresses a reaction to the impacts. The World Economic Forum Global Risks Report of 2016 reports that failure to mitigate and adapt to climate change will be “the most impactful risk” facing the world in the coming years, worse than the water crisis and weapons of mass destruction (World Economic Forum).

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines mitigation as “human intervention to reduce the sources or enhance the sinks of greenhouse gases” (IPCC.ch). Examples of mitigation measures include reducing greenhouse gases by avoiding activities that include the burning of fossil fuels as a source of energy and enhancing ‘sinks’ that accumulate and store greenhouse gases such as forests, oceans, and soil. In other words, mitigation aims are a serious reduction of human interference with the climate and means and measures to “stabilize greenhouse gas levels in a timeframe sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed sustainably” (IPCC.ch).

The IPCC defines adaptation as “the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects” (IPCC.ch). For adaptation, the goal lies with the reduction of vulnerability to the harmful effects of global warming, such as drastic changes in weather, food insecurity, and sea-level encroachment. According to historians and researchers, in the past, how human beings adapted to climate change became the basis for the rise and fall of civilizations. In the past 12,000 years, the climate has been fairly constant and has been responsible for a great deal to the current level of this civilization. The climate change in the process right now is much faster and promises to be much harder this time, and adaptation techniques applied must be as efficient and strong. Adaptation requires application on every level, starting from individuals to government and intergovernmental associations.

Comparing the two and on the question of which is more prudent, the fact is that as of now, no single means can reach the objective without the assistance of the other. The IPCC makes it clear that “many adaptations and mitigation options can help address climate change, but no single option is sufficient by itself” (IPCC.ch). A working application relies on policies and cooperation at all scales and can be improved through cohesive responses that link mitigation and adaptation. Basically, this is an ‘all hands on deck’ situation to save a sinking ship. However, while adaptation is local and almost private with immediate and clear benefits, mitigation is global and very public, and its effects have far much-reaching consequences making the frontrunner of the two. Mitigation also brings about the variable of the economy where many rich countries bear the resources and choose to reduce emissions and benefit the entire world or to adapt and leave others behind (Rodney 2016).

References

IPCC.ch. Climate Change 2014. Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Retrieved on 26^th June 2020 from https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/03/ar5_wgII_spm_en-1.pdf

IPCC.ch. Mitigation of Climate Change from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, page 4. Retrieved on 26^th June 2020 from https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/ipcc_wg3_ar5_summary-for-policymakers.pdf

Rodney J. Keenan, Craig Nitschke. (2016) Forest management options for adaptation to climate change: a case study of tall, wet eucalypt forests in Victoria’s Central Highlands region. Australian Forestry 79 96-107.

World Economic Forum. The Global Risks Report 2016 11^th Edition. Retrieved on 26^th June 2020 from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GRR/WEF_GRR16.pdf