Environmental Ethics:

Course Description

This course will be held online over Zoom (a link will be sent after enrolling). Starts Wednesday, May 28 at 6:30pm and meets 4 times over 4 weeks. This course addresses one of the most controversial and pressing issues in contemporary environmental ethics: the ethical implications of geoengineering, with a special focus on the technique of “marine cloud brightening”. We explore the complex moral landscape surrounding human interventions in the Earth's climate system as a response to global warming and ecological degradation. Through the lens of marine cloud brightening—an emerging geoengineering technique that aims to increase the reflectivity of clouds over the ocean to cool the planet—we will critically examine the ethical considerations of manipulating natural systems on a large scale. Readings will focus on the scientific underpinnings of marine cloud brightening, its potential impacts on global ecosystems, and the ethical debates it sparks regarding human responsibility, ecological justice, and intergenerational equity. Through a series of readings and discussions, participants will engage with questions such as: What are the moral implications of deploying geoengineering technologies? Can the risks associated with such large-scale interventions be ethically justified? How do we weigh the potential benefits of cooling the planet against the uncertainties and possible harm to marine life and global weather patterns? The course aims to equip students with a nuanced understanding of the ethical principles at play in the geoengineering debate, encouraging them to critically assess the role of human agency in addressing climate change and to consider the broader ethical implications of intervening in nature's balance. (Artwork above: Ivan Aivazovsky, 'Wave', 1889) Course tuition: $200.