Course Details

Course Information Package

Course Unit Title	ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
Course Unit Code	ESD510
Course Unit Details	MSc Education for the Environment and Sustainable Development (Electives Courses) -
Number of ECTS credits allocated	9
Learning Outcomes of the course unit	By the end of the course, the students should be able to: Recognise the need for organising a framework of ethical rules and behaviours towards nature. Describe fundamental theories of Environmental Ethics and explain each theory’s particularities with respect to the human – nature symbiosis. Discuss ethical dilemmas about the environment and propose ways of resolving ethical conflicts. Describe the characteristics of environmental ethics education and implement effective pedagogical techniques, for values development depending on the targeted age groups. Examine the ways that the direct (official), indirect (hidden) and the null (missing) curriculum contribute to the construction of a system of values and distinguish the environmental ethics characteristics included into the above mentioned aspects of the curriculum. Organise and manage debates on environmental ethics issues, in class.
Mode of Delivery	Face-to-face
Prerequisites	NONE	Co-requisites	NONE
Recommended optional program components	NONE
Course Contents	-  Introduction to Ethics. Emphasis on environmental ethics and the necessity for the development of this specific branch of ethics, as well as the dilemmas that environmental ethics are called to deal with and settle. -  Conventional ethical theories (eg. Utilitarianism) trying to deal with the “recently” appeared environmental problems.  Identification of differences between the eco-centric and antropo-centric school of environmental ethics. Intrinsic and instrumental value of nature. -  Elaboration and analysis of environmental ethics theories such as animal liberation, biocentrism, deep ecology and eco-feminism.  -  Welfare of future generations of people and the welfare of future generations of animals, ecosystems and the biosphere, within the framework of Sustainable Development. -  Empathy and how empathetic attitudes can be developed in children towards entering the values education field. Hidden and null curriculum in relation to environmental ethics. -  The fundamental concept of Progress. The imaginary constitution of modern society along with some of its accompanying parameters (Gross National Product [GNP], productivism, changes in the perception of time, change of quality and organization of work). Environmental racism and environmental justice and their relations to environmental ethics.
Recommended and/or required reading:
Textbooks	Georgopoulos, A. (2002). Environmental Ethics, Gutenberg
References	Flogaitis, E., (2005). Education for the Environment and Sustainability, Ellinika Grammata Jamieson, D. (2008). Ethics and the Environment: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008 Light, A. & Rolston, H. III (eds.) (2003). Environmental Ethics, An Anthology. Malden: Blackwell Publishing. Sunstein, Cass R. & Nussbaum, Martha C. (eds.) (2004). Animal Rights, Current Debates and New Directions. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods	This module is delivered through through lectures, discussion and experiential workshops of collaborative learning.
Assessment methods and criteria	Assignment 50% Final Exam 50%
Language of instruction	Greek
Work placement(s)	NO