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This article investigates the role of gardening (as human practice) and gardens (as locations) from the perspective of a 'deep' anthropocentric environmental ethics. On conceptual grounds, it outlines the concepts of gardens and gardening, defines some essential traits of gardens, and presents a typology of gardens. In its methodology, the article combines archaeology, hermeneutics, and semiotics with phenomenology of nature and ethics. A focus is given to eudemonic values of gardens, and special interest is devoted to garden scents. Garden scents are a fugitive, but intense sensual attraction which stimulates (non-moral) reverence for plant life. The ethical case for 'good' gardening is given in the conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The book "The Worldview of Hedgehogs - Nature Ethics in a Different Way" by Angelika Krebs is the result of a planned conversation between the philosopher and the writer Peter Kurzeck, which could not take place due to his death. The book is aimed at people for whom nature experiences are important and does not offer a moral theoretical treatise, but evokes different types of nature experiences based on Kurzeck's texts. It combines philosophical discussion with the evocative power of literature and criticizes consumerist everyday culture. The book deals with the personification of nature beings, the role of literature in the personification of nature, the importance of moods and atmospheres in nature phenomenology, a spiritual attitude towards nature, and the question of re-enchantment. It also analyzes Peter Kurzeck's book "The Worldview of Hedgehogs" and criticizes some passages, but emphasizes the importance of a differentiated social critique. [Extracted from the article]

In this article, we will establish a version of the buying time argument (BTA) in favor of Sulphur Aerosol Injection (SAI) Climate Engineering (CE). The idea is not to promote the deployment of such scheme, but rather to present the strongest possible argument pro SAI in order to look at its presuppositions, implications, critical points and uncertainties. In discussing BTA being the only morally sound argument in favor of SAI, the stakes and the overall framework will become visible. If, however, the strongest pro-SAI argument enables us to recognize some major flaws of this technology, this option should be disregarded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even if societies decarbonized rapidly, it is unlikely that they will achieve the 1.5 °C target without also resorting to CO2 removal, by means, for example, of bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS). Such methods were included in the special report Global Warming of 1.5 °C published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2018. This report also discusses solar radiation management, such as stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) which might be used to change global temperatures. However, public debate about the acceptability of these methods remains absent. We look at laypersons' perceptions of BECCS and SAI at three stylized stages of increasing knowledge and deliberation. We found a high level of uncertainty among survey respondents as to whether to accept the use of these methods, which decreases when additional information is supplied by stakeholders. When comparing survey participants to members of a citizens' jury, we found lower levels of acceptance for SAI and similar levels for BECCS among jury members who had deliberated the methods intensively. Despite fears of distracting from the aim of reducing emissions, decision-makers should publicly discuss these methods to avoid planning based on incorrect assumptions about the political feasibility of CO2 removal. People want to be informed about both approaches and the threat of SAI makes them focus their attention on mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prominent voices in archeology have expressed deep skepticism about the role of theory in archeology, while with new, exciting methods at its disposal, archeological science is occasionally perceived as not needing theory at all. This article reflects upon the debate about theory in archeology to arrive at a robust but critical middle-range concept of the role and character of theory in socio-environmental archeology. It is argued that archeology is a data-based science and, consequently, in order for theory to be meaningful in socio-environmental archeology, theory ought explicitly aim to make its qualitative concepts quantitative to establish a clear relation to data and its interpretation. On the turn side, theory plays an important role critically reflecting upon the use of concepts in archeological understanding and explanation, as well as their origins in particular paradigms, as examples of which certain debates in scientific archeology are discussed (aDNA and migration, evolutionism). We argue that such a model would serve archeology far more than the dismissal of theory on the one hand and the continued production of 'high' theory in absence of operationalization on the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We would like to begin by thanking the journal and the commentators for their time and attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the emergence of modern techniques of environmental analysis and widespread availability of accessible tools and quantitative data, the question of environmental determinism is once again on the agenda. This paper is theoretical in character, attempting, for the benefit of drawing up research designs, to understand and evaluate the character of environmental determinism. We reach three main conclusions: (1) in a typical pattern of research design, studies seek to detect simultaneous shifts in the environmental and archaeological records, variously positing the former to have influenced, triggered or caused the latter; (2) the question of determinism involves uncertainty about the justification for the above research design in particular in what comes to biologism and the concept of environmental thresholds on the one hand and the externality of the drivers of transformation in human groups and societies on the other; (3) adapting the concepts of the social production of vulnerability and the social basis of hazards from anthropology may help to clarify the available research design choices at hand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ecosystem Service Approach lays down the several ways in which nature contributes to the welfare of human beings. One important category of this approach is the cultural services that nature offers, which conform to the eudaimonic values in environmental ethics. The cultural services of nature are an important reason in choosing a concept of strong sustainability, as developed by Konrad Ott and Ralf Döring; eco-phenomenology is a method to immerse into these cultural-eudaimonic values and articulate them in nuanced ways. Our overall argument will substantiate the uncommon claim that eco-phenomenology is of focal significance to theories of sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term “biodiversity” is often used to describe phenomena of nature, which can be studied without a reference to the socially constructed, evaluative, or indeed normative contexts. In our paper, we challenge this conception by focusing particularly on methodological aspects of biodiversity research. We thereby engage with the idea of interdisciplinary biodiversity research as a scientific approach directed at the recognition and management of contemporary society in its ecological embedding. By doing this, we explore how research on and assessments of biodiversity can be enhanced if meaning, aspiration, desires, and related aspects of agency are methodically taken into account. In six sections, we substantiate our claim that the discourse on biodiversity (including the IPBES (Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) debate) is incomplete without contributions from the social sciences and humanities. In the introduction, a brief overview of biodiversity’s conceptual history is provided showing that “biodiversity” is a lexical invention intended to create a strong political momentum. However, that does not impede its usability as a research concept. Section 2 examines the origins of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) by way of sociological discourse analysis. Subsequently, it proposes a matrix as a means to structure the ambiguities and tensions inherent in the CBD. The matrix reemphasizes our main thesis regarding the need to bring social and ethical expertise to the biodiversity discourse. In Section 3, we offer a brief sketch of the different methods of the natural and social sciences as well as ethics. This lays the groundwork for our Section 4, which explains and illustrates what social sciences and ethics can contribute to biodiversity research. Section 5 turns from research to politics and argues that biodiversity governance necessitates deliberative discourses in which participation of lay people plays an important role. Section 6 provides our conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lakes are threatened ecosystems in drylands of Central Asia. The Wuliangsuhai Lake ('W-Lake') is a case in point. Located in the Hetao Irrigation Area ('HIA'), W-Lake is a rare multifunctional inland lake in arid North China. It provides a wide range of ecosystem services, including provision of products, regulation of water and climate, water purification, biodiversity conservation and cultural services. The lake's major water input is the drainage water from HIA's farmlands. Those farmlands divert water directly from the Yellow River for irrigation. Unsustainable agricultural practice in HIA has gravely impacted on W-Lake in terms of reduced water quantity and degraded water quality. However, the linkage between agricultural practice in HIA and the environmental changes of W-Lake has been rarely investigated. Existing data focus mainly either on W-Lake or on HIA's farmlands with overwhelmingly technical and end-of-the-pipe solutions. In view of the above, this paper develops four qualitative scenarios on HIA from social, economic and ecological perspectives. The four scenarios are: (a) green growth; (b) strong sustainability; (c) shift to swamp; and (d) worst case. The main aims of this paper are (1) to assist local decision makers of HIA in policy-making and (2) to develop concepts and strategies within the larger framework of integrated water management that shall inspire conservation efforts in other Central Asian regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The ocean regulates the global climate, provides humans with natural resources such as food, materials, important substances, and energy, and is essential for international trade and recreational and cultural activities. Together with human development and economic growth, free access to, and availability of, ocean resources and services have exerted strong pressure on marine systems, ranging from overfishing, increasing resource extraction, and alteration of coastal zones to various types of thoughtless pollution. Both economic theory and many case studies suggest that there is no “tragedy of the commons” but a “tragedy of open access”. With high likeliness, structures of open access are non-sustainable. International cooperation and effective governance are required to protect the marine environment and promote the sustainable use of marine resources in such a way that due account can be taken of the environmental values of current generations and the needs of future generations. For this purpose, developing and agreeing on one Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) specifically for the Ocean and Coasts could prove to be an essential element. The new SDGs will build upon the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and replace them by 2015. Ensuring environmental sustainability in a general sense is one of the eight MDGs but the ocean is not explicitly addressed. Furthermore, the creation of a comprehensive underlying set of ocean sustainability targets and effective indicators developed within a global Future Ocean Spatial Planning (FOSP) process would help in assessing the current status of marine systems, diagnosing ongoing trends, and providing information for inclusive, forward-looking, and sustainable ocean governance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article aims to provide some ethical orientation on how sustainability might be actualized by institutions. Since institutionalization is about rules and organization, it presupposes ideas and concepts by which institutions can be substantiated. After outlining terminology, the article deals with underlying ethical and conceptual problems which are highly relevant for any suggestions concerning institutionalization. These problems are: (a) the ethical scope of the sustainability perspective (natural capital, poverty, sentient animals), (b) the theory of justice on which ideas about sustainability are built (capability approach, Rawlsianism), and (c) the favored concept of sustainability (weak, intermediate, and strong sustainability). These problems are analyzed in turn. As a result, a Rawlsian concept of rule-based strong sustainability is proposed. The specific problems of institutionalization are addressed by applying Rawls's concept of branches. The article concludes with arguments in favor of three transnational duties which hold for states that have adopted Rawlsian strong sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an introduction to the special issue of the "Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics" which aims at investigating Large-scale Land Acquisitions (LaSLA) from an ethical perspective.

Sustainability of freshwater has become one of the most prominent issues in Chinese river basins. Recently, the Yellow River Conservancy Commission adopted the approach of 'Maintaining the Healthy Life of the Yellow River' (HLR) as the top principle in its management scheme. We locate arguments by HLR advocates in an ecocentric line of reasoning within Environmental Ethics. In view of crucial problems of ecocentrism, we conclude that HLR might be better grounded in the paradigm of Strong Sustainability (StS). With the case of the Hetao Irrigation Area at the upstream of the Yellow River, we recommend a StS-scenario with suggestions for policy reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the developments in climate ethics (CE), an emerging field in applied ethics. It provides an overview on the different domains of CE. It outlines themain building blocks of a theory that a comprehensive CE will be established if well-substantiated positions in each domain can be conjoined coherently. It tackles each of the triangular structre of how to reduce the negative impacts of climate change, mitigation, adaptation and climate engineering. It also explores the ethical profile of climate change, with details on climate economics.

Sustainability science does not fit easily with established criteria of the quality of science. Making explicit and justifying four features of sustainability science--normativity, inclusion of nonscientists, urgency, and cooperation of natural and social scientists--can promote deep and comprehensive questioning. In particular, because the inclusion of nonscientists into sustainability science has become a dogma, re-examining the epistemic, normative, and political reasons for inclusion is important for the quality of sustainability science. These reasons include providing a range of perspectives and helping to craft and implement policy in real-world social and ethical situations. To be included effectively, nonscientists must be understood within this demanding context rather than employed merely to satisfy a dogma. We situate our discussion in this article against a foundational controversy of sustainability science: the weak versus strong sustainability debate. According to our analysis, comprehensive consideration of the features of normativity, inclusion of nonscientists, urgency, and cooperation of natural and social scientists suggests a convincing case for strong sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A critical reply to the article "Formen wissenschaftlicher Auseinandersetzung," by Heiner Rindermann is presented. The author discusses the theories proposed by Rindermann concerning the level of debate in the science fields. The author describes his own personal experiences during an extensive academic debate in the 1980s.

The author discusses the mismatch of climate engineering proposals and the solution to conceivable "climate emergencies" as the result of unabated greenhouse gs emissions. The author cites several issues that affect the climate engineering proposals and consequently the analysis of unabated greenhouse-gas emission including the solar radiation management (SRM), the Atlantic thermohaline circulation, and the possible tipping events.

This paper identifies a lack in sustainability science, of a well-founded normative basis, for the justification of sustainable development. In order to fill this gap, we aim at calling attention to two of the salient conceptions in the German discourse, namely the 'Theory of Strong Sustainability' developed at the University of Greifswald and the 'Integrative Sustainability Concept' proposed by the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres (HGF), the biggest research institution in Germany. Both conceptions highly value the justification of a strong theoretical and normative core of sustainable development. This paper suggests that a well-founded 'theory of sustainable development' provides the distinctiveness that allows the assessment whether or not there is progress towards sustainability. A clear scientific comprehension of sustainability may inform politics in sustainability affairs and function as a rational corrective for the otherwise diffuse discussion in the general public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]