FYI...
Stefanie Rixecker
ECOFEM Coordinator
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From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Friday, May 07, 1999 6:24 PM
CALL FOR PAPERS
PHILOSOPHY AND BIODIVERSITY
International Seminar at University of Turku, Finland
August 20-21, 1999.
The seminar Philosophy and Biodiversity will focus on two related research
areas: the philosophical analysis of the concept of biodiversity and the
ethics of biodiversity preservation.
According to the Rio Convention on Biodiversity the concept of biodiversity
refers to the variability among living organisms and the physical
environments of which they are part, and it includes the diversity within
species, between species and of ecosystems. The philosophical interest in
the phenomenon of multiplicity of biological kinds is almost as old as the
philosophical activity in itself. The Greek philosophers reflected on such
question as 'Why are there so many kinds?', 'What is the relation of a kind
to its individual representatives?' and 'Are these kinds arranged in
systematic ways?' Some of their constructions are topical as ever. Plato,
says Arthur Lovejoy in his acclaimed The Great Chain of Being, was the
first to defend the so called Principle of Plenitude according to which
"the world is the better, the more things it contains."
The present worldwide attention to biodiversity seems to subscribe to the
same idea: we should do our best not to diminish the multiplicity of life
forms which have generated from the evolutionary processes on Earth.
Whereas the extinction of a kind for a Greek philosopher was something of
an impossibility, our perception of the natural world is quite different:
the species are disappearing to such a rate that exceeds the rate of
evolutionary diversification. The recent realisation of this fact has put
the issue of biodiversity preservation in global political agenda, and thus
far the most significant manifestation of this concern has been the UN
Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
In general, the notion of biodiversity is logically linked to the idea that
we can recognise and identify different kinds of species, subspecies and
habitats and their mutual relationships. How exactly should we construct
the idea of biodiversity? What are the basic units of biodiversity? Is
there some kind of correlation between diversity and stability? What is the
significance of the ancient philosophical ideas to modern philosophy of
nature? What is the relevance of Plato's, and other Greek philosophers',
ideas concerning our understanding of natural diversity? The understanding
of the nature of biodiversity phenomenon is essential to the formation of
reasonable environmental policies.
Ethically, the preservation of biological diversity raises many questions
that seem to require different answers as compared to answers usually given
in environmental ethics. The first preservationist aims from the nineteenth
century were based on perceptions that certain
species were at the brink of extinction
due to extensive human use: the use exceeded the rates of reproduction. It
was quite common to response to the problem by prohibiting the hunting,
fishing or trapping of the endangered species. The standard view of species
preservation professes banning the trade with the endangered species
(CITES, the U.N. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species).
A recent example of this policy is the banning of any import or export of
African elephants, including their products such as ivory. The critics of
this policy have pointed out that it made management and grazing of
elephant populations impossible: those nations who could manage elephants
successfully lost an incentive to do so.
Similarly, in respect to the special nature sites, the so called
"Yellowstone model" was influential. It favours parks in which settlement
is prohibited, and subsistence and commercial uses of natural resources are
banned. The wilderness ideology is widely criticised
for various reasons. There are doubts over the existence of such a thing as
wilderness. It has questioned for political reasons: can people be
prohibited from using the resources they are accustomed to use? Positive
arguments have been put forward by indicating empirically that the highest
levels of biological diversity are often found in areas with some (though
not excessive) human intervention. Some has doubted that it makes it
impossible to try to bridge the gap between use and preservation.
Furthermore, the model increases the resource use pressures elsewhere.
The alternative is that conservation should occur through use of
environmental goods and services. Thus the slogan 'Use it, or lose it'. Is
there an "anthropocentric turn" in environmental ethics and conservation
policies, a move from banning the use to rational use which have been
brought in with the notion of biodiversity? And a number of other questions
follow: When the use of natural resources is a threat to the stability of
ecological systems? How should the contradiction between individual welfare
and the good of the whole in wildlife
management be resolved? What is the role
of institutional solutions to biodiversity?
The purpose of the seminar Philosophy and Biodiversity is to shed light on
the phenomenon of biodiversity by creating a forum for a debate among
philosophers and other researchers interested in conceptual and ethical
issues of biodiversity. The seminar will consist partly of joint sessions
with invited keynote speakers, and partly of parallel sessions with paper
presentations.
Keynote speakers:
* Prof. Robin Attfield (University of Wales, Cardiff):
Differentiated Responsibilities
* Prof. Dieter Birnbacher (Universit�t D�sseldorf):
Primary value and the problem of the replaceability of biological species
* Dr. Keekok Lee (University of Manchester):
There is biodiversity and biodiversity: their implication for environmental
philosophy
* Prof. Bryan G. Norton (Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta):
Can There be a Universal Earth Ethic?
* Dr. Kate Rawles (Lancaster University):
Conservation and Animal Welfare
* Prof. Michael Ruse (University of Guelph):
Biodiversity: Definitions and Meanings
***
We invite all interested scholars to send proposal for papers to be
presented at workshops.
Abstracts (max 400 words) should be sent in paper or e-mail to the
following address:
Markku Oksanen
Department of Philosophy
University of Turku
20014 TURKU
Finland
Tel: +358-2-333-6336
Fax: +358-2-333-6270
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
The registration fee is 500 FIM. (Further information about the payment of
registration fee will be sent upon registration by ordinary mail.) It
includes refreshments, lunches on Friday and Saturday, and the conference
dinner. Participants are supposed to take care of their personal travel and
accomodation costs. We are also planning a nature conservation trip to a
nearby national park, or a cruising to the Turku archipelago, for Sunday.
The seminar is arranged by Professor Juhani Pietarinen and Dr. Markku
Oksanen, both from the Department of Philosophy at University of Turku, in
collaboration with the Finnish Biodiversity Research Programme FIBRE
(http://fibre.utu.fi).
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Dr. Stefanie S. Rixecker
Division of Environmental Management & Design
Lincoln University, Canterbury
PO Box 84
Aotearoa New Zealand
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Fax: 64-03-325-3841
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