Futures Studies Economics Ecology

Ethics for a Full World

Or, Can Animal-Lovers Change the World?

by Tormod V. Burkey Review by David Lorimer, August 2017

Published: 2017
Publisher: Polity Press
Format: Paperback
Pages: 179
ISBN: 9781905570850

Publisher’s description

The global emergencies facing the inhabitants of our planet – climate change, biodiversity meltdown, ocean acidification, overfishing, land degradation and more – are symptoms of a common problem: the world is full. Humanity has already exceeded several planetary boundaries. The situation is without precedent and its manifestations are numerous. Ethics for a Full World argues that our dominant culture’s anthropocentrism – our human-focused thinking – is an underlying cause of the world’s problems, threatening life as we know it. The blights that endanger our planet are experienced by many today, particularly those who care about other species, as deeply personal tragedies. So why are we not acting to save the world? Some say that humans won’t do anything until we feel the repercussions ourselves – but by then it would be too late. This book takes an uncompromising view on our culture, our democracy and us as human beings, and examines why it is so difficult to save the world from ourselves. In a globalized world, the most urgent issues are the ones that exhibit tipping points, as they are the ones that it may become too late to fix. Burkey argues that non-anthropocentric ethics and the people who hold them, could be key to turning the tide. In a cry for meaningful and effective engagement, he proposes a concrete first step to connect concerned individuals. This is a book for people who want to be part of the solution, and who aren’t fooled by the feeble attempts for change that have been made so far. ‘One of the shortest, sharpest, clearest and most compelling descriptions of the causes and cures of our environmental bankruptcy that I have ever read.’ – Lloyd Timberlake, author of Environmental Politics for the 21st Century ‘A cure for narrow-mindedness, this provocative book should be required reading for politicians – and those who vote for them.’ – Brian Czech, President, Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy, author of Supply Shock: Economic Growth at the Crossroads ‘A fine, concise book which should enlarge the discussion on what in my view is the most important need of humanity, an “Ethics for a Full World”.’ – Paul Ehrlich, Bing Professor of Population Studies Emeritus and President of the Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University

This brilliant and concise book is essential reading in facing the global problematique and galvanising the necessary political action. The main title highlights a key theme, that the global emergencies facing the planet are symptoms of a common problem, namely that the world is full, with humanity having already exceeded several planetary boundaries. This is an unprecedented situation and the implicit ethic is one of anthropocentrism, while the author calls for a biocentric ethic reflected in the subtitle: can animal lovers save the world? He argues that the world needs to be saved from humanity rather than for humanity. He asks why we are not acting to save the world and, interestingly, draws on the work of the behaviourist BF Skinner who noted that, from an evolutionary point of view, we are programmed to react to the immediate rather than the remote. From a planetary perspective, we have to do better than putting health warnings on cigarette packets.

Overall, the pace of change and the complex interdependencies of our ecological system have exceeded our ability to cope and we drift along with business as usual, making the best of a bad job. Our institutions and political systems are not fit for purpose, and politicians on a five-year electoral cycle have no incentive to fix things before a disaster supervenes. Our current practices are in fact robbing our children of a sustainable future, yet individually we are mostly too busy (in my case writing reviews like this) to prioritise the necessary cooperation that is the only real hope, and that can now be mediated via the Internet. Indeed, many petition sites bring huge numbers of people together in a common cause. The final chapter describes a possible process for we can translate ideas into effective action, outlining all the necessary components. As the author points out, 'largely, we know what needs to be done, but have no idea how to get humanity to do it… political systems are geared so that no major changes will occur.' This is especially dangerous when applied to irreversible tipping points. This is a passionate, galvanising and compelling call to informed action.

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