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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
What’S The Harm In Climate Change?, Eric S. Godoy
What’S The Harm In Climate Change?, Eric S. Godoy
Faculty Publications - Philosophy
A popular argument against direct duties for individuals to address climate change holds that only states and other powerful collective agents must act. It excuses individual actions as harmless since they (1) are neither necessary nor sufficient to cause harm, (2) arise through normal activity, and (3) have no clear victims. Philosophers have challenged one or more of these assumptions; however, I show that this definition of harm also excuses states and other collective agents. I cite two examples of this in public discourse and suggest we reconsider the notion of harmful action in our discussions about climate change.
Going Fossil Free: A Lesson In Climate Activism And Collective Responsibility, Eric S. Godoy
Going Fossil Free: A Lesson In Climate Activism And Collective Responsibility, Eric S. Godoy
Faculty Publications - Philosophy
Colleges and universities already contribute significantly to the fight against climate change, but the UN has recently called upon them to do even more. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that institutions of higher education play a unique role in combating climate change and other structural injustices, not only by conducting research and disseminating knowledge, but also by fostering a form of collective political responsibility. A philosophical analysis of different forms of collective responsibility, with specific attention to the Fossil Free divestment movement, reveals how social position facilitates this contribution more so in colleges than in other institutions.
Reconceiving Responsibility: A Review Of Iris Marion Young’S Responsibility For Justice, Eric S. Godoy
Reconceiving Responsibility: A Review Of Iris Marion Young’S Responsibility For Justice, Eric S. Godoy
Faculty Publications - Philosophy
In Responsibility for Justice, published 5 years after her untimely death, Iris Marion Young addresses the difficulties of thinking about responsibility in our complex, globally interconnected world. Our everyday errands, such as shopping for food, clothing and even light bulbs, now raise questions about our connection to grave injustices that occur around the world. Yet the limits of our ability to think seriously about these connections are evident. Even tracking responsibility within localized events is difficult when multiple layers of agency are involved. For instance, is BP, Transocean, or Halliburton responsible for the Deepwater debacle? 1 Unfortunately, Young began working …