Differences Between Environmentalism and Consideration for Animals

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A 50-minute lesson

1. 5 min
   Opening. Ask the question and let the class answer without correcting them: Have you ever supported an environmental campaign without knowing what it did to animals?
2. 15 min
   Reading. Respect for animals and environmentalism: complementary or opposed? (6 min read) and The divergence concerns ends, not only means (5 min read). For younger classes, read the “For kids” layer: Caring about animals is different from caring about “beautiful nature.” Sometimes, to keep a landscape the way someone thinks it should be, lots of animals are killed. People who care about animals don't accept that.
3. 15 min
   Discussion.

   • Have you ever supported an environmental campaign without knowing what it did to animals? (Respect for animals and environmentalism: complementary or opposed?)
   • If a species were saved at the cost of great suffering by its own members, who would have been saved? (The divergence concerns ends, not only means)
   • Think of an “environmental protection” project you know. Does it measure how the animals who live there are doing? (Despite their differences, do animal advocacy and environmentalism converge in practice?)
   • When someone says “think long-term,” whom are they thinking about? (The divergence does not lie in a focus on the short or the long term)
4. 10 min
   Activity. Project the debate simulator. In groups, the class chooses the best reply to each objection and explains why the others are weak.
5. 5 min
   Wrap-up. Each person writes one sentence about what changed in their thinking. Compare it with the volume summary: Are defending animals and defending the environment the same thing? This volume shows they are not: environmentalism values species and ecosystems in themselves, while defending animals means valuing the individuals who feel. The disagreement is about ends, not just means, and it shows up in programs that kill animals.

Exercise sheet

1. Which of these is a common environmentalist criterion for assigning value?

   1. The suffering of individuals
   2. The degree of rarity or biodiversity
   3. The capacity to feel

2. Why shouldn't environmentalist extermination practices come as a surprise?

   1. Because environmentalism and respect for animals start from diametrically opposed foundations
   2. Because they're rare
   3. Because they're illegal

3. In environmentalism, “considering the whole” means...

   1. considering the majority of animals
   2. considering entities like species and ecosystems
   3. considering all living beings equally

4. Among animal advocates, killing a minority to save a majority is...

   1. always accepted
   2. always rejected
   3. a matter of disagreement

5. What question would a sentience-based ethics ask when choosing the vegetation of a place?

   1. Which is the rarest?
   2. Which results in less suffering and fewer premature deaths for the animals over time?
   3. Which is the most beautiful?

6. What field of research could inform decisions for the good of animals?

   1. Welfare biology
   2. Astrology
   3. Tourism economics

7. The statement “we shouldn't help because it would cause more suffering in the future” expresses a concern that is...

   1. environmentalist
   2. for sentient beings
   3. religious

8. According to the chapter, what do aid programs for wild animals aim at?

   1. Less suffering and fewer premature deaths from then on
   2. More biodiversity at any cost
   3. Original landscapes

9. The notion of biodiversity concerns...

   1. the variety of species
   2. the well-being of individuals
   3. the number of humans

10. If the goal is what's best for animals, the analysis should focus on...

    1. the degree of biodiversity
    2. how the animals are being affected
    3. the beauty of the landscape

The lesson plan and exercises are a study layer written for this site. The texts read are by Luciano Carlos Cunha.