Lesson 5. Environmental Ethics

Ogungbemi and Tangwa are some of African scholars who have contributed to this topic.

The text below is from Ojomo, PA (2020). An African Understanding of Environmental Ethics. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya (PAK) New Series, Vol.2 No.2, pp.49-63

Godfrey Tangwa’s African Environmental Ethics
“Although his work makes no reference to Ogungbemi’s, Tangwa’s focus is similar, directed
towards developing an African environmental ethics that can confront the current environmental
crisis. In his paper, “Some African Reflections on Biomedical and Environmental Ethics”,
Tangwa (2004) bases his conception of an African orientation in environmental ethics on the
metaphysical outlook of pre-colonial African societies, which he called “eco-bio-
communitarianism”. This metaphysical worldview involves the “recognition and acceptance of
inter-dependence and peaceful coexistence between earth, plants, animals and humans” (Tangwa
2004, 389). This metaphysical outlook underpinned the relations among human beings. It was
also responsible for why traditional Africans were more cautious in their attitude to plants,
animals and inanimate things and the various invisible forces in the world (Tangwa 2004, 389).
He notes that traditional Africans were more disposed towards the attitude of “live and let live”
(Tangwa 2004, 389).”

Ogungbemi’s African Orientation in Environmental Ethics
“Ogungbemi’s proposal of a reconstructed return to the traditional African attitude to the
environment reflected in the “ethics of care” leads him to what he refers to as “the ethics of
nature-relatedness”. It is an orientation that recognizes that we humans necessarily rely on the
natural world for our existence. As such, we ought to treat the environment with due respect. As
Ogungbemi (1997, 206) correctly observes, the environmental crisis in Africa, as anywhere else, is primarily a consequence of human actions. Since value systems inform our actions, we need to
search for a viable environmental ethics that is in agreement with African ontology. This is
essential in order to pave the way for environmental policies compliant with the cultural
experiences of the people.”

Some questions asked by on environmental ethics are (Ojomo, 2020):

• What is the obligation of people in Africa (Africans and non-Africans alike) towards future
  generations of human beings, sentient beings, the African ecosystem in particular, and
  nature in general?
• What is the justification for an environmental ethics that is African in orientation, and must
  such an orientation exclude environmental theories from the West?
• What are the political, cultural, economic, educational, legal and moral considerations in the
  construction of an African environmental ethics?