4.2 Wilderness, Morality, and Value, with Joshua Duclos

Forum on Religion and Ecology: Spotlights

This episode of Spotlights features Joshua Duclos, PhD, Instructor of Humanities and Philosophy at St. Paul's School in New Hampshire. We talk about his book, Wilderness, Morality, and Value (Lexington Books, 2022), where he rethinks the ethical implications of wilderness in light of the complex conditions of life in the Anthropocene. We discuss issues around anthropocentrism, intrinsic value in nature, the religious significance of wilderness, and some of the moral conflicts that arise when the value of wilderness is juxtaposed with concerns for animal suffering. There are no easy answers when it comes to understanding wilderness, conservation, and animal welfare, but there are many ways to deepen our understanding of the questions involved in those issues.