J. Baird Callicott

Baird Callicott is Professor of Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy and Religion Studies at the University of North Texas. He was Vice President and then President of the International Society for Environmental Ethics from 1994 to 2000. He was a professor of Philosophy and Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point from 1969 to 1995 where he taught the world's first course in environmental ethics in 1971.

Callicott was born in 1941, completed his undergraduate work in philosophy at Rhodes College in 1963, and received his Ph.D in philosophy from Syracuse University in 1971.

Callicott's work has been at the forefront of the new field of environmental philosophy and ethics. Aldo Leopold's "A Sand County Almanac" is one of the field's seminal text, and Callicott is widely considered to be the leading contemporary exponent of Leopold's land ethic. Callicott's "In Defense of the Land Ethic" (1989) explores the intellectual foundations of Leopold's outlook and provides a more complete philosophical treatment. His "Beyond the Land Ethic" extends Leopold’s environmental philosophy. He is the author of numerous publications on environmental ethics.

Philosophy

Callicott takes as his leading premise Leopold's dictum, "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community." Callicott insists that the environment should be protected and preserved such that the natural order is maintained. The domestication of animals, large-scale farming operations, or activity that impinges upon the natural ecosystem is morally wrong. The point of ethics is not to avoid suffering or promote the welfare of animal life, as Peter Singer would have it, but to maintain the natural order, which, Callicott argues, is intrinsically good. He is therefore not sympathetic to animal liberationists or vegetarians who want to prevent killing and suffering, for these are natural outcomes.Callicott advocates ecocentrism — the idea that ecological wholes are morally considerable.

Key distinctions made by Callicott are:

* Ethical Humanists: Who defend the special status of humans

* Humane Moralists: Who reject the notion of a special status for human beings in favor of animals liberation (such as Singer)
* Land Ethic: Who focus on the good of the “biotic community” as a whole

Callicott agrees with land ethic, which he thinks is the most creative, interesting, and practical of the alternatives. He views the environmentalist position as offering a different perspective on such questions as hunting and meat-eating, as well as on the value of non-animal life.

External links

* [http://www.phil.unt.edu/faculty/bios/vjbc.php Callicott's UNT Webpage]
Persondata
NAME=Callicott, J. Baird
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Philosopher and Professor
DATE OF BIRTH=1941
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=