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188Cairns: Eco-Ethics and Sustainability Ethicsequality.’ The twenty-first century is likely to be a defining era for sustainability initiatives. If theyare delayed too long, degraded natural systems may not have the resilience to return to the ecologicalconditions favorable to humankind.The solution must begin with the recognition that Earth is finite and neither human population northe amount of Earth’s resources per capita can further increase substantially. The inescapable conclusionis that, to achieve both social and environmental justice, more equity and fairness must bepresent in Earth’s resources used per capita globally. The next ethical decision is whetherhumankind wishes an optimum quality of life (somewhat more resources per capita) or a meresurvival quality of life (barely adequate resources per capita). If quality of life is measured by suchcriteria as literacy, longevity, low infant mortality, and large social capital (i.e. benign social interactions)and small to modest material goods acquisition per capita, then each individual and nationstatewill have an ecological footprint size that is sustainable. In addition, natural capital and theecosystem services it provides will be protected and cherished. This protection is the sine qua nonof sustainable use of the planet.Fierce resistance will come from individuals with a large ecological footprint size and the fewindividuals and organizations who get a disproportionate share of Earth’s resources. Justice maybe achieved by stabilizing the population size of nation-states by enforcing zero net immigration(e.g. Cairns, in press) and limiting family size and resource allocation. The alternative is to let naturallaw determine both population size and resource allocation. This situation is even less attractivethan the one just described.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSI am indebted to K Cairns for transferring the handwritten first draft to the word processor and to D Donaldfor editorial assistance.LITERATURE CITEDAgyeman J, Bullard RD, Evans B (2003) Joined-up thinking: bringing together sustainability, environmentaljustice and equity. In: Agyeman J, Bullard RD, Evans B (eds) Just sustainabilities. MIT Press, Cambridge,MA, pp 1–16Boulding K (1966) The economics of the coming spaceship Earth. In: Jarrett H (ed) Environmental quality ina growing economy. Harper and Row, New York, pp 3–15Cairns J Jr (In press) Sustainability ethics: zero net immigration. The Social ContractDobson A (2003) Social justice and environmental sustainability: ne’er the twain shall meet. In: Agyeman J,Bullard RD, Evans B (eds) Just sustainabilities. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, pp 83–95Hardin G (1974) Living on a lifeboat. BioScience 24(10):561–568Myers N, Kent JV (1998) Perverse subsidies: tax $s undercutting our economies and environment alike. InternationalInstitute for Sustainable Development, Winnipeg, ManitobaRees WE, Westra L (2003) When consumption does violence: can there be sustainability and environmentaljustice in a resource-limited world? In: Agyeman J, Bullard RD, Evans B (eds) Just sustainabilities. MITPress, Cambridge, MA, pp 99–124Torras M, Boyce JK (1998) Income, equality and pollution: a reassessment of the environmental KuznetsCurve. Ecological Economics 25:147–160
189Article 22Reproduced from Ethics in Science and Environmental Politics (ESEP) with permission of Inter-ResearchESEP 2004:3–6www.esep.deSustainability Ethics MatterJohn Cairns, Jr.Department of Biology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA.E-mail: jcairns@vt.eduSome men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to, when all they need is onereason why they can.Mary Frances BerryFree yourself from attachment to useless things.Buddhist MaximWhen I am asked what my major professional interest is, my reply frequently elicits a variety ofstunned responses: ‘Nobody cares about ethics anymore; ethics is not relevant’; ‘I look out for #1.Let future generations look after themselves just as I do’; ‘Exactly what do ethics and sustainableuse of the planet mean?’ However, I am reassured that an increasing minority shares in supportingthe quest for sustainable use of the planet and sustainability ethics. Many people have heard aboutsustainable development, but they often assume the term applies to perpetual economic growth.Instead of reciting conventional definitions of the words, I usually tell people about my values andthe areas of life that matter to me.1. I care that humankind is destroying the planet’s ecological life support system upon which itdepends.2. I care that future generations may not inherit a habitable planet.3. I care that humankind is now in an epoch of species extinction mostly caused by humans.4. I care that 1.2 billion people are living on US $1/day or less.5. I care that cultures both fall (often quickly) as well as rise, with collapse triggered by one ormore ecological events.6. I care that humankind is a part of natural systems, not apart from them. Ignoring this relationshipputs humankind at peril.7. I care that humankind is not using its vaunted intelligence to replace unsustainable practiceswith sustainable ones.8. I care that humankind does not recognize that a finite planet cannot tolerate exponentialgrowth of Homo sapiens.9. I care that human society is destroying the habitat of other life forms at an appalling rate inthe name of economic growth.10. I care that humankind is squandering increasingly scarce natural resources on war and thepreparation for war (i.e. ‘defense’).
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