Climate change

The person, the animal & the environment

Lecture 10
Monday March 14 2011

PEACE ST 2B03 / LABR ST 2W03 / WOMEN’S ST 2A03: Human Rights and Social Justice
Dr Colin Salter, Centre for Peace Studies, McMaster University

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 Outline

• Anthropocentrism?
• The environment as a social justice issue
• Neoliberalism & economic globalisation

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Security for person can be threatened by a number of
environmental factors.
John Barry and Kerri Woods (2009)

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if we can be said to have a right to security, then it
follows that we have a right to certain environmental
goods that are crucial to our security.
John Barry and Kerri Woods (2009)

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Just think of this: your island is below the estimated
tsunami height. Where do you go? You don't. That's what
horror is.
Simon Atkinson (@s_atkinson) , Twitter, 13 March 2011

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 Tuvulu

• Polynesian Island Nation

• Low lying

• Disproportionately
impacted by climate
change

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 Summary

• Vested interests in climate change denial?

• Social justice implications
• What about all species and ecosystems?

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 For Wednesday

• The environment is a social justice issue. Discuss

• What about other species and ecosystems?

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 For Thursday

• What can be done to remove, or reduce, vested

interests in doing nothing?
• How can we counter those promoting climate
change denial.

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 Citations & further reading
John Barry and Kerri Woods (2009) ‘The Environment’ in Michael Goodhart (ed) Human Rights:
politics and practice, Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 316-333.

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 Image sources
Mike Konopacki. 2000. ‘If there was justice in the world‘, 2000 — http://www.veggies.org.uk/calendar/2000.htm

‘Human Rights Champions’, 2001 — http://invisiblecollege.weblog.leidenuniv.nl/2007/03/11/who-wants-to-be-the-

new-human-rights-cha

‘Which do you pet, which do you eat?‘ — http://www.meatout.org/action/outreach.htm

Shane T. McCoy, ‘Detainees at Camp X-Ray’, 11 January 2002. Image in the domain image — http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Camp_x-ray_detainees.jpg

Tepuka Island, Tuvulu — http://www.ecardmedia.eu/

r_nature_photo_cards_20_white_sand_paradise_beaches_850_tepuka_island_tuvalu_42719.html

Global warming hates kittens ‘ur futprnt too big’, August 12 2010.
http://globalwarminghateskittens.com/post/45605399/ur-futprnt-too-big

Reference Map of Oceania/Australia — http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/map/oceania_map.htm

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 Video sources
An underwater meeting of the Maldivian Parliament (2009) — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zizVixspBEU

Cornell West clip, The Colbert Report, 18 January 2011

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (2009) ‘Please Help Our World’, United Nations Climate Change Conference
(COP15), December 7 — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVGGgncVq-4

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