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Laszlo ZsolnaiBusiness Ethics Center

Corvinus University of Budapest

Integral Ecology, Frugality andIntrinsic Value of Nature

European SPES ConferenceMay 27-29, 2016Bodo, Norway

Fight for the ArticFor millennia, a thick layer of sea ice hasdefended the pristine, beautiful and utterlyunique marine world of the Artic watersaround Svalbard, in the Barents Sea.But global warming is melting the ice andindustrial fishing has started moving in,leaving a trail of destruction behind.

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Svalbard, the Barents Sea

Svalbard's seas hold some of the lastpristine environments left on earth, hometo some of our planet's most incredible andmysterious creatures which thrived inthis remote area that was off-limits tohumans, protected beneath the ice.

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Beluga whales, narwhals, sea butterfliesand lion's mane jellyfish

Because of global warming, the BarentsSea has lost 59% of its sea ice coveragesince 1980 – uncovering new territory opento exploitation by industrial fishing fleets.We've barely even begun to discover all theincredible natural wonders beneath theArctic ice.

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Greenpeace in Action

The Arctic Sunrise will watch over the Arctic,protecting its marine life from destructive,profit-driven fishing.

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Laudato si’ calls for frugal consumptionand accepting the intrinsic value of nature

FrugalityWe “generates so much waste, because ofthe disordered desire to consume morethan what is really necessary”. (PopeFrancis 2015 para 123)We should “modifying consumption,developing an economy of waste disposaland recycling” (Pope Francis 2015 para180)

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„We have too many means and only a fewinsubstantial ends”. (Pope Francis 2015para 203) To develop „more soberlifestyles, while reducing their energyconsumption and improving its efficiency”.(Pope Francis 2015 para 193)„a decrease in the pace of productionand consumption can at times give rise toanother form of progress anddevelopment. (Pope Francis 2015 para 191)

“an alternative understanding of thequality of life, and encourages a propheticand contemplative lifestyle, one capable ofdeep enjoyment free of the obsession withconsumption. (...) It is the conviction that‘less is more’.” (Pope Francis 2015 para222)

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Simplicity “allows us to appreciate thesmall things, to be grateful for theopportunities which life affords us, to bespiritually detached from what we possess,and not to succumb to sadness for what welack”. (Pope Francis 2015 para 222)“Happiness means knowing how to limitsome needs” (Pope Francis 2015 para 223)

Intrinsic value of natureNatural beings and ecosystems “have anintrinsic value independent of theirusefulness. Each organism, as a creature ofGod, is good and admirable in itself; thesame is true of the harmonious ensemble oforganisms existing in a defined space andfunctioning as a system”. (Pope Francis2015 para 140)

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“environmental protection cannot beassured solely on the basis of financialcalculations of costs and benefits. Theenvironment is one of those goods thatcannot be adequately safeguarded orpromoted by market forces”.(Pope Francis 2015 para 190)

Nature in mainstream economics

The value of naturalentities is calculatedon the basis of theirusefulness forhumans andexpressed in moneyterms.

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Price is a wrong model

By the marketmechanism the valueof natural entitiescannot be determined.

John GowdyRensselaer UniversityNew York

There is no algorithmic solution

Ecological and socialvalues are basicallyincommensurable.

Joan Martinez-AlierUniv. AutonomaBarcelona

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The Commonwealth of Life

Decisions and policies related tonature require making qualitativeand multiperspective considerationsand the proper use of wisdom.

Sustainable Financial andEconomic Systems