UPSC Mains 2024 GS4 Q4 — Environmental Ethics
Global warming and climate change are the outcomes of human greed in the name of development] indicating the direction in which extinction of organisms including human beings is heading towards loss of life on Earth. How do you put an end to this to protect life and bring equilibrium between the society and the environment. (Answer in 150 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- How do you put an end to this
- Scope keywords
- human greed in the name of developmentextinction of organismsloss of life on Earthequilibrium between the society and the environmentprotect life
- Implicit sub-parts
- Briefly link human greed (ethical failure) to current ecological crisis.
- Propose a transition from 'Developmentalism' to 'Sustainable Stewardship'.
- Suggest individual and systemic behavioral changes to curb greed.
- Define a roadmap for achieving societal-environmental equilibrium.
- Common pitfalls
- Writing a purely environmental GS3-style answer focused on climate stats instead of GS4 ethical values.
- Ignoring the specific phrase 'human greed' and failing to discuss virtue ethics or self-restraint.
- Focusing only on the survival of humans while ignoring the prompt's mention of 'extinction of organisms'.
- Suggesting purely technological solutions without addressing the underlying philosophical crisis of materialism.
- Dimensions required
- Ethics and Human InterfaceEnvironmental EthicsSustainable DevelopmentIndividual vs Collective ResponsibilityEcocentrism vs Anthropocentrism
- Marks allocation hint
Allocate 30 words to establishing the ethical link between greed and extinction. Spend 90 words on a multi-layered strategy (individual ethics, corporate responsibility, and global cooperation) to 'put an end' to the crisis. Use the final 30 words to define the vision of 'equilibrium' using concepts like Trusteeship or Circular Economy.
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