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9780253340375

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<p>In this small book, Kirkman (Michigan State Univ.) struggles to reconcilehis philosophical skepticism with his environmental ideals. Unlike manyenvironmental philosophy books, which are not easily accessible to lay people, thisone is. It is engagingly written, and the philosophical arguments are laid outclearly and crisply. Kirkman addresses the basic question, Can philosophicalunderstanding of the natural world contribute in a practical way to the public'sdiscourse about environmental issues? He claims that it can and must. Part 1, Knowledge, consists of two chapters: The Nature of Nature and Organism andMechanism. Part 2, Obligation, has two chapters as well: A Place on Earth and TheMoral Compass. The final part 3, Hope, contains a single chapter, Environmentalismwithout Illusions. Kirkman's coverage of philosophies that bear on environmentalismis necessarily brief and to the point. The bibliography contains more than 170pertinent citations, including references to recent and clas

<p>In this small book, Kirkman (Michigan State Univ.) struggles to reconcile his philosophical skepticism with his environmental ideals. Unlike many environmental philosophy books, which are not easily accessible to lay people, this one is. It is engagingly written, and the philosophical arguments are laid out clearly and crisply. Kirkman addresses the basic question, Can philosophical understanding of the natural world contribute in a practical way to the public's discourse about environmental issues? He claims that it can and must. Part 1, Knowledge, consists of two chapters: The Nature of Nature and Organism and Mechanism. Part 2, Obligation, has two chapters as well: A Place on Earth and The Moral Compass. The final part 3, Hope, contains a single chapter, Environmentalism without Illusions. Kirkman's coverage of philosophies that bear on environmentalism is necessarily brief and to the point. The bibliography contains more than 170 pertinent citations, including references to recent and classical papers and books. A very useful primer about skeptical environmentalism. General readers; lower--division undergraduates through graduate students; two--year technical program students.--P. R. Pinet, Colgate University, 2002sep CHOICE

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Robert Kirkman received his Ph.D. in philosophy from SUNY, Stony Brook. He is currently Assistant Professor of Science and Technology at the Lyman Briggs School at Michigan State University. His research interests encompass environmental philosophy, the history and philosophy of science, the history of philosophy, and suburban environments.

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