Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
2.2.2.2
Existentialist Ethics
While there is not a generally agreed defi nition of existentialism, the term is applied
to the philosophy of a number of the nineteenth- and twentieth-century thinkers who
(despite serious differences) based their thought on the acting, feeling and living
individual (Anon 2014 ). Existentialism is about examining the world and ourselves,
the nature of our experience and the meaning of being in the world (Cunliffe 2009 ).
Although he did not use the term existential and existentialist ethics has also been
associated with Aristotle (Stack 1974 ), Søren Kierkegaard is generally credited with
being the fi rst existentialist. He considered that individuals rather than society or
religion were responsible for giving meaning to life. The fi rst prominent philosopher
to use the term was Jean-Paul Sartre. He considered that existence or being an inde-
pendently acting, responsible person was more important than essence, or the details
of the labels, roles and categories the individual identifi ed with. Sartre suggested
that human nature is not fi xed and people change by imagining who they want to be.
The nature of a person depends on both what they are and what they are not, as it is
also defi ned by what they could be. Individuals are considered to be responsible for
their actions, the consequences of these actions and the values they hold. They
therefore need to consider their values rather than just accepting the values of their
society. Existentialism considers authenticity to be important, i.e. accepting respon-
sibility and being true to oneself rather than behaving in accordance to expectations
based on particular characteristics or labels (Anon 2014 ; Cunliffe 2009 ).
2.2.3
Process- and Outcomes-Oriented Theories and Approaches
2.2.3.1
Hippocratic or Engineering Oath
The idea of an oath for engineers is based on the well-known Hippocratic oath for
doctors. This serves as a way of encapsulating their main ethical responsibilities and
making a personal and generally public commitment to fulfi l these responsibilities.
Particular features (Bitay et al. 2005 ; Laplante 2004 ) include avoiding harm, sharing
knowledge and experience and admitting when you do not know something.
A hypocratic oath for engineers was written by Susskind (1973), but does not seem
to have been used to any extent. Its text includes the following 'I solemnly pledge
myself to consecrate my life to the service of humanity. ... I will exercise my profes-
sion solely for the benefi t of humanity ... I will speak out against evil and unjust
practice wheresoever I encounter it; ... I will endeavour to avoid waste and the con-
sumption of non-renewable resources.' The closest to a Hippocratic oath for engi-
neers in current use are the Canadian ritual of the Calling of an Engineer and the
Obligation of an Engineer oath of the US Order of the Engineer (Goodyer 2012 ).
The Canadian ritual dates to a 1922 meeting of seven former presidents of the
Canada Institute of Engineers at which the idea of an oath to guide the development
of young graduates was proposed. However, the ritual is private and its content has
not been offi cially publicised. The US oath involves the virtues of integrity, respect,
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