Richard M. Robinson Environmental Organizations and Reasoned Discourse

Annotation

This book explores the meaning and role of "fair and reasoned discourse" in thecontext of our institutions for environmental decision processes. The bookreviews the roles of our "environmental advocacy organizations"-such as TheSierra Club, The Audubon Society, the Environmental Defense Fund-in providingand ensuring that our discourse and decisions are fair and reasoned according tothe criteria of being (i) inclusive of input from all affected, (ii) informed of relevantscientific and socio-economic information, (iii) uncorrupted by direct conflicts ofinterest, and (iv) logical according robust review by uncorrupted judges. Theseorganizations are described and examined as expressions of "collective imperfectduty," i.e. the coordinated duties with environmental direction. The current stateof our discourse is examined in light of this fairness criteria, particularly inconsideration of the cross-border problems that threaten tragedies of the globalcommons.