The Grey Space

Most of the western world relies on cars to get to work. But in the face of a climate crisis should we opt for a greener way to travel, or is that asking too much? In this episode of the Grey Space we explore the ethics of commuting by going back to the ethical theory of German Philosopher, Immanuel Kant. We asked the people of Reddit about their commuting habits too, to understand if cycling to work is really as bad as it seems, and to find out why they started doing it in the first place too! References[1] Australian Bureau of Statistics, Commuting Distance for Australia, 2018 [1] Australian Bicycle Council, National Cycling Participation Survey, 2017 [1] Australian Bureau of Statistics, 9309.0 – Motor Vehicle Census, Australia 31 Jan 2019, 2019 [1] Immanuel Kant, Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals, p38 [1] Australian Bureau of Statistics, More than two in three drive to work, Census reveals, 2017 [1] Environment Protection Authority Victoria, Vehicle Emissions and Air Quality, 2018 [1] Climate Council, Australia’s Rising Greenhouse Gas Emissions, p.5 [1] Climate College, Facts4Paris: Australia’s per-capita emissions remain the highest among its key trading partners,2018 [1] Casey Rentmeester, A Kantian Look at Climate Change, p.80, 2010 [1] Ibid, p.81

Would Aristotle be vegan? While Peter Singer is well known for his arguments for the moral status for animals, it is not the only view on animal welfare. Virtue Ethicists - who's views date all the way back to Aristotle - have much to say on the topic. Unlike other ethical theories, virtue ethicists care about the character and feelings of a person to determine what a right action is. So that begs the question, using Aristotle's system of ethics, would being Vegan be considered right? Website: http://www.jonkahler.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jon.kahler/?hl=en Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrkq4jy7lZ8fWh7r5vIaFkw?view_as=subscriber   References [1] Peter Singer, 1979, Equality for Animal?, p.49 [1] Peter Railton, 2013, Alienation, Consequentialism, and morality, p.442 [1] Rosalind Hursthouse, 2000, Right Action, [1] Hursthouse, Applying Virtue Ethics to Our Treatment of the Other Animals,p.141-142

As we are faced with the issues of climate change, overpopulation and environmental degradation, perhaps what we need to encourage is the concept of virtue. The habituation of consistent behaviours in our character may be the answer to a lot of the world's issues. If this is true, what are the environmental virtues we should be encouraging for a sustainable future?

Sustainability isn't manly. While there is a public shift toward sustainable living, the truth is, the majority of people making these changes are women. Why is it that men are less inclined to do so? Is it due to traditional gender norms? Issues with feminity? More importantly, how do we encourage men to start acting sustainably?