Lehigh to Host Hagerman Lecture on Climate Change

Gardiner is also a professor of philosophy and Ben Rabinowitz Endowed professor of Human Dimensions of the Environment at the University of Washington.

He has authored several books including, “A Perfect Moral Storm” (2011), “Debating Climate Ethics” (2016) and, most recently, “Dialogues on Climate Justice,” (2020) which explores themes of ethics and justice relating to climate change. He has published more than 50 articles and book chapters in several leading journals.

“Climate change has been called an existential threat and one of the greatest challenges in human history,” said Michael Gusmano, director of The Center for Ethics at Lehigh. “Dr. Gardiner's work helps to diagnose the nature of the problem and explains why intergenerational ethics is at its core. He argues that climate change reflects a ‘tyranny of the contemporary,’ which passes the buck to future generations, and should be considered ethically unacceptable by all theories of justice.

“Moreover,” Gusmano said, “he identifies institutional changes that are needed to address the problem. His work illustrates why ethical analysis is crucial for identifying sustainable solutions to our most difficult challenges."

The lecture, and a reception at 5 p.m., is free and open to the public. Interested attendees may RSVP here.

The Hagerman lecture and the Center for Ethics are funded in part by the endowment fund for the Teaching of Ethical Decision-Making.

-- Story by Christina Perrier ’23