Bocchi, Federica (2024) Metrics in Biodiversity Conservation and the Value-Free Ideal. [Preprint]
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Abstract
This paper examines one aspect of the legacy of the Value-Free Ideal in conservation science: the view that measurements and metrics in conservation are value-free epistemic tools detached from ideological, ethical, social, and, generally, non-epistemic considerations. Contrary to this view, I will argue that traditional measurement practices entrenched in conservation are in fact permeated with non-epistemic values. I challenge the received view by revealing three non-epistemic assumptions underlying traditional metrics: 1) a human-environment demarcation, 2) the desirability of a people-free landscape, and 3) the exclusion of cultural diversity from biodiversity. I also draw a connection between arguments for retaining traditional metrics to “scientific colonialism,” exemplified by a fortress conservation model. I conclude by advocating for abandoning the myth of the intrinsic value-freedom of measurement practices and embracing metrics aligned with societal and scientific goals.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | ||||||
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| Additional Information: | forthcoming in Synthese | ||||||
| Keywords: | value-free ideal, biodiversity conservation, critical metrology, scientific colonialism | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology > Ecology/Conservation Specific Sciences > Environmental Science |
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| Depositing User: | Federica Federica Bocchi | ||||||
| Date Deposited: | 29 Apr 2024 00:25 | ||||||
| Last Modified: | 29 Apr 2024 00:25 | ||||||
| Item ID: | 23336 | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology > Ecology/Conservation Specific Sciences > Environmental Science |
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| Date: | 2024 | ||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/23336 |
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Metrics in Biodiversity Conservation and the Value-Free Ideal. (deposited 24 Feb 2024 17:19)
- Metrics in Biodiversity Conservation and the Value-Free Ideal. (deposited 29 Apr 2024 00:25) [Currently Displayed]
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