3.3.1—Preservation justifications
- Syllabus
- First assessment 2026
- Objective
- 3.3.1
- Level
- HL
Test a Conservation Argument through Value Lenses
A conservation argument can be aesthetic, ecological, economic, ethical or social; identify the value before judging its strength.
Aesthetic values beauty; ecological values functions; economic values income or future resources; ethical values intrinsic worth or responsibility; social values health, identity and culture. One example can support several lenses, but the reasoning differs.
A wetland may attract visitors (economic), reduce floods (ecological) and hold cultural meaning (social); do not count these as the same reason.
Ethical/intrinsic value; tourism income would be economic, not the same claim.
Different values are not interchangeable evidence; name the value and its decision implication.