Oxford Studies in Metaethics Volume 15

This series is devoted to original philosophical work in the foundations of ethics. It provides an annual selection of much of the best new scholarship being done in the field. Its broad purview includes work being done at the intersection of ethical theory and metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind. The chapters included in the series provide a basis for understanding recent developments in the field. Chapters in this volume explore topics including the nature of reasons, the tenability of moral realism, moral explanation and grounding, and a variety of epistemological challenges.

Sharing Ecosystems

This chapter offers a moral explanation for why bordering states should share the governance of transborder rivers on the basis of place-specific duties; the argument can also be extended to other natural resources. The chapter offers a view of water governance that mediates between a universalist view based on a human right to water and an exclusivist view grounded on the principle of self-determination. The chapter offers the example of the river Grande (Bravo) on the U.S.-Mexico border, and argues that the obligation to share the governance of transborder rivers comes from duties to the complex systems that sustain life (including human life) in the natural water basin. These obligations overlap and crisscross the current border.

A Content Analysis of Four Explanatory Models of the Moral Development

Numerous studies have focused on identifying the stages of ethical decision process and the factors that can influence it, aiming to provide tools for educators’ struggle of improving the moral profile of the students. The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the four explanatory theoretical models of moral development, in order to notice the relationship between the rational and the emotional components of personality during the moral decision-making process and to highlight their impact on educational process. It is resumed a qualitative research that was developed using the Atlas.ti software. The results sustain the empirical observation that educators change the focus of the moral explanation, moral story and moral conversation towards the more interactive methods, like moral case study and moral exercise.