When asked by the EPA what question I'd ask the public about the environment I had to respond like this:
My question would actually be tailored around gaining an idea of how the public views the environment. In ethics class you learn many different points of view about environmental ethics. Basically, there are religious views, inner values, and relational views. Soe believe that they are here to care for the animals and wildlife, some see that care for in a dominating type sense where the only way to care for the animals is to dominate them so that they accept the care, some see it in more of a sense of low profile caring, kind of directing with minimal contact and minimal interruption. Others find themselves more at a level of where they have a duty to the environment, some see that duty as a way of keeping the earth in equilibrium some see it as an expression of the fact that humans have evolved far enough that they owe back to the environment some sense of protection or resource, or favor, etc. Some see that they owe a duty to mankind by caring for the environment and making it more sustainable to mankind, or by caring for the environment and making it more peaceful to mankind. Basically, I'd want to know:
"What motivates one to care for or disregard the environment?"
Honesty, I wouldn't even label environment protection and care as a duty, but life. If we want to sustain our ecosystem then we should protect our house, kingdom, our planet, bottom line.
It is not about giving back to nature and all that humitarian and environmentalist crap that goes along in maintaining our most important basic need, an enviroment that can provide us with food, water,shelter, and people. Everyday more and more forests are destroyed, water and air polluted, and the hole in our ozone keeps getting bigger and bigger, and as a result of this more and more people die.
If you want to survive then start caring.