Author Date

2025-07-30

Degree Name

Department

Biology

College

Life Sciences

Defense Date

2025-07-23

Publication Date

2025-07-30

First Faculty Advisor

Jamie Jensen

First Faculty Reader

George Handley

Honors Coordinator

Steven Peck

Keywords

land ethic, dominion, stewardship, R-NEP, religion

Abstract

Addressing climate change requires correctly appraising one’s ethic toward the Earth. Historically, people have navigated their relationship to the natural world via environmental ethics of both religious and secular origin. Aldo Leopold described developing this relationship via the land ethic, a culturally informed process, as “an evolutionary possibility and an ecological necessity.” A land ethic provides a reference point from which individuals and societies make decisions about the Earth and its resources. This thesis considers the evolving land ethic of a young population of conservative Christian students at Brigham Young University with two separate cohorts of non-biology major undergraduates enrolled in an introduction to biology course, sampled first in 2020 and again in 2025. Student environmental perceptions were seen to significantly increase, with a more nuanced understanding of humanity’s relationship with nature centered on stewardship being observable in the 2025 cohort. This is likely due to changing communications from BYU and its supporting institution, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, rigorous causation remains unknown.