Accountancy Profession - Green Ecologist?

Accounting Profession in the light of Gray, Owen & Adam’s deep green (or deep ecologist) position on social responsibility

{Green Ecologist is a concept of social responsibility – Human beings have no greater rights to resources or life than any other species and do not have the rights to subjugate social and environmental systems. Economic systems that trade off threats to the existence of species against economic objectives are immoral. Arguably business cannot be trusted to maintain something as important as the environment. Existing economic systems are beyond repair as they are based on the wrong values, privileging humans over nonhumans. A full recognition of all stakeholders would mean that business had to be conducted in a completely different way. This viewpoint is connected with the ideas of sustainability.}


(1) Economic Priority
If accountants serve the economic interests of clients, then their priorities are fundamentally flawed. The deep ecologist perspective argues that giving the economic objectives of capitalists any priority over social and environmental degradation is immoral.


(2) Environmental degradation
Environmental degradation links to the deep ecologist view that business must not threaten the habitats of other species or worsen the living conditions of humans affected by their activities.


(3) Animal rights
The emphasis on the need for accountants to address animal rights is an important distinction between the deep ecologist and other positions, as it places animal rights on an equal plane with humans.



(4) Poverty
The stress on making the relief of poverty and other social injustices a priority links in with the deep ecologist view that all humans, living and yet-to-be-born, are stakeholders in business. Businesses need to recognize the needs of all stakeholders rather than subjugating their requirements to the current economic interest of shareholders.




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