Coexistence between humanity and the environment: bioethics from Potter’s perspective

Abstract

This study analyzed two works that focus on the impact of human actions on the environment and evidence the negative effects of this impact in the long run. The bibliographic research was mainly based on Van Rensselaer Potter’s works titled Bioethics: bridge to the future and Global bioethics, but also on articles focused on important aspects related to the author’s views, enriching the discussion and reflection process. The results show that humanity should respect the environment in which it is inserted, understanding itself as integral (not dominant) part of the ecological relations, in agreement
with the proposal of harmonic-functional coexistence.