People at LBC
Michael Nelson, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
| Department: | HPS |
| Address: | E-189 Holmes |
| Phone: | (517) 353-4879 |
| Email: | mpnelson@msu.edu |
B.A. in Philosophy from University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in 1988
M.A. in Philosophy from Michigan State University in 1990
Ph.D. in Philosophy from Lancaster University, England in 1998
Taught at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and the University of Idaho before coming to Michigan State University in 2007
Recent Courses Taught
LBC 335: The Natural Environment
Summer 2008 Isle Royale Information
Dr. Nelson holds a joint appointment in the Lyman Briggs College (75%) and the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (25%). He is also a member of the STEPPS (Science, Technology, Environment, and Public Policy Specialization) faculty. Dr. Nelson’s research and teaching focus is environmental ethics and philosophy: from the concept of wilderness to topics in the philosophy of ecology, from hunting ethics to theories of environmental education, from topics in wildlife ecology and conservation biology to questions about science and advocacy. Perhaps the single most important research question that motivates Dr. Nelson’s intellectual agenda is “how ought we to live with nature?” Currently Dr. Nelson is working on various topics within conservation philosophy and ethics: from the fusion between ecology and ethics to certain key concepts within the US Endangered Species Act to the relationship between science and advocacy to the ethics of predator control (especially with regard to wolves). He also dabbles in more narrative writing and even fiction and poetry when the stars align just right. For kicks and giggles Dr. Nelson enjoys running; playing with his 3 cats, 3 dogs, and 1 wife; playing 3-chord (usually D, G, and C, sometimes Am, occasionally F or Em) songs on his Martin D-15; and endangering himself with his mediocre carpentry skills.
Selected Publications
Nelson, Michael P., and J. Baird Callicott, eds. 2008. The Wilderness Debate Rages On. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press.
Nelson, Michael P. 2008. “The Great New Wilderness Debate: An Overview.”Forthcoming in Environmental Ethics: Readings in Theory and Application, edited by Louis P. Pojman and Paul Pojman. Fifth Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Vucetich, John A., and Michael P. Nelson. 2007. “What are 60 Warblers Worth?: Killing in the Name of Conservation.” Oikos 116: 1267-1278.
Vucetich, John A., Michael P. Nelson, and Michael Phillips. 2006. “The Normative Dimension and Legal Meaning of Endangered and Recovery in the U.S. Endangered Species Act.” Conservation Biology 20:1383-1390.
M.A. in Philosophy from Michigan State University in 1990
Ph.D. in Philosophy from Lancaster University, England in 1998
Taught at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and the University of Idaho before coming to Michigan State University in 2007
Recent Courses Taught
LBC 335: The Natural Environment
Summer 2008 Isle Royale Information
Dr. Nelson holds a joint appointment in the Lyman Briggs College (75%) and the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (25%). He is also a member of the STEPPS (Science, Technology, Environment, and Public Policy Specialization) faculty. Dr. Nelson’s research and teaching focus is environmental ethics and philosophy: from the concept of wilderness to topics in the philosophy of ecology, from hunting ethics to theories of environmental education, from topics in wildlife ecology and conservation biology to questions about science and advocacy. Perhaps the single most important research question that motivates Dr. Nelson’s intellectual agenda is “how ought we to live with nature?” Currently Dr. Nelson is working on various topics within conservation philosophy and ethics: from the fusion between ecology and ethics to certain key concepts within the US Endangered Species Act to the relationship between science and advocacy to the ethics of predator control (especially with regard to wolves). He also dabbles in more narrative writing and even fiction and poetry when the stars align just right. For kicks and giggles Dr. Nelson enjoys running; playing with his 3 cats, 3 dogs, and 1 wife; playing 3-chord (usually D, G, and C, sometimes Am, occasionally F or Em) songs on his Martin D-15; and endangering himself with his mediocre carpentry skills.
Selected Publications
Nelson, Michael P., and J. Baird Callicott, eds. 2008. The Wilderness Debate Rages On. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press.
Nelson, Michael P. 2008. “The Great New Wilderness Debate: An Overview.”Forthcoming in Environmental Ethics: Readings in Theory and Application, edited by Louis P. Pojman and Paul Pojman. Fifth Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Vucetich, John A., and Michael P. Nelson. 2007. “What are 60 Warblers Worth?: Killing in the Name of Conservation.” Oikos 116: 1267-1278.
Vucetich, John A., Michael P. Nelson, and Michael Phillips. 2006. “The Normative Dimension and Legal Meaning of Endangered and Recovery in the U.S. Endangered Species Act.” Conservation Biology 20:1383-1390.
