1 Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, The Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sde Boqer Campus 8499000, Beersheba, Israel.
2 Department of Philosophy, Florida State University, 641 University Way, 154 Dodd Hall, Tallahassee, FL 32306, U.S.A.
3 Aldo Leopold Foundation, P.O. Box 77, Baraboo, WI 53913, U.S.A.
Article impact statement: Normative scientists must be trained in current thinking of the philosophy that underlies their fields, an issue not fully realized in conservation.