Blog 6: Nicole L

Selection 10: Life and Death of the Salt Marsh

This article begins with a sensory description of the salt marshes of North America, from the look and feel, to the smells and sounds. The article highlights the uniqueness of this ecosystem, describing the range of its tides. However, this ecosystem is in danger, and most of what’s threatening it is caused by human activities. People devastate marshland through building, dredging and filling. We not only demolish these ecosystems directly, but through our pollution as well. This destruction is needless, as the marsh would have been far more valuable as marsh then anything we build on it. Population growth is another pressure on this coastal ecosystem.

The article suggests protecting the salt marshes not simply for the sake of protecting them, but for the benefits they offer our growing population, benefits through fishing industry and the consumers whom buy the fish.

The article goes on to explain that some damage is unavoidable. For the areas that are conserved, we must build roads so people may access the marshes. The article proposes that the damage can be minimized if access comes from the sea. It is clear that overall planning is needed in the protection of this fragile ecosystem. The most rational approach to this planning would be on a national level, based on the whole system and not individual marshes. However, whatever means used for the preservation of the marshes must have safeguards in place, safeguards against the ever mounting pressure to develop land for the ever rising population. These safeguards would be needed since industry often blackmails areas into development by threatening to move their business somewhere else. This pressure may also come from state officials trying to encourage these industries to develop in their area.

The United States has called for the protection of many of its unique areas, such as Grand Canyon and Yellow Stone. However, now the article proposes protecting a new national treasure, the low-lying salt marshes along the east coast.

(Photo: Salt marash from marinebio.com)

Selection 20: Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services

This article explains how currently marine ecosystems are losing their biodiversity at an accelerated rate and that this loss has untold consequences. This lack of biodiversity is affecting the ocean’s productivity, because as more resources collapse the potential for recovery decreases. The article explains how they reached the conclusion that biodiversity loss is hindering the ocean’s ability to produce food, maintain water quality, and recuperate from damage. However, as of now, this inclination may still be reversible.

These problems are specifically mysterious in the context of the world’s oceans, since these systems are so large and complex. The ocean provides many services, and with our growing population living in coastal areas, humans are exerting huge impacts. Changes in marine species richness are affected directly through exploitation, destruction and pollution, or through indirect means such as changes to ocean chemistry and global climate change. To test how biodiversity is affecting the ocean’s at an ecosystem level, the writers of this paper compiled information and data ranging from small experiments to global fisheries.

The paper goes on to explain how it performed and quantified its findings and explained and defined the test sites as coastal ecosystems, large marine ecosystem and marine reserves and fishery closures. One result found was the positive relationship between diversity and the ecosystem’s function. Their data also had the concerning result that predicted the collapse of all taxa currently being fished in the next 50 or so years. It was further insinuated that the marine ecosystem would be unable to support human populations along the coast. They highlight some of the limitations of this study, but remind us that their results may offer a wider context for the understanding of biodiversity experiments and studies.

The paper also goes on to explain that there exists no division between the conservation of biodiversity and economic development and well-being, and that they must be pictured together as connected societal goals.

In conclusion, the paper states that repair is possible through sustainable fishing, pollution management and the conservation of marine ecosystems. By investing in the restoration of the oceans, we invest in the productivity of the services this vast marine system provides to us. The data and information done by this study proposes if we continue along our path, there lies serious threats of global food shortages, water quality issues and ecosystem instability in the future.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-11/nsf-alo110606.php a short article on how species loss in the ocean may translate into threats against humans.

Selection 31: Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment

This article opens with the notion that families not only share genes, but an environment as well. The author delves into the rather tragic details of her, her close and extended families battles with cancer, adding to her argument that since we adopted, perhaps something besides genetics is at play when it comes to cancer.

The author describes reading an article in a newspaper proving a genetic connection with bladder cancer, the cancer she suffered. She states how years later she folders filled with scientific articles about genetic factors and cancer. We now know that anilines and other aromatic amines (substances that are found in dyes, cigarette smoke, pesticides and certain pharmaceuticals) reap havoc by forming DNA adduts in the cells in the bladder, arriving as contaminants in the urine. We also now know that these toxins are supposed to be detoxified by the human body by a process called acetylation. It is performed by a special group of enzymes. However, a large portion of the population may be “slow aceulators”, leading to bladder cancer.

Bladder cancer is one of the cancer’s science knows the most about, but even with all the information of genetic causes and risk factors, it doesn’t seem to be doing much to prevent the disease. Incidences of bladder cancer have rose 10% between 1973 and 1991. Most bladder cancer cases are attributed to tobacco smoking, but what causes the disease in people for whom this is not a factor?

The author also has a folder of scientific articles on the concern of cancer carcinogens present in bodies of water. Thousands of pounds of just the aromatic amine o-toluidine are released every year, and investigations suggest that this may be causing bladder cancer. She goes on to explain that what her files are missing is an evaluation of all the known toxins and carcinogens thought to cause cancer, their origins, the reactions of their interactions and our various ways of exposure. Although she has individual reports on some carcinogens, she highlights the fact there lacks a comprehensive study on how these substances react with each other.

The author also describes several obstacles which may be stopping us from looking into cancer’s environmental roots and causes. One is an obsession with genetics and inheritance. Rates of cancer probably aren’t increasing do to new cancer genes, and the ill effects of cancer genes that really do exist may be reduced by reducing environmental contaminants. In a world with people who a susceptible to carcinogens, why do we allow them into the environment. When can’t do anything about our ancestors, but we can change what substances are allowed into the environment.

The author states that the reflection of carcinogens in our environmental starts by looking back into the past, assessing the present and looking forward into an alternative future. In possession of our ecological roots from examining the past, we may start to look deeper into our current situation. Instead of preventing dumping of carcinogenic substances, we may choose to prevent their generation. If we assume the most current estimate of cancer deaths in the United States is accurate, we have approximately 10,940 people dying from cancer. None of these deaths are quick or painless, but long roads. Because of the carcinogens we allow into the environment, their deaths are a kind of homicide.

The author describes that all activities the ability to cause public health concerns should be guided by “the principle of the least toxic alternative”. Meaning a toxic substance won’t be used as long as there is another way of doing the same task. This principle could end the debates over the cancer risks of individual toxins and “safe levels” of these toxins. This principle moves us towards a day where carcinogen dumping would be unthinkable.

Selection 33: At the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima or Why Political Questions Are Not All Economic

The article concerns both the economics decisions and political decisions made for the environment. Some people believe that these should be one and the same, however this view means that there is only an environmental problems when resources aren’t allocated in equitable and efficient ways. This approach is also solely at the level of the consumer, that it is only the values of the consumer that are important, and that these values are quantified in their willingness to pay. With this view, justice and fairness in a society becomes dispensing goods and services so that most people get exactly what they want. Therefore, the only kinds of values we can have are that which the market can put a price on.

The article describes how we clearly don’t value the environment in this way, if our willingness to pay reflected our environmental concerns, there would be preserved land everywhere instead of gas stations and pizza places. Our problem is that most of us don’t just think of ourselves as just consumers. Being a consumer is how we get things for ourselves, but being a citizen is how we get what we think is best for the community. We must determine if what we want for ourselves reflects what we want for the community. They are not. So, should public economy cater to the same goals as household economy? Perhaps we should aspire instead to more public goals.

This cost-benefit analysis does not tell economists how much one is willing to pay for what they believe. This system only treats everyone as equals because it treats them all as if they have no worth. Efficiency is not the way to control public health, and neither is the goal to live in a “natural” perfectly safe world.

It is clear there are conflicting conceptions of what our society should be like. Some feel that workers should only be protected as much as costs will allow, while others believe that neither health nor environment so be treated as goods to be traded. The quarrel e between these two ideas is logical or moral. The question of whether or not cost-benefit analysis should be used in decision making should not be made by cost-benefit analysis.

No better way has been determined than legislative vote to balance efficiency against moral concerns, cultural values and policies in industry and the environment.

Cost-benefit analysis treats values as nothing more than preferences. All questions inevitably depend on people willingness to pay for their subjective wants or preferences. This is the attraction of cost-benefit analysis, not matter what the bias of the individual wants, an economist is able to derive a policy from them, because in theory is treats all the preferences as if they are equally valid and good.

We cannot justify theory of public policy on the individual right to chose. The neutrality of economics should not be the basis for its authority.

Are diamonds worth it?

I learned about the issue of blood diamonds in high school when it was presented to me in a law class. Before that, diamonds were like most other goods to me; mysterious in where they were from and how they were produced. The disgust I felt when I discovered the hidden human cost of something that was supposed to symbolize love stuck with me for a long time. Objectively, diamonds aren’t truly valuable, not only exploit the environment but people as well and the only reason we desire them is because of a marketing campaign. Even when diamonds are mined in an ecologically responsible matter by people with proper rights, it just brings us back to buying a diamond because advertising told us to. I asked my friend if she wants a diamond engagement ring, after reminding her of the impacts, and she still wanted one. She explained that she did because it was a modern day custom, a tradition because the diamond stands for love. Even if the diamond ring symbolizes love/marriage, it’s just an empty tradition because it was started by the diamond companies themselves. Personally, I do not think that diamonds are worth it, and for my engagement ring I will be looking into other options like antique rings, different precious stones or something else all together.

It's insane looking at a website like http://www.tiffany.ca/ and seeing the prices on a commodity that actually isn't all that "valuable"

Class Reflections:

I found the video we watched in class about sewage to be one of the most poignant of all the videos we were shown. It opened my eyes to the underground world of sewers and waste I had only kind of thought about before. I’m definitely guilty of flushing things out of sight and out of mind. I had always believed that every city was equipped with efficient and effective water waste management plants, that all water that enters the sewers is eventually cleaned before it is allowed to renter the environment. I was sickened by cities just dumping raw sewage into their harbours. It was all a lot to take in. Now when I’m running the tap or flushing the toilet, I put a lot more thought into what exactly I’m doing. I feel more people should be made aware of this issue, because that will be the first step in fixing it.

Course Reflections:

This course is, and probably always will be, the most useful class I’ve taken in university. I’ve chosen to become an environmental science major, and the issues presented to me in this course has really cemented my choice and reminded me why I want to major in this field. In my future career, I want to help the environment in some way, and this class has really helped me pin down some of the issues I’m especially passionate about. Perhaps in my studies I’ll focus on sustainably, environmental health issues or resource (water) management. I honestly enjoyed this course and will value what it has taught me for probably the rest of my life.

Online Activity: E-Waste Video

I’m not sure where it is that I thought my e-waste went when I threw it away, but I know I had no idea about the nightmare that actually happens. I asked my boyfriend where he thought his e-waste went, and he has always figured it was just dealt with locally. I can’t believe any country could allow this to happen. I had no idea how difficult and toxic it was to recycle our electronic garbage, and I certainly had no clue that so many countries were suffering under the weight of the developed world’s trash. It’s so sickening to think that the United States refuses to sign onto a convention with such basic guidelines as maximum concentrations of toxic chemicals. The pictures of water as black as tar and of people “laughing off” their exposure to massively harmful chemicals was a heartbreaking sight. This video prompted me to find out where the e-waste produced in Manitoba goes. My brief internet search ended in disappointing results. One sight I found explained how our “Green Manitoba” project closed (http://www.ecosmartworld.com/canadian-list-of-e-waste-recycling). For my future e-waste disposing, I plan to be far more discerning, and perhaps will hold on to my waste until better program are in place for its proper and ethical disposal.

Blog 5: Nicole L

Selection 39: Towards Sustainable Development

This article begins with the definition of sustainable development and explains two of its key concepts. That the needs of the poor should be given priority and that limits should be placed on this generations state of technology and social organization to maintain the ability to meet the needs of the future. Sustainability should be present in all countries, even those developing. This development needs a progressive change in economy and society. Even the narrowest definition of sustainability involves concern for social equity between the generations that must come back to equity in our generation.

The article explains that countries that cannot take care of and feed their people will always be susceptible to ecological crisis. Living standards that cover basic needs are sustainable only when consumption is within certain standards that are ecologically possible. Meeting all essential needs will require economic growth where lacking, and growth that does not exploit others. However, growth is not enough. The world may compromise its ability to meet basic needs by over population and the overuse of natural resources. Because of this, sustainable development on earth should not destroy or compromise any of the earth’s natural systems such as the atmosphere, water, soil or living organisms. Special cares needs to be taken when dealing with renewable resources such as forests, making sure we do not over deplete within is limits of regeneration, while also taking into consideration is over effects of the exploitations. We should also take care to make non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels last as long as possible for future generations.

Ordinary develop simplifies natural systems and ecosystems, leading to extinction. As this can limit future generations, sustainable development requires the conservation of living things, as well as reducing impacts on air, water and other natural elements quality.

Individuals can be persuaded to sustainable development through education, institutional development and law enforcement, however many issues of resource depletion come from disparities between economic and political power. Often a forestry company will have much more power than the people living in the forest. Since ecological effects know no boundaries environmental stress affects all around it. Interdependence has increased around technology and because no one trusts that other people will behave in a socially desirable way there is the pursuit of narrow self-interest. T

The existence of common interest often does not exist because political jurisdiction and environmentally affected areas are not always the same places. Common interest can only be achieved through cooperation on an international scale. It would also be less difficult to reach if the solutions to environmental did not have “winners” and “losers”. As the world will approach the very limits of its ecological capacity, these inequities will only become more pronounced. It will always be the poor who suffer more.

The fulfilment of sustainable development will require a re-orientation of technology. It will need to be greatly enhanced in developing nations so they can more readily meet the demands of sustainable development and technology needs to focus its attention on environmental factors. Often environmental risk falls on people and places that had no influence in the decision process. It is imperative their interests are taken into account. Public policies must be in place as to assess the potential impacts of new technologies before they are put into practice.
An important theme in sustainable development is the need to merge economic and ecological considerations in the decision process. These concerns are not always in opposition. Their compatibility is often lost in the pursuit of individual gain. There is also the tendency to deal with things in isolation without considering connections and linkages. These connections are what links ecological and economic concerns, but this is seldom reflected in policies. Sustainability requires the taking of a broader responsibility for the impacts of decisions. However, the law be itself cannot enforce the common interest, and needs community knowledge and support as well. Sustainable development needs the merging of economics and ecology in international relations and policy.

In the widest sense, sustainability strives to promote harmony and balance between humans and nature.

Selection 23: Controversy at Love Canal

The hazardous waste problem is not large just from the number of waste sites, but because of their proximity to people’s homes and work places. The problems that plagued Love Canal will happen over and over again, lessons learned there may help people in the future.

A manufacturing company began to fill an abandoned canal with toxic waste in 1942. By the end of their dumping, more than 21,000 tons of waste had been dumped there. The Niagara Falls school board approached them to buy the land for a school and bought the land for a token dollar. Any elementary school was put up in the center of the site, and 98 homes were built alongside it. In the following 25 years chemicals from the site came up through the soil in the community. Children were suffering chemical burns and residents had various other complaints that were ignored.

Finally, through the efforts of residents and a reporter, the EPA and the New York State Department of Health became involved. They discovered an increased frequency of miscarriages in women living right next to the canal, and a health emergency was declared. Health studies were done and the area outside the immediate proximity to the canal was deemed safe. The community was not convinced and still had complaints of chemical seepage into their basements and illness that were occurring even 4 blocks away from the canal.

The article writer did a study, wanting to discover if the susceptibility to lower level chemical exposure was genetic. Instead he found that clusters of illness were found in areas where the chemicals were allowed to seep out of the dumping site. The chemical seeped in areas that were “historically wet”, such as places that were marshes or bordered steams. This allowed the scientist to compare “wet” and “dry” families and their instances of illness. They discovered that a myriad of illness and miscarriages were far more likely to happen to people living in wet home. With this data, it was still a scientific controversy whether it truly was dangerous to live in Love Canal.

In Love Canal, the two opposing sides of the controversy were the community and the Health department. The community turned on the Health Department rather than the manufacturing company that dumped the toxic waste in the first place because of certain allowances they made for the company. It dumped under regulation many years before toxicity was better understood and it employed many people in the area. Once the controversy was going, there were several factors that blocked a resolution. The first may have been that a failure to resolve the controversy would benefit one opposing side. In this controversy, the state stood only to gain by delaying a resolution. The second may have been that the opposing sides did not agree on the question that needed to be answered. There were disagreements between the two about what was acceptable risk. The third may have been the fact that only one side gathered the information that could influence the outcome. The state was responsible for all the studies. The scientists who disagreed with the official opinion that
Love Canal was safe place to live, were silenced. This silencing is a method often used stifle controversy. A fifth factor was that the data collected was secret and
not peer-reviewed, breaking the norm of scientific behaviour. A sixth factor may have been that the parties involved did not agree on which facts needed resolving, the body chosen to resolve the problem or the procedures used to resolve the problem. All parties have to agree to abide by these decisions. This certainly did not happen at Love Canal.

Many of the issues and controversies at Love Canal were treated as scientific issues; however many of the problems had their roots in ethical questions. Had these questions been addressed the controversy would have been much easier to resolve.


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Photo: Love Canal



Selection 24: Restoring Rivers

The current trend of US bodies of water is that they are getting dirtier and dirtier. Water quality is not the only issue, but water over-depletion as well. There are some American rivers that no longer reach the ocean all year and communities with water shortages are everywhere. All over the United States, water is heavily depleted, taking water quality down with it. There have been flood disasters linked to river and stream degradation that could have been avoided with some ecological restoration.

Restoration is the process of repairing rivers and streams that no longer can perform their ecological function. Restoring bodies of water also increases property values while providing a place for recreational activities. However the way we restore rivers and streams needs some repairing as well.

The United States reached a point of such river degradation by centuries of dumping waste in water, hoping it would be carried away. Cutting down forests has also contributed to this degradation. Dams were also built to the benefit of people, but starved native plants and animals.

Crisis was realized in the 1960’s when it was discovered that 2/3 of US rivers and streams were polluted. A Clean Water Act was passed, and rivers and streams started getting cleaner. However, in 2004 it was reported that the waters were once again polluted. The primary cause of this is human activity and our changes to the landscape. When land is cleared, entire watersheds are affected. Building and the erosion of soil and farmland increase sediment in water. When flat surfaces replace natural land, we get devastating flash floods.

Some policies and efforts have been put in place to lessen the impact of development; however the rivers and streams continue to degrade. The main issue is that there are no polices to support restoration standards, to encourage the employment of proven methods, or to provide basic data needed for planning and putting in motion restoration. The solution is to reform federal, state and local government policies. This article focuses on the federal level because of its role in funding and permitting the restoration projects and gives a list of reforms for this branch of government. First, that federal agencies should employ and follow standards for successful river and stream restoration. Second, that a well coordinated system for tracking restoration projects should be used. Thirdly, that nationwide studies need to be done to determine the effectiveness of the restoration projects. Lastly to use funding for restoration more efficiently and increase funding.

So much may be accomplished by allocating resources properly and giving the right priority to efforts based on solid policies that take care to ensure the best methods are used for restoration

Class Reflection:

In class, we are currently watching the film “Who Killed the Electric Car”. I have watched this film once before, and few since have managed to fill me with the same outrage as this documentary. It’s difficult to watch the plight of the electric car owners who desperately wanted to keep their cars. The injustices of the events that take places are staggering. One scene in the film I found particularly difficult to watch was when the proponents of the electric car were in front of the California board of energy, trying to get them to keep the clear air mandate. It’s particularly frustrating because to me it was obvious that the gentlemen in charge was paid out, or convinced by some outside party to kill the mandate. Talking to someone else who had viewed the film, they felt the same as me, getting the vibe that they had their minds made up before the vote.

I found learning about the distaster in Bhopal, India a particularly difficult subject. I had never heard of the disaster before, and I find it hard to reconcile with the idea not very much is being done to the help the affected population, who are still very obviously feeling the effects of the diaster, even after all these years. I talked to a friend about it, and they shared my view that the inequity of the world is definitely more visiable after a disater, as if the fact nothing is done for the suffering of the third world highlights how the developed world does not view them equals.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/victims-of-bhopal-gas-tragedy-still-deprived-of-clean-water/520667/

This is an article about how the people of Bhopal are still drinking polluted water and suffering even after 25 years. The fact that the state government is aware and does nothing is extremely sad.


Online Activity:In Praise of Slowness

This talk is very inspirational to me. I always thought the world’s inclination towards speed was from our modernism, urbanism and the increasing amount of technology present in our lives; I never before thought that it was because of our western view of time as linear and finite instead of cyclical. After giving this idea some thought, I realized that I am in possession of this view. Mostly since childhood, life has been a race to get to the next thing. High school was finished, now I have to hurry through university to get a career. I’m sure once my career is obtained it will be “now I must speed toward retirement”. I enjoyed how his son was sort of the catalyst for discovering his slow movement. Children often do approach life with a slow mentality, enjoying what they are doing in the moment rather than racing to the next thing right away. I hope to take away from this talk a reminder to slow down and enjoy what happening now instead of racing toward the future.

Blog 4 Nicole L

Selection 27: The Argicultural Crisis As Crisis of Culture

This article talks about how in the past farms used to be family run and that people not only lived on top of the land they owned, but in and off it. Although this old system was imperfect, it provided building blocks for agriculture such as community that instead of being built upon were forgotten. In the 1950’s farming adopted more and more technology. This technology along with the free market has been ensuring land abandonment and the decrease of farm diversity. With less farming people are having to rely more heavily on what they buy as opposed to what they grow. New laws for sanitation have eliminated smaller farm markets and the article points out that we’ve taken germs out of our food and replaced them with poisons.

The more modern farming techniques became, the more farm families and communities degenerated. Politian’s that were so against the forced removal of people in communist countries have no issue with the free market forcing people out of the rural areas. With the free market it all about getting big or being forced out of farming. This community destroying form of agriculture has been encouraged by bureaucrats and agri-businessmen that value quantity over quality. However, this article point out that you cannot separate the two ideas because with more quantity comes less quality. Food is a product of culture and can’t be made through technology alone. People who believe that food production problems can be solved through technology alone are making the problem too simple. They need to conceive of everything as one body and that you can’t break up issues into little pieces. Like a healthy culture, healthy farming culture will only come of knowledge gained over generations of working with the land. This knowledge can’t be replaced with technology.

The movement from farm to city is simple, but going from city to farm will be difficult and can’t be done in just one generation. Good farming requires a true farmer, and this farmer can only be made of culture. Because the universe is one, good farming can only be similar in unity. Agriculture cannot continue to exist at the price of the natural systems that support it. A culture can’t exist without agriculture. Each system of life exists in another.(1)

Selection 28: Food Scarcity: An Environmental Wake Up Call

The current environmental degradation cannot continue on its path without affecting the world economy. So far, effects of the degradation have only been local to the issue, but as the scale of the damage grows it will threaten the world on the global level. Effects of the damage are also becoming clearer, but will we only stop these trends when the economic power driving it collapses? Food quantity will most likely be the sector in which environmental damage will become economic decline. This is a historical precedent as other civilizations have been destroyed this way.

The article explains that what will begin as environmental damage will soon become political instability because households unable to feed their families will hold their governments responsible, disrupting economic activity as well and making the problems plaguing the poor the problems of the rich as well. Already in the world over 800 million people are hungry and an increase in the price of gain would only throw millions more into starvation.

As populations around the world continue to grow, the ability to expand cropland and irrigate it decreases and threatens to fall below the level needed for food security. For hundreds of years farmers have used many ways to expand farmland, however with the frontiers reached there has been a huge decrease in the area planted for grain, an amount that peaked in the 80’s. With population growth this amount will only fall further.

As water is pulled away from agriculture the production drops and countries will be forced to import grain. The way land scarcity has shaped international grain trade, similarly water scarcity will do the same. As crop and irrigation become scarcer, both prices are going to rise raising grain prices with them.
All the important food-security indicators are calling for a shift from food surplus to food scarcity. It is this shortage that may provide the much needed wakeup call that we need to reverse our trends of environmental degradation before the emerging political instability obtains a level where economic progress is a thing of the past. Making sure future peoples have enough food is no longer solely an agricultural issue.

The two most difficult changes to make in the effort to secure future food supplies and build an environmentally stable economy will be balancing the population and stabilizing the climate. The first will rely on a revolution in human reproduction habits, and the second will rely on a revolution in energy efficiency.

The change from food surplus to shortage will mould land-use policy to better protect farm-land from non-farm uses. Food security also depends on decreasing soil erosion. Overall, future food security relies on making an environmentally sustainable economy.(2)

Selection 29: Environment, Energetic, and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems

Our modern heavy reliance on artificial chemicals for farming is having serious health and environmental impacts. Pesticides are being found in ground water and farm run-off is connected with the collapse of fisheries and water dead-zones. This excess of fertilizers and chemical pesticides is costing economies billions of dollars per year.

Organic farming can reduce dependence of chemicals for farming. The aim of organic farming is enhancing plant nutrition while conserving soil and water resources. The organic food is coded so consumers have systems on which to base their food choices on how their food was made or produced. Organic agriculture is expanding, and the products are becoming widely available to the public.

There was a farming system trial conducted in which conventional, organic animal-based cropping and organic legume-based cropping were tested. Numerous aspects were measured such as, crop biomass, weed biomass, grain yields, chemical leaching, and water volumes.

The results of the crop yields and economics in regards to organic systems compared with conventional seemed to vary under different conditions; however the benefits of organic farming were clear as organic farming had less soil erosion, better water conservation, and biodiversity consistently over conventional methods.

There are challenges in organic agriculture such as a lack of nitrogen and weed competition. Weed competition is a problem for many farmers as they are limited in their options for pest control. However the benefits of organic production are clear. Soil carbon present in organic soil was high and due to these elevated levels, soil and water resources were conserved. The needs for fossil fuel energy in organic corps were also lower than in conventional corn corps. Labour inputs are higher for organic farming but they are more evenly spread out than in conventional farming. Corp rotations reduce soil erosion, while manure use reduces pollution.(3)

Selection 41: Women's Indigenous Knowledge and Biodiversity COnservation

This article explains how gender and diversity are connected. The same way women are suppressed, biodiversity is as well. Both are victims of the goal of uniformity and homogeneity. The article claims that diversity, in essence the basis of women’s politics as well as the politics of ecology. These two politics meet when women and biodiversity meet in the field.

Diversity is linked to women’s work, which is why it has been so far discounted. Many developing countries depend on diversity for production and in these areas biodiversity is synonymous with productivity. However, this view is seen as primitive as it does not employ the use of technology. The new misconception is that diversity-based systems aren’t productive, however the productivity of uniform systems only take into account production in one-dimension. This system undermines the natural systems which support it. Women’s efforts and knowledge are often looked over and often invisible, found in between the spaces of “sectors”. This invisibly is due to gender bias which creates an area of blindness.

The article explains that women are the custodians of biodiversity. When women conserve seed, they are conserving diversity and therefore balance as well.
There are numerous ways that developing countries women’s relationships with diversity differ from the corporate man. Women produce through diversity, will in the first world corporate men produce through uniformity. For women, seeds represent the continuation of life, while corporations manufacture seeds which can only be used once to make farmers keep coming back to buy more. This is a disruption in the flow of life. These modern claims on seeds are a 21st century version of piracy.
There are many risks to genetically engineered food, and as these risks are being realized corporations will try and redefine themselves as “green”.

Food and Environment:

In the past 48 hours I've eaten fruit like kiwi and grapes, oatmeal, beef, vegetables like carrots and cucumbers, chicken, soy milk and Halloween candy. All these are foods I eat regularly, except for the Halloween candy.

Some concerns related to fruit would be, are they local? When a food item isn't from the region in which you purchased it, that food must have gone on a long trip to reach you. Perhaps it was flown, trucked or shipped to the destination. Every step of this long trip contributes to the ecological foot print of the food. By eating a fruit like kiwi, which wasn't growth in Manitoba, I contributed largely to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

The same concern relates to the vegetables and meat I ate. Fortunately, the vegetables were at least purchased from Peek of the Market, insuring they are from growers in Manitoba. By purchasing more local vegetables I supported the farmers in my region and their business. Buying local isn't only about decreasing the eco foot print, but making sure local farmers will be able to supply us with food for years to come. The ideal would be purchasing from a farmers market or directly from the farmers themselves allowing for all the profit to go to them instead of the supermarket or Peek of the Market. The meat purchased was also Manitoba grown.

The concerns facing the oatmeal and Halloween candy I ate had to do with the packaging. With both the instant oatmeal and the Halloween candy, non-recyclable garbage was made. Unfortunately, nothing about the Halloween candy was recyclable. The candy came in a plastic bag and each small bar was individually wrapped in plastic. If the candy had been wrapped in paper, it could have eliminated much waste from going to land-fills. Next year I think I'll buy the candy to give out and make sure it has more ecologically responsible packaging.

An environmental concern that has to do with the chicken I ate could be how the animal was treated prior to slaughter. In class, we watched a short film called "The Meatrix" about how animals are actually treated when bought up on an industrially large scale. They cut off the beaks of chickens and animals like pigs don't have enough room to even turn around. I'm not sure where the chicken came from, since I did not buy it myself, but when I shop it's important to me that the meat I buy was raised in the free-range environment. The film reminded me of these values and how I believe that I should treat an animal I rely on for nourishment and survival with respect.

Affluenza Around Me:

In class we saw a film titled "The Story of Stuff", which was strange, because I watched it for the first time almost exactly a year ago. I remember that the first time I watched that film; it had a huge impact on me. It finally explained in simple terms how when I buy something at a low price, I wasn't paying for the object, someone else was. Since viewing that film a year ago, I've made huge changes in my buying and realized that every day I vote with my dollar. I no longer shop at places like Wal-Mart, I try to avoid buying from stores that employ the use of sweatshops and I like to buy from Canadian businesses whenever possible. This film has really awakened me to my Affluenza, and over time I'm trying to heal it.

I see evidence of Affluenza everywhere. I live in an area with large houses that nobody owns because they keep getting them remortgaged to afford pools, new cars and etc. People seem to work all the time just to get more stuff. My mom is definitely guilty of this, she works all the time and we have a lot of stuff. However this past few years working has been less to afford new things, and more to afford vacations of a life time. My mom and I value travel and this summer she worked hard to go to on a Mediterranean cruise to visit places in Europe she'd always wanted to see. Trips are different from material goods in that they're memories and experiences that shape you as a person and that stay with you forever. I'm glad my mom values travelling over things like new cars.

A few of my friends definitely show symptoms of Affluenza. One in particular never seems to ever have enough clothes. I asked her about her shopping for this blog, and she told me it’s just something she enjoys doing and that at the time of purchase she always feels like she needs the item. I found this response very interesting in regards to the film about Affluenza we viewed in class, about how we are made to inadequate if we don’t consume. Maybe she is a classic sufferer, or maybe it really does make her happy.

Online Activity: Ted Talk: One Seed at a Time

Before this talk, I had never given much thought to the extinction of corps. I don’t think I even knew that it ever really happened. I think Ted’s argument that the preservation of all crop varieties is necessary to survival made sense and was fairly logical. I watched the film with a friend, and they had a hard time believing that keeping the seeds of a plant that can’t survive was useful. Ted’s argument for starting to breed climate change resistant corps also struck a chord with me. I have been learning about climate change or years, exploring the possible effects on temperature, natural disasters, the ocean and animals, but never gave much thought to what would happen to our food. I agree that researchers should definitely be creating corps that grow in much warmer temperatures to ensure that in a few decades people aren’t starving to death. This talk has really interested me in the topic.

(1) Wendell Berry, from the Unsettling of American: Culture and Agriculture (Sierra Club Book, 1977)
(2)Lester Brown, from "Food Scarcity: An Enviromental Wakeup Call," The Futurist (Jan/Feb 1998)
(3) David Pimental Et al., from "Enviromental, Energetic, and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems," BioScience (July 2005)
(4)Vandana Shiva, from "Women's Indigenous Knowledge and Biodivesity Conservation," in Maria Mies and Vanada Shiva, Ecofeminism (Zed Books, 1993)

Blog 3: Nicole L

Selection3: The Fight for Conservation

The author of the article describes the then newly coined term conservation. The article explains the three main principles that control conservation. The first is that conservation means development, which we firstly think about the needs of this generation, while thinking of the well-being of the coming generations. The second is that conservation means the suppression of waste. The article explains that it’s simply good business to prevent waste. The third principle is that the world’s resources need to be developed and conserved for the welfare of the majority of people, not just a few. The article also explains how these principles have a farther reach than just the earth’s resources, that there isn’t one aspect of human interest that the ideals of conservation couldn’t be applied to. (1)

Selection 4: A Sand Country Almanac

This article begins with the connection between wolves, deer, and mountains. When the author was young, he believed that if there were no more wolves, the mountains would be teeming with deer. However, the author realizes that without wolves to thin the herds of deer, soon the mountain would be empty of all edible plants. The article states that by trying to make things more safe (killing wolves for more deer) it only makes the future more dangerous (mountains void of plant life). The article explains the development of ethics in civilization and how there was no ethic yet developed between humans and the environment. The article also explains how the growing belief that exploiting the land is wrong is movement in the direction of conservation. Ethics grew on the concept of community, and to develop a land ethic we just need to include the elements of nature into this community. The article tells that the biggest road block of a land ethic is the way the educational and economic system head in the opposite direction of conservation. The author also believes we need to throw away the concept that economics should completely govern all land use and instead we need to incorporate so much more into our relationship with the land.(2)

Selection 15: “More Profit with less Carbon”

Experts on both sides of the climate tug-of-war believe we must choose between either protecting the earth and economic well-being. The article explains that this is not true. That if done in the proper way, we could prevent climate change while also lowering prices and saving money. The article also gives examples of companies that are saving energy not to protect the environment, but to become more efficient and increase productivity. The main road blocks to an overall efficient world are old conceptions coupled with the fact that the monetary saving aren’t extremely obvious at first glance, but add up. The article also gives examples of great improvements in efficiency products for building and heating. The article explains that although it seems transportation is an unsolvable problem in the climate issue, it is actually bursting with possibilities to create more efficiency. The article goes on to explain numerous ways in which cars can be improved for safety and efficiency and going further to offer alternatives to conventional fossil fuels. Advancements in renewable energy also have enormous possibilities in which to improve efficiency and save money. The article explains how it is more inexpensive to fix climate change than it is to pretend it doesn’t exist. If governments allow for these changes, the world can be wealthier and safer while protecting the environment as well. (3)

Selection 16: “Reinventing the Energy System”

This article begins with an example of how sometimes we cannot foresee what the future holds, especially in terms of our technology, and although right now it seems impossible not to continue our fossil fuel burning path, we may already be in a state of worldwide energy transition. At the heart of this transition will be the earth’s renewable resources, which have been central to our survival since the dawn of mankind. This move will have profound effects on the billions of people in world, in which a large percentage lacks access to our current energy system. The main propellers of the energy transition will be the developing countries where current oil production will not be able to sustain them for the long run. Technological advances are playing huge parts in the energy revolution. The article goes on to explain advances in renewable energy technology, such as solar and hydrogen power. If energy became completely renewable, most countries would be able to produce their own, alleviating or eliminating our current issues with international energy crisis. Developing countries are in an especially good position to make an energy transition, because unlike developed nations, they do not have to overcome a strong dependence on fossil fuel. In the 20th century, not only did fossil fuel use create an overbearing unbalance of wealth and power, it also created and imbalance of social well-being. The richest countries in the world consume the most power. A renewable energy system may have the ability to spread more equality across peoples and nations. Making a new energy system tailored to the needs of our new century may aid in reinstating a balance between energy, human well-being and the environment. Making the necessary changes will lead to treating energy as a valued commodity and a more sustainable earth. (4)

Selection 26: “Climate Change 2007”

This article is about the causes and the perceived effects of a greenhouse gas based climate change. First the article lists some the man-made and natural movers of climate change. For example, it lists carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion, the increase in the amount of methane present in the atmosphere and nitrous oxide concentration. The article also lists some of the observations associated with this kind of climate change. For example, that the earth’s temperature is on the rise, water vapour present in the atmosphere has increased, ice cover and glaciers have been reduced, and that this ice loss is most likely connected to the risen sea levels of the world. Ice is being lost, sea levels are rising, and precipitation is increasing in most areas along with tropical storm activity. All these changes are most likely due to the rise of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The article also goes into the predicted future regarding changes in the climate. These projections predict a continuation along the path of warming. It predicts a further rise in sea level, less snow cover, less ice cover, an increase in the amount of droughts, a growth in the intensity of tropical storms, and changes in ocean currents. The article explains that even if carbon levels were to equalize and that problems would persist. (5)

Class Materials:

I found the discussion of zoos in class to be very thought provoking. It really got me thinking about the Winnipeg zoo in comparison with other I’ve been to. I think it’s important that our zoo be updated to better fit the needs of animals, as I found a classmate’s observation of the small indoor living spaces to be quite accurate. When I think about zoos, the question of whether is in fact ethical to keep an animal caged up always comes to my mind. Someone in my small discussion group had a great idea on the subject that I wasn’t sure was a common place practice. She suggested that zoos only take in injured animals that couldn’t survive on their own in the wild anyway. I thought this was a great idea. The professor also explained that the zoo might possibly make a move toward keeping more local animals, which I think is a great idea as well. Being in Manitoba, we are gifted with the ability to keep arctic animals, and with the dangers they may be facing due to global climate change, I feel sharing them with the public may help to educate about their cause.

Can parks meet their mandate of access and protection?

Unfortunately I feel there is a trade-off between the two. I had a discussion on the subject with a friend who has a lot of experience camping in both national and provincial parks. We both came to the conclusion that allowing any people into the park automatically alters the animal’s natural habitat as she found the parks to be similar, if not identical, to regular camp grounds with their toilets and showers etc. We talked about how either you let people into the park for access, or keep them out totally for protection. However, we both agreed it was more of a trade-off between education of the public and protection. Either let people connect with the animals on a personal level while being educated, or keeping them completely out and in the dark. I found this to be relevant to zoos as well. With zoos there is a trade-off between letting people connect and learn about animals, and keeping animals in their natural habitat.

How can this be achieved in Wapusk?

I think that Wapusk can definitely improve its access, although it may not be cheap. I think one way to let people into the park is maybe create a tour program in which you visit the park for a day, walk around, and maybe see some animals before leaving for the night. I believe this has the potential to create access to the park, while being low impact enough to preserve the protection aspect. By not allowing overnight camping or people to wander by themselves, there wouldn’t need to be toilets, camp grounds or waste thrown anywhere.

Online Activity: Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth

I watched Al Gore’s documentary with my boyfriend and he helped me discuss it after. First of all, I really respect Al Gore for everything he’s done to open the world’s eyes to this emerging issue. The film depicted how he fought for many years to get the American government to recognize the issue and to do something about. However, my boyfriend and I both found that it gave the distinct vibe of a Michael Moore film in that it was slightly manipulative. The graphs we distorted for shock value and projections for sea levels seemed a little exaggerated. He also didn’t devote much time to alternative explanations for the warming pheromones. But, on the other hand, we felt that perhaps this was intentional. Maybe Al Gore knew no one would be interested if he didn’t add a little Hollywood to it. His presentation won an Oscar and opened the eyes of so many people around the world, that all you can really do is thank him. The film was also extremely informative, and helped to answer some questions I had about climate change, like how has the climate changed in respect to a historical context.

References:

(1) Gifford Pinchot, from The Fight for Conservation (Doubleday, 1910)
(2) Aldo Leopold, from A Sand Country Almanac (Oxford University Press, 1977)
(3) Amory B. Lovins, from "More Profit with Less Carbon," Scientific American (September 2005)
(4) Christopher Flavin and Seth Dunn, from "Reinventing the Energy System," in Lester R. Brown et al, State of the World 1999: A Worldwatch Institute Report on Progress Toward a Sustainable Society (W. W. Norton, 1999)
(5) THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE, from "Climate Change 2007," Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis (February 2007)

Blog 2: Nicole L

Consider one 30 minute period of day yesterday
How did I rely on the environment in physical ways?

Yesterday, for definitely more than 30 minutes, I was studying. I was relying on the environment for the air I was breathing, for the water I was drinking and for the food I was eating. I was also counting the environment for the electricity for my laptop and for the paper I was writing on. Not only that, but the environment provided me with the resources to have the laptop and the furniture I was using made for me. It’s easy to forget how much we depend on the environment in physical ways each second of everyday, no matter what it is we are doing.

What promotes human connection to nature? What connects me to nature?

I feel what promotes human connection to nature is trying to be an actively environmentally conscious consumer. I know that for me, this is something that really helps remind me that I’m a part of the natural world and that I need to do my part to keep it clean and safe. Even if I’m just remembering to bring my reusable bags to the store, for that moment I remember that I’m connected to nature. I asked a friend what connected her to nature, and she felt camping every summer for a few weeks definitely brought her back to the environment. I agree, I don’t camp as much but by being only a tent away from the outdoors, it definitely promotes a connection to nature.

What promotes disconnection from nature? What disconnects me from nature?

I think spending too much time around technology helps to disconnect someone from nature. Being on the computer all day or cooped up inside on the couch watching television, it would be easy to forget that you are part of the environment as whole. I find this is the biggest way I disconnect myself from nature. For example, it’s hard to connect to nature during a walk outside if I’m busying listening to music on my MP3 or texting on my cell phone. I asked my boyfriend what takes him away from nature and he felt that the hours he’s lost to video games has affected his connection.

I also think that being taught that nature exists only to serve humans wants promotes a disconnection from nature in a big way, if your personal beliefs are that you are, in a sense, better or greater than nature I believe you would become truly disconnected in the worst possible way.

Is a deeper connection to nature likely to influence our decisions?

I think a deeper connection to nature would really influence our decisions in a positive way. If we thought of the environment before we made a decision, we would likely think harder about how our actions always have consequences that affect the world. A deeper connection might lead to second thoughts about a decision or an action if it will have a negative impact. Such as if we decide to throw things away instead of recycle them. A deeper connection may also alter how we manage our natural resources, perhaps protecting them instead of trying to find ways to exploit them. We watched a film in class where during one part some congress men were trying to get the vote to open up the protected area in Alaska for oil drilling. Maybe if those congress men had a better connection to the environment, they might have tried to keep the area under protection instead of exploiting and destroying it.

Where do your environmental ethics lie?

My environment ethics definitely lie with the protection of the environment and a move toward a more sustainable world. I think it’s really important that the world, and especially North America, starts taking steps to being more sustainable. For example, I took this quiz that calculates your ecological foot print (http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/personal_footprint) and mine was 8.3 global hectors. I would love to have resources available to me so that I could live as sustainably as possible.

Online Activity:

I really enjoyed the concept behind Andy Goldsworthy’s art. Using objects found in nature to create art would have to be something else that connects people to nature. Normally, when I think of art, I picture a picture painted from oil or acrylic paint hanging on the wall of a climate controlled museum. It’s kind of a foreign concept to see art as something impermanent or made from completely nature materials found in environment. Andy’s art is definitely a new addition to the list of things that connect me to nature.

Blog 1: Nicole L

Selection 42: Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed

This selection is about the authors “5-point framework” to how civilizations collapse. The first two points emerge as changes in the climate and depleted resources. It explains how populations boom during times of prosper, using up resources, then leaving too many people to sustain when weather conditions change and hard times with depleted resources follow. Jared Diamond makes the point that climate changes and depleted resources do not act independently to take down a civilization, but go hand in hand to cause a collapse. Another two factors of collapse could also potentially fall on relations with adjacent societies, and whether or not they are friendly or threatening. Either a civilization could be collapsed from a war or from a partner nation on the verge of their own destruction. The last factor the author outlines is the civilization's action and responses in regards to its problems. (1)

I find myself agreeing with the author and his framework for how societies fail. I find he gives many examples of past civilizations where their collapses have aligned with his theory and some which have not, such as the Soviet Union, which gives his theory credibility. The logic that is used to come to his conclusions is also straightforward, easy to understand and does not contradict itself. He also refrains from coming to any definite conclusion on how any one civilization collapsed, instead giving the most probable causes. I also found his article stayed relevant to his 5-points, especially how our choices today affect the world tomorrow, without going too far off. There could have been more detail in the article, perhaps mentioning more specifics behind the falls of some of the societies he gives as examples, but overall I found the article to be clear and precise for the prologue to a book. I had never really thought about what caused the destruction of the world’s disappeared societies and this article helped me to not only think about it, but look deeper into the probable causes which could help our western civilization make better decisions for the future. I also liked how the author pointed out how one of the main components of the collapses was how people responded in face of their problems. He explained how the choices we face to make a better tomorrow are often difficult and go against what we’ve been doing forever until now. I find this apparent in the behaviour of the Boomer generation, my mother being part of this group. She often finds it hard to change her ways to be more environmentally friendly, scoffing at me when I ask her to buy environmental detergents or to bring the reusable bags to the grocery store. Hopefully everyone can reconcile with this for the future.

Selection 32: Our Stolen Future

In this article, the author explains how the fate of animals reflects the fate humans because we share not only our evolution backgrounds, but an environment as well. Some skeptics believe that animal testing results have no relevance since “mice are not little people” and their testing does not reveal if a chemical can trigger cancer in people. No matter where we live in the world, be it remote or heavily populated, we are exposed at all times to synthetic chemicals which have accumulated in our bodies, just like in the bodies of the animals. These chemicals could possibly cause cancer, but a newly discovered threat is emerging, some think these chemicals act as endocrine disruptors. This discovery comes from the fact scientists have been seeing their effect in animals. While science is still learning about cancer, it does have a well developed idea of how hormones function in organisms and how certain chemicals may inhibit hormone processes. More and more wildlife specimens emerge with development problems, and the article puts the blame on endocrine disruptors. Because of the better understanding or hormones, it is irrelevant to state that effects we observe in animals do not pertain to humans as we share some of the same biological functions. The article finishes with how these chemicals are a threat to the future and man and animals and how we’ve ignored signs of warning before. (2)

I tend to lean toward agreeing with the author’s of this article. This article does have a heavy environmental biased apparent through the backgrounds of the author’s and the way the article was written. It definitely goes to the edge of trying to scare the reader into believing the theory, as the consequences of not believing could be devastating to the world. They do bring up anecdotal evidence, such as doctors in the United States observing more and more children with development problems, however they do point out there is no actual registry to look into. The article could also have more detail, like mentioning some of the studies that prove their theory, or perhaps exploring the opposing points of view. In another environmental class I am taking, we discussed the problem of endocrine disruptors and my professor expressed his skepticism on the issue. It was refreshing to hear a different point of view on the issue. However, I tend to agree with the article because the logic behind it makes sense, if problems are genuinely rising in animals; I find it hard to believe our fates will be much different. Like the article states, we are all connected, especially through our environment.

Selection 36: The Population Explosion: Why We Should Care and What We Should Do About It

This article is a discussion on the population explosion. It explains that the population explosion is important because of the negative effects all our millions of people have on the environmental systems which sustain our lives. By having so many people, we strain our resources until one day we will have no more. Our environmental impact is determined by the number of people, our consumption and the damaged caused by our technologies. The author also explains what should be done about this problem. A move toward the optimal population size seems to be the course of action. Based on energy use that number appears to be 2 billion people. To achieve these numbers conception control would be put in place. This is difficult because the countries with the most children are developing nations where people don’t have much access to education or family planning programs. However, a move to a smaller population size shouldn’t be our only action; we should also reduce our consumption. The goals the author sets will be hard to bring to fruition, but if we want to leave our children with a world anything like our own, we have to try to meet these goals. (3)

I find myself also agreeing with this article. I found the article very well thought out with easy to follow logic with examples and mentions of evidence we see every day in our crowding world. The article was also very clear and the author defined his terms so they were simple to understand and follow. For a short article, there was great depth and thought put into the issue and his solutions to our overpopulation were not superficial fixes, but long term goals that if achieved could save us from destroying the planet. Focus was never taking away from the issue of our population explosion and the effects it has on the world.

Critical Thinking in the Media:

I personally find the media does not do well in many of the areas of critical thinking. In our age the news is less to inform people and more based on getting ratings. This desire for ratings leads to an obvious sensationalizing of issues. Depending on the news source’s political or otherwise bias, we find them either dismissing possible environmental issues, or blowing them up into possible Armageddon. I also find there is pressure on the media to break stories, even before all the facts are in. It is difficult to have a well researched article or news story when you have to publicize your story before all the evidence has been examined. Also, often news stories or articles are much too short to have any depth to them, having to fit in a certain amount of space or time.

The Precautionary Principle:

I find myself thinking the precautionary principle should be applied to environmental legislation. While I think it is important not to act before all the evidence is in and all the details have been worked out, sometimes these are processes that take a long time. If the outcome is negative and we waited to act, there could be real damage to the environment. The only really negative consequences that can emerge from using the precautionary principle is if we waited on something that doesn’t cause or helps to reverse environmental damage. The precautionary principle does operate on the assumption that something could cause environmental degradation if it is surrounded in scientific uncertainty; however working on the opposite assumption that something won’t be harmful until proven otherwise has had dire consequences on our world, such as oil and coal burning. The precautionary principle is definitely a case of “better safe than sorry”.

Activity: John Francis Walks the Earth

I found the phrase “we don’t want to believe what we know” to be a very powerful statement in thisvideo clip and one I believe to be true. People have a difficult time coming to grips with the issue presented in this clip, and therefore ignore them. The way the presenter began his speech, struck a significant cord with me. It’s easy to forget just how much pollution you emit from traveling by plane. I love to travel and have been on a number of planes this year. This clip has inspired me to try and offset some of those emissions created by my travel. The montage of interviews was also poignant. It was a great way to see what people around the world think and how their thoughts are not much different than our own. The interview really highlighted the universal hope for love and a better tomorrow. The movie “Home” appears to be a film that has the potential to be very important and I hope to watch it in the near future.

(1)Jared Diamond, "A Tale of Two Farms," Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (Viking, 2005)

(2)Dr. Theo Colborn, Dianne Dumanoski, Dr. John Petterson Myers, Our Stolen Future (Dutton, 1996)

(3)Paul R. Ehrlich, Anne H. Ehrlich, "The Population Explosion: Why We Should Care and What We Should Do," Enviromental Law (Winter 1997)