RESPONSES #1-5

 

Article #1

 

Trends are part of everyday life for the majority people in this country. Through our lives peer groups in school and work, and more recently social media and attention to celebrity lifestyles help to dictate many of the choices we make individually about the clothing we wear, music we listen to, and food that we eat. Perhaps trends can also be environmentally friendly when they are examined scientifically.

Kathy Freston appeals to the fashion consciousness in all of us in her Huffington Post article, “Vegetarian Is the New Prius”. The author unpacks the popular and trendy choice by many to drive hybrid electric cars, and argues that while that decision does make a positive dent in emissions that contribute to greenhouse gases, there is a dietary decision one could have a much greater positive effect on the environment. Freston dissects what raising animals for slaughter actually looks like on our planet, in terms of the land mass it takes up, the cleaning forests wiped out in order to produce this land for raising the meat, and harmful gasses emitted into the atmosphere as a direct result of farming meat.

According to this article going vegetarian is a good environmental deed and makes a bigger difference to Mother Earth than driving a Prius. All the celebs are doing it and it’s easier than ever.

Freston does not address the claim that a meat free or vegan lifestyle is absolutely healthy for anyone, which is a claim often heard by popular advocates for vegetarian or vegan lifestyles. While it’s not hard to recognize how over-consuming Americans are in terms of meat, it would certainly be interesting to examine what homeopathic medicine might say on the issue, especially in terms of the health benefits of a meat free diet versus a diet which includes eating wild game, organic and local meat products.

 

Reference

Freston, Kathy. (2007). Vegetarian is the New Prius. Huffpost Healthy Living

Website

 

Article #2

 

Mother Jones published an inspiring article in 1998 by Alan Weisman entitled “Nothing wasted, everything gained”. Weisman describes a potential for sustainable community that most of us would rarely consider possible by illustrating an exemplary one.

He tells of a small village in Columbia, surrounded in that part of the world by warfare and political unrest, that functions as an environmentalists utopia. The Gaviotans, led and inspired by a visionary named Paolo Lugari were initially a group of scientists, their goal was to make what the article describes as making an unlivable place livable. Being scientists, the group engineered methods to create energy and purify water in an uninhabited place. These experiments resulted in successful efforts that have provided many outside of their community clean drinking water, and even reforested their part of the world. The trees nurtured by the Gaviotans have served the earth by re-created habitats for native animals, and through harvesting a renewable part of the plant produced an ingredient in common household items that can replace petroleum based ingredients in the same items.

Weisman’s message to his reader seems to be certainly from an environmentalist’s persuasive point of view, showing the reader what is possible when a group of people is dedicated to sustainable and clean living. Most of who make attempts to buy local, recycle what we can and buy the most fuel efficient vehicles tend to check those things off our to do lists and feel as though we’ve done our part. The question left after this reading is what would need to happen for culture to shift in such a way to show us how to live in a more sustainable way. Perhaps this article suggests that while we aren’t all soil chemists, there are extremely productive things we can do in our lives to help our home planet. If this small community can be one hundred percent green, maybe we can all do a little or much more.

 

Reference
Weisman, A., & Kratochvil, A. (1998). Nothing wasted, everything gained. Mother Jones, 23(2), 56.
Website

 

 

Article #3

 

Peter McLean identifies himself as a biology teacher in his call to action article, “The Need for Sustainability”. He also seems to be reaching out to fellow teachers in this writing, asking that it is more important than ever before for students to reach nature through their educations in science. The planet has undergone so much damage in the last century, and maybe if all people are gifted by education a more personal connection to the natural world there will exist a greater dedication to right some of these wrongs.

McLean links the need for sustainable living as a value to be taught by defining sustainability in terms of responsibility. He claims, “Sustainability can be defined as responsible use of resources over an indefinite period of time…”. It’s significant for an educator to be making this claim, as it recovers memories of curriculums focused on values in primary school. It seems obvious that part of public or private k-12 education would include lessons in some sorts of right and wrong, compassion, citizenship and the like. Maybe this is missing much of the time, but responsibility would fit in to some ideal primary values alongside math and geography. Reading a biology teacher’s plea to other educators to make an effort to educate their students in this specific type of responsibility, to live in the world with forethought, is powerful.

It’s easy to link the smell of dogwoods or the sound of a rushing stream with good or comfortable feelings. The author’s effort to link this sensation with the commitment to live sustainably is an honorable one and could unlock curiosity about weather or not this is being included in twenty first century science curriculums at any or all levels.

 

 

References

McLean, P. (2009). The Need for Sustainability. American Biology Teacher, 71(5), 267-268.

Video

King Corn initially takes the viewer on a bit of a road trip. Recent college graduates Curt Ellis and Ian Cheney dive into the world of modern day midwestern agriculture in this documentary directed by Aaron Woolf. The two friends coincidently hail from similar ancestry as both had great grandparents who had farms in the same rural Iowan county. After a startling lab work up involving pieces of their hair validates what is suspected they already knew, which is that they are basically made out of corn the two set their stage.

Hooking their audience with the familiar and concerning news about the average American’s physical health, the documentarians give us the more unfortunate news that in fact we are what we eat, and we eat too much corn. In fact, we eat so much corn that we are eating corn even when we are not eating corn. Ellis and Cheney head out from their Boston community to Iowa in an attempt to farm an acre of corn.

They succeed with their crop and give small glimpses into many of the social and scientific issues that can be tied to this seemingly simple food. The audience receives a brief look into the disappearing family farm and how that has dissolved into the huge operations that they are now, the intersection of corn farming and modern livestock feed, and finally the disastrous impact of corn syrup on our bodies. There are so many political implications to the claims that the film makers make. The film suggests that the corn industry has done so much to have their product utilized, resulting in horrible effects to people’s physical well being. They turn up so many astounding discoveries it could leave viewers wishing that the film had focused more heavily on one or two of them as to have a better understanding of the financial incentives behind the creation of corn syrup, or the tragedy of the disappeared family farm. The film did not really have time for all of it.

Website

www.kleenkanteen.com

Thank goodness for this product. This website is for conscientious consumers and all people who drink water. That includes conscientious consumers who drink water and are concerned and broken hearted about the bottled water consumption in recent history. While this website aims to sell the company’s products, whether it be the standard canteen or sippy cups or to go mugs, it also aims to educate and inspire. The website is as attractive as the company’s product or it’s logo. Attractiveness alone can make a website effective to it’s user but it also goes extra miles by inciting viewers in any area to link to an explanation of why their product is great. The viewer can easily and in many locations find definitions for BPAs, why plastics are so harmful to our planet, and why the kleenkanteen is healthy and responsible. Many of us love to shop, especially from the comfort of our homes and eco friendly products are becoming trendier and more accessible on the internet. Many camps for kids and teenagers are now adding steel or aluminum canteens to their requirements on packing lists, taking the place of nalgene bottles, thermoses or even bottled water. The website definitely fills the niche for eco conscious consumers, but most likely those with means to shop online or at higher end sports or outdoor equipment stores. The downside of this product or it’s beautiful website is that poor people deserve to not be poisoned by plastics too. Poor people also deserve to enjoy the satisfaction of being conscientious consumers, so hopefully this company can support cheaper versions of their product being available to the masses, and hopefully the education that accompanies it so nicely is this website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Essay #1- Cause/Effect: Food Inc. Change, Powerd by Choice

Since the industrial era businesses have been able to cut production costs and provide mass quantities of products at lower prices. Typical families are now capable of putting meat on the table, not only once a week, or even once a day, but every single meal. The reduction of meat prices is due to the industrialization of the farming industry, or commonly called factory farming. Although factory farming has produced large quantities of food at low-cost, factory farming causes problems for the environment because biodiversity is lost in the development of pastures, farms produce too much animal waste, resulting in polluted waterways, and the overuse of antibiotics has resulted in the development of superbugs. The documentary Food Inc. touches on many of these topics and unveils just how little consumers know about what they eat and where it comes from.

As pointed out in the film, most people are under the illusion that their food is grown on the cute little farms often depicted on the packaging of the products themselves. In all actuality, few of these farms exist, as most of them have been replaced with large factory farms (Kenner, 2009). The factory farms have over-crowding of livestock causing problems for the environment due to a loss of biodiversity. When acres of land are cleared for pastures, it limits the vegetation in that area to a monoculture, leading to an eco system cannot support many of the native species that once thrived there (Kenner, 2009). Not only does mass land clearing for pastures disrupt the balance in the local eco-systems, the deforestation cuts down our planets ability to deal with the green house gasses attributed to climate change. Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gasses which is absorbed by plants that in turn give off oxygen as a byproduct. Additionally, the over-crowding of livestock in factory farming creates large amounts of animal waste, leading to the degradation of the soil. In traditional small family farming, less animal waste is produces allowing for the soil to absorb and use the animal waste without being overwhelmed.

In addition to harming the soil, the over accumulation of animal waste in factory farms has also contributed to water pollution. Chemicals and antibiotics are used so frequently to prevent and deal with illnesses caused by overcrowding, that the soil itself has become contaminated. To deal with excess waste generated on factory farms, many farmers store animal waste in manmade damns or lagoon like structures. When one of these structures breaks it can have devastating effects on the environment. For example, in 1995 the New River hog waste spill in North Carolina, introduced 25 million gallons of waste into the water causing the spread of disease and killing most of the fish; as a result, 364,000 acres of coastal fishing beds had to be closed down (Warrick, 1995). Spills are not the only way that the soil contaminates the water supply. Many of the antibiotics, chemicals, and bacteria found in animal waste ends up in the soil, and eventually into the water table below. Furthermore, the agriculture used to feed these animals have been grown with fertilizer and pesticides which has contaminated the soil, and polluted the water ways when it rains with toxic runoff. Again, as with soil contamination, the water contamination is caused by trying to produce too much product in an area too small to maintain a safe balance for the ecosystem.

Soil contamination and water pollution are not the only concerns when dealing with the overcrowding of the farm animals. With the use of antibiotics, and unsanitary conditions caused by excess waste, the bacteria that live in the waste have become resistant to many types of antibiotics creating superbugs. These superbugs disrupt the balance of the ecosystem and create health hazards. A University of Iowa study found that 70% of the hogs, and 64% of the workers had contracted a resistant strain of methicilin resistant staph, known as MSRA (Couric, 2010). The overuse of antibiotics has created superbugs that have disrupted the balance of our ecosystem and has created health hazards.

The cost to our health and environment are hidden when purchasing many of the foods that come from factory farmed animals. Though many packages are labeled with cute family fresh farm scenes, the reality is quite different. Animals are being forced to live in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions that have led to a degradation of our soil, water, and health. Although factory farming drives down the prices at the register, the overall cost to the environment is much higher. In the end, the film Food Inc. points out that the consumers demand for cheep food has led to the industrialization of farming; and in turn, it will be the consumers demand for sustainable eco-friendly food that will be responsible developing the environmentally safe farming techniques of the future.

References
Couric, K.. (Executive Producer). (2010, February 9). Animal antibiotic Overuse Hurting humans?[Television series episode]. New York: CBS Evening News. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/02/09/eveningnews/main6191530.shtml .

Kenner, R. & Pierce, R. (Directors). (2009). Food Inc. [Motion Picture]. United States: Magnolia home Entertainment.

Warrick, J.& Leayenworth, S. (1995, June 29). Waste spill receives hog legislation, House looks again at farm regulations. The News Observer of Raleigh, North Carolina. http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/nchist-recent/6271 .

Response # 4: Earth911.com

The website, Earth911.com, reaches beyond teaching its visitors how to recycle. At the top of the website is a recycling center locator. This is not just a listing of places that recycle items, it’s has a search section that allows visitors to look up exactly what they want to recycle. Additionally, the locator has a convenient feature that povides mapping information, phone numbers, addresses, and even curbside drop off sites.

Beyond the locator, there are many articles discussing environmental topics. These articles have comment sections allowing for more in-depth dialog. Furthermore, there are multiple links to other environmental friendly sites. These sites offer additional information and tips, for instance, organizational fundraiser opportunities involving recycling. Many of the sites visited had the Better Business Bureau stamp of approval on their pages. Earth911.com, and many of its linked sites, can be followed on Facebook and Twitter with weekly newsletters to keep visitors informed about current issues.

Overall, Earth911.com is a website designed to educate and assist those seeking to lower their carbon footprint, and live in a more sustainable lifestyle. With easy to find recycle centers and tips on how to live green, Earth911.com takes the stress out of wasting less. Earth911.com has something to offer both those that are new to recycling and the seasoned veterans as well. I highly recommend visiting and bookmarking Earth911.com.

Response #3: Which came First, Chickens or Automobiles?

According to Kathy Freston the author of the article “Vegetarian is the New Prius,” chickens, or livestock in general, produce a far greater impact on the environment than automobiles. Freston stated that this information comes from a United Nations report on livestock, and suggests that livestock is a leading cause for many environmental problems including global warming. Freston also believes that going vegetarian will solve many of these problems.

Though I agree that Americans are in need of a diet change due to obesity and overconsumption, switching to an all vegetarian diet will not fix the problem, it will only change it. For instance, according to Freston, one benefit to going vegetarian is that there would be less demand for animal agriculture. However, I feel that this benefit would be quickly offset by the increased demand for agriculture needed to be produced for human consumption. Additionally, Freston stated that there would be less animal waste, which would reduce the methane in the environment. I do agree that we have too much fertilizer due to the overproduction of animals causing many environmental problems. However this is where the problem doesn’t get fixed with such an extreme measure as eliminating meat from the American diet; the increased demand for crops would yield a great strain on the soil, so much so that additional fertilizer would be needed to yield the most crops per acre of land. Additionally, like meat our vegetables would begin to lose some health benefits, to make way for faster growing genetically modified strains. These less healthy strains would be needed as the healthier organic crops would not be able to supply the increased demand.

Ultimately, there is no one thing causing all of our problems in the environment as everything is interconnected. Therefore there is no one solution that will fix everything either. I believe that working towards finding a sustainable balance in general, instead of going to extremes, will yield the greatest benefit in the end.

Reading Response #1- City of the Future

Have you ever wondered about the actual limits of this green trend that is becoming so much of a trend? Some find that making all of these changes required for going green is too much of a bother for their liking, so they choose not to submit. One possible reason for this would be that they can’t see the benefits of spending money now vs saving money later. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it right? Well in Sweden, in the Western Harbour development of Malmö, they have built a new district that can run 100% on renewable sources.

This city utilizes much of the green technology that we have already seen, and already know today. They have a large wind turbine that resides away from the city, solar panels on almost every building, and even vacuum trash cans on the streets that convert organic material into gas for their busses. Since heat is more difficult to come by in the winter months, they take up as much heat as they can in the summer time, and store it for later. They are even using excess heat from the sun warming the ocean to their advantage. No natural resource goes untapped in this eco-friendly town.

Some years, the Western Harbour development doesn’t quite reach its goal of 100% renewable energy. Other years, they produce more energy than they need and are able to give energy back to the city. The point is that with results like this, results that you can see and measure in numbers, how can their still be those who oppose the change? It’ll cost up front, but over time it will pay for itself and then some.