Application Assignment #1: Environmental and Health Impacts of Modern Consumption
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| World Population Growth Rates, 1800-2005 |
In the book, the author makes the assertion that global food shortage is a myth (pg. 181). The problem is not a lack of food, but rather the way it is distributed. Essentially, those with the most money get the most food, leaving others with not enough. The author also states that we need to make feeding people a bigger priority than creating profits for large businesses (pg. 181). Food is a pillar of human health, and distributing it equally between 7 billion people can sound like a big task. However, as the information in this chapter shows, it’s all about prioritizing equal dispensation of the overflow of food that we do have, rather than basing food issuance on money.
Additionally, the author talks about genetically modified crops. We do not know for sure what the unintended consequences of these foods (185). These foods, which are becoming more and more prevalent in our diets, could drastically affect human health. We may not know the full effects of these crops on our health for years, and by that time, it could be too late. We are interfering with the natural process, and we could pay the price.
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| World Map of Countries by Ecological Footprint |
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| World Population Growth Rate 1950-2050 |
rate. It is expected that we will add several billion more people within the 21stcentury. However, fertility rates are decreasing. According to the UN World Population Prospects Graph from 2004, the world’s fertility rates are dropping each year. In more developed regions, the fertility rate is about 2. This rate is the number of children per couple, meaning that the population will even out if the majority fertility rate stays at 2.
A typical person at Keene State uses each of the resources I have mentioned. We are all involved in the use of land, to provide spaces for us to learn, live and eat, and to grow the food provided in the dining commons. We use water to clean ourselves and our facilities, to drink, to properly dispose of waste, and to help with the production of our food. We use fossil fuels to get to class, power our buildings, and also help process the food we eat at the dining commons.
To limit our impacts, we might consider eating less or no meat to lessen our ecological footprint. As I stated earlier, meat consumption creates a large ecological footprint due to excessive and unnecessary usage of precious resources. Eating less or no meat can have health impacts, but it is important to emphasize the positive impact it can have on our planet. It's easier to do than one might think - there are hundreds of "meat" alternatives in supermarkets, there is a vegan station at the DC, and there are many other ways to get protein such as chick peas or broccoli. We, as a campus community, can save water by taking shorter showers, save paper by using automatic hand dryers when washing our hands, and reduce waste by utilizing reusable water bottles. We can do our best to find locally sourced food to eat, to reduce our use of processed foods, and therefore do our part to lessen fossil fuel use. We can also utilize composting and recycling, which are offered in the dining commons, to dispose of our waste properly. We can walk to classes, to limit our emission of carbon dioxide and use of fossil fuels. By making these small changes in their lifestyles, students at Keene State could have a very positive impact on the environment, and therefore lift some of the weight off of the planet that is supporting so many humans.
References:
“Chapter 8: Table for 7 Billion?” Everything Under the Sun, by David Suzuki, Allen & Unwin, 2012.
Wikimedia Commons, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page.
To limit our impacts, we might consider eating less or no meat to lessen our ecological footprint. As I stated earlier, meat consumption creates a large ecological footprint due to excessive and unnecessary usage of precious resources. Eating less or no meat can have health impacts, but it is important to emphasize the positive impact it can have on our planet. It's easier to do than one might think - there are hundreds of "meat" alternatives in supermarkets, there is a vegan station at the DC, and there are many other ways to get protein such as chick peas or broccoli. We, as a campus community, can save water by taking shorter showers, save paper by using automatic hand dryers when washing our hands, and reduce waste by utilizing reusable water bottles. We can do our best to find locally sourced food to eat, to reduce our use of processed foods, and therefore do our part to lessen fossil fuel use. We can also utilize composting and recycling, which are offered in the dining commons, to dispose of our waste properly. We can walk to classes, to limit our emission of carbon dioxide and use of fossil fuels. By making these small changes in their lifestyles, students at Keene State could have a very positive impact on the environment, and therefore lift some of the weight off of the planet that is supporting so many humans.
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| I live with 5 other girls, and each of us has a reusable water bottle to reduce our ecological footprint. (Picture taken by me) |
“Chapter 8: Table for 7 Billion?” Everything Under the Sun, by David Suzuki, Allen & Unwin, 2012.
Wikimedia Commons, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page.
My favorite part about this article is when you talk about food distribution by money opposed to distribution based on overflow so everyone gets enough to eat. The issue of hunger is a big problem in the US which is absolutely ludicrous considering we are one of he richest countries in the world. I had also never thought of the unintended consequences that GMO food could have on us in the future so that was new to me. A suggestion for solving this problem could be for corporations to get over their gluttony and money hungry procedures so that everyone could eat. Gigantic corporations should be donating foods to pantries across the nations and places like dunkin donuts needs to stop just throwing away the food people didn't purchase by the end of the day/ restaurants could also do this with fresh ingredients that are soon to go bad instead of just throwing them away.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog, it flowed well and you included a great amount of facts and you cited your sources correctly as well. Something I learned from your post that was new to me was that the earth can produce food for 7 billion people, we just don't know how to distribute it properly yet. If we can distribute food equally among rich and poor, there would be less wasted food and less hungry people in the world. Suggestions for additional solutions could be eating at vegan valley in the dining commons and using a dish washer instead of hand washing dishes in your apartments. Another way to reduce your carbon footprint is to carpool with friends when you go home for the weekend. Another way to drastically reduce carbon output would be not to fly on planes if you have the option.
ReplyDeleteKali, this is a really nicely written blog post about the environmental impacts of human consumption. I liked how you talked about a lot of different resources the human population is responsible for consuming large amounts of such as food, water, and more specifically meat. I also really liked the images you included in your blog post and I found them very helpful with understanding the problems you were addressing. I feel like I learned a lot from reading your blog post about this issue. Something that was new to me was the issue of meat production. I had previously heard before that meat production is a factor causing climate change but I had never thought it was responsible for putting 5,000 species at risk. You also listed a lot of great things people in the community can do to help stop this environmental impact. Another thing you could have talked about is the process of growing your own food instead of buying. Overall this was a great blog post!
ReplyDeleteI liked how at the beginning of your post you mentioned multiple ways the environment is impacted by just people living. This drew me into reading your article because I did not know that agriculture can lead to soil erosion. Something else I learned was that food shortage is a myth, it just has to do with who has money and who does not. This is interesting to me because this has been happening for a very long time. Back when communities were starting to form and people were buying food, if you did not have money, you got no food. I also liked the picture you added about comparing carbon footprints because it put things into perspective. I think another solution to reducing our ecological footprint would be to educate the uneducated so they can take the small steps like recycling and using more reusable products.
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