As we have explored different issues in ENVS 160, connectivity is a predominant theme that I have noticed among many of our studies. Identifying connections between ideas is a way to bring about solutions and to think about issues at a larger scale and how they affect problems we are facing. The connectivity of topics we discussed was something that I had already thought about before, but this course has made me think about the depth of connections between issues and how they affect the ways in which we approach the environment. There are three in particular that have stuck out to me the most:
1. People and the natural world
There is a range of complex opinions on the connection between humans and other living organisms. We explored this through our isms project by looking at biophilia and how it has been used to describe the human love for living things. While some think this is a deep, spiritual connection as in the book Ecotopia (Callenbach 1975), others don’t see much of a connection at all and separate themselves from the earth in order to justify actions, such as in the idea of the anthropocene. Before taking action, it is important to consider how others see themselves in relation to the rest of the world. Exploring this topic has caused me to consider my own beliefs about my connection to “nature” and how that affects my actions as a person and an environmentalist.
2. Technology and solutions
No matter how hard we try, we cannot move backward in time. Technology is going to continue evolving and while some believe this is a good thing, others think we should go back to living closer to the earth like humans did a long time ago. Technology is most likely how we will be able to do away with fossil fuels and fix ocean pollution, among other problems. Increasing efficiency in technology is how we will be able to dematerialize. Dematerialization is sometimes not a valid option because not everyone has the same kind of access to materials (Smil 2014). It is important to approach issues like technology from multiple different views, including acknowledging the things that result from technology. The relationship between technology and the solutions to world issues is considerable and affects how we view the future of our world.
3. Environmentalism and equality
Another connection I had never really considered deeply before ENVS 160 is the one between environmentalism (as in the movement aimed at protecting natural resources) and equality. There are many instances where improving the overall health of an ecosystem has negative effects for some humans and positive effects for others. This is apparent in California’s cap and trade example where the companies buying carbon permits were mainly located in low-income and minority areas as opposed to more privileged areas (Steinberg 2015). Although the environmentalist goal of achieving lower emissions was met, the negative aspects of the regulation were not equally spread out. Leigh Phillips makes the socialistic argument that inequality happens when we judge people based on their material choices. He argues that we should instead decide “our production priorities democratically […] in an egalitarian fashion” (Phillips 2015). The issue of equality is becoming more and more involved with environmentalism because environmentalist action sometimes doesn’t consider equality and only views the big picture goals, though this is becoming less common.
Works Cited
Callenbach, Ernest. 1975. Ecotopia: The Notebooks and Reports of William Weston. Berkeley, CA: Banyan Tree Books.
Phillips, Leigh. 2015. Austerity Ecology and the Collapse-Porn Addicts. Alresford, UK: Zero Books.
Smil, Vaclav. 2014. Making the Modern World. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Steinberg, Paul. 2015. Who Rules the Earth?. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.