As a science-centered student, I came into ENVS 160 with only a notion that this class would provide me of the humanity perspective of environmental studies, to expand my understanding of this discipline beyond my scientific knowledge. However, at the time, I had very little knowledge of the expansive scope and depth in how these human (anthropocentric) factors are so intertwined with the environment and the problems of environmentalism. In the end, this course has not only reinforced my scientific understanding about contemporary environment issues, but also expanded my horizons on the different social and economic perspectives surrounding those issues that ultimately make environmental conservation such a complicated puzzle to solve. These are also my 3 biggest takeaways from the course.
- Role of science and technology in contemporary environmentalism
One major change of opinion I have had during this course is my perspective on the role of technology in solving the environmental puzzle. When I first took the Ecotypes survey, my results indicated that I had a more classical view about environmentalism, that I was more conservative and technophobic. After reading Smil’s Making the Modern World: Materials and Dematerialization, my opinion was starting to change somewhat. The book clearly gives me a clearer view of how humanity’s use of resources and technology has changed over time, but it still suggests that we should regulate our consumption of materials and not become overly reliant on material-reducing technology to solve our problem. However, after reading Phillips as well as Shellenberger & Nordhaus’s works, the idea of utilizing sustainable technology starts to gain stronger ground in my opinion. The fact that technology has become such an integral part of our society suggests that we should embrace it and move forward rather than trying to reverse the progress of time.
- How social beliefs shape environmentalism
Interestingly, even with our understanding of the environment and its relationship with science and technology, the answer to environmentalism is still not clear cut. This is often because of the multitudes of social and cultural considerations surrounding it which are explored in Hulme’s Why We Disagree About Climate Change. So far, this is my favorite book to read since it gives context to the multiple perspectives on climate change including cultural and socioeconomic perspectives from indigenous groups and under developed communities which are really thoughtful and helpful considerations that should not be neglected in any conversation on climate change. The team assignments such as the Ism assignment that we did also helped to cement some of these complex relationship between social development, equality and environmentalism.
- Environmental economics
One thing for certain is that this course has really divided my opinion on the reality of environmental economics. For the most parts, I still agree with the idea that many of our environmental problems today are attributes of our materialistic lifestyle and capitalist society, much like the classical thinking of environmentalism. However, after reading Hulme and Steinberg’s analyses of the possibilities of environmental economics, I somewhat concur that perhaps there is a practicality in this approach that might prove to be more appropriate and efficient in our modern world.