The lessons presented in ENVS 160 are not ones to be taken lightly or quickly forgotten as the course comes to an end. Embedded in these lessons is responsibility. Not only does this responsibility play a role in our personal lives, but it’s important as students and educators to take on the responsibility of expanding our scholarly lives.
The course has presented many ways to take action in my personal life, but in ways that have not been presented to me before. When learning about the Grid-group theory, I realized that I see the world with an egalitarian point of view, but choose to take action with an individualist approach. This approach comes from years of educating myself on things that I can do to help make a difference such as, recycling more, riding my bike, going vegan, etc. I have often felt a disdain towards centralized power and I find it difficult to work with others in helping to advance a similar goal. The course has taught me many things about this view one being that this approach, If I want to see change transpire, is the wrong one to take. This lesson has been reitaerated in different works throughout the semester, but finally took a resonating toll on my consciousness when reading Who Rules The Earth by Paul Steinberg.
Steinberg said that if we want to see change ensue we need to “move from passive observers to active participants in politics” (Steinberg, 2015) Growing up in Hawaii, politics have never been a common topic of discussion. The state almost always has the lowest voter turnout, yet has an abundance of citizens who identify as pro-environment activist. The irony of this had never presented itself to me before taking ENVS 160. I am now are of the political dimensions prevalent in creating any kind of permanent sustainability.
Not only must change be reitererated in my personal and social life, but also must resonate in my academic work. I plan to double major in Environmental Studies and Sociology, so the lessons taught in ENVS 160 apply to both paths of education. The course has primarily set up the beginning of my continued education on environmental research and helped create a path as to where to aim my energy if I want to make a change. I’ve learned that when it comes to environmental sustainability and climate change, there will be people who disagree with me. These peoples ideas and thoughts will not have roots in ignorance and idiocy, but rather the disagreement lies in cultural differences and risk association.
Pertaining to my sociological research, I’ve learned a lot about how social institutions and rules have shaped our understandings. From Why We Disagree About Climate Change by Mike Hulme, I’ve learned that as scholars we need to question the preconceived and not take what we assume as common knowledge for granted. I also learned a very important notion from Making the Modern World by Vaclav Smil pertaining to human happiness and how we assume it relates to consumption use, but in reality, there is little proof to argue that.
In all, the course has changed the way I view the social world, and how to address change. Now that such social phenomenons have been made aware to me, I doubt I will be able to disregard their importance in both my social and academic life. The responsibility embedded in the ENVS 160 course will undoubtedly play a significant role in my life as I continue to further my knowledge.
Citation:
Smil, Vaclav. 2014. Making the Modern World: Materials and Dematerialization. Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom: Wiley.
Steinberg, Paul F. 2015. Who Rules the Earth?: How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Hulme, Mike. 2009. Why We Disagree About Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.