This year taking ENVS 160 has provided for some stressful and confusing times, showing signs of hope and contrasting dismality. Environmentalism and environmental studies are not easily navigable subjects. Coming into the class I recognized the high interdisciplinarity of the subject, but truly had no idea of what this connectivity was or how it functions. What I really took away most from this course was the expression of the necessity to question; be it the rules guiding civilizations or how we view the natural world. This is something that is immediately useful and important to practice to better grasp how others and myself approach issues and understand our world. This provides me with a better framework for understanding events in the world, being able to develop my own opinions on events and plans for action, and being able to most beneficially add my own view points now and post-graduation. Hopefully in the longer term this will help to provide myself with the ability to potentially change these institutions, as lasting change can be achieved by “modifying the very rules that societies live by” (Steinberg 2015, 11). I plan to continue exploring ways to achieve this success by taking ENVS 220 in the fall. However, there is still a lot to learn and experience at Lewis & Clark and outside before synthesizing varying disciplines.
What I have found most interesting in this class involves the use of big words like environment, nature, wilderness and so on. These always seemed like words like that were basically self explanatory to myself and those around me. To me, there was the natural the world and then civilization, a pretty clear cut distinction. In reality, “we have been for centuries so inextricably tangled in the natural world that traces of nature are everywhere in us and traces of us have infiltrated more and more of nature” (White 2000, 216). One of my takeaways from this course is thinking about the true distinction between the natural and the human and approaching the foundations of this relationship in the modern world. These words are very similar to the institutions in place through rules and express something much more complex than what a single word can attempt to define. I have taken away from this class a greater appreciation of the ability to question and explore these concepts.
Attempting to enact institutional change is something I hope to be able to do after continuing to grow and develop opinions on the topics. Recognizing the super connectivity and multi faceted issues with climate change, I know that to be successful it takes a strong and deep knowledge of the best course of action. Even though I hope to get to this level, there are other immediate things I can do to act. Focusing on my own waste and recognizing what I can to do be more mindful and conserve resources is something I always try to do. As well, talking about these issues with friends and family to continue to learn is something that can happen outside of the classroom and is mutually beneficial. What I need to do is continuing to discover what my role can be in helping fight climate change, and taking on that role through volunteer work or other opportunities.
Works Cited
Steinberg, Paul F. Who Rules the Earth? 1st Edition. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016: Oxford University Press, 2015.
White, R. 2000. “The Problem with Purity.” Tanner Lectures on Human Values 21: 211–228.