If you are interested or enrolled in ENVS 160, you probably have some kind of notion about what Environmental Studies is. In this class this past semester, we have broken down and rebuilt many of these ideas. Initially we were walked through much of it and worked together to create team posts, but by the […]
A Reflecting Reflection!
The most significant thing I was able to learn about Environmental Studies through ENVS 160 was how the major truly has a foot in most doors. It necessitates integration of both the social and physical sciences seamlessly, whereas I had previously categorized Environmental Studies as predominantly related to the physical sciences. It was a welcome […]
Understand Your Cause!
Paul Steinberg writes in his book Who Rules the Earth? about how social rules and civic governance affect the environment. Society creates both formal and informal rules that can either protect or harm the earth, affecting natural resource usage, pollution, deforestation, and many more major human impacts. Each of these rules have been debated by […]
Importance of Underlying Connection
Course readings are most beneficial to the student when there is an underlying connection between all the readings, whether complimentary or contradictory to supplement further information or offer a new view. In Environmental Studies, it is especially critical due to the broad nature of the interdisciplinary study. The first book, Why We Disagree About Climate […]
The Impact of Environmental Studies
I enrolled in Introduction to Environmental Studies as I was incredibly interested in pursuing this interdisciplinary area of study. My academic background thus far has incorporated both biology and sociology courses, and the Environmental Studies program incorporated both of these focuses into something cohesive. It was the overarching outlook of the Lewis & Clark College ENVS program that […]
Environmental Idealism: Should We Value it as Much as It Values Us?
Definition Idealism is a broad term that can become easily convoluted, and is applied to many religions, philosophies, and theologies. Idealism will be defined in the context of environmentalism for the remainder of this text. It is defined in this context as an over-emphasis on values as a form of solution to environmental issues like […]
Mineral Nitrogen: Feeding the World
By Alannah Balfour & Cora Layman Overview Nitrogen has been an integral part of life since the first cell was formed. Nitrogen is a gas that makes up about 80% of our atmosphere, and is also a major part of healthy soil because it is formed from the decomposition of organisms. Nitrogen is a […]
Portland’s Take on Climate Change: What Do We Think?
Alannah Balfour & Cora Layman Introduction In recent years, there has been great debate surrounding the idea of climate change. The world has fought over whether climate change is real, and if so, what we as a society can do about it. The frustrating part of these climate change debates is that opinions are constantly […]