Lecture 35- "Sustainable Future I"

Question 1

the goal of sustainability is to find a sweet spot that balances 3 needs

Answer 1

• protect the environment
• economic (including energy) development
• social justice within and among nations and between generations

Question 2

for humans, the potential for long term, multi-generational maintenance of wellbeing

Answer 2

depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources

Question 3

sustainable development

Answer 3

development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

Question 4

human consumption of natural resources can be divided into 3 key components

Answer 4

• human population (P)
• levels of consumption (affluence)
• impact per unit of resource used (technology)
• I=PAT

Question 5

historically, humanity has responded to a demand for more resources by

Answer 5

trying to increase supply (drill baby drill)

Question 6

as supplies inevitably become depleted sustainable practices are encouraged through

Answer 6

demand management

Question 7

ecological footprint

Answer 7

• equivalent area required to provide the goods and services consumed by population
• expresses how much of nature’s renewable bioproductive capacity is currently being appropriated

Question 8

UN estimates that humanity’s total ecological footprint is now

Answer 8

1.7 planet’s earth

Question 9

we are currently consuming — more of earth’s resources

Answer 9

70%, currently degrading the life support system of planet earth

Question 10

if we continue our current consumption by 2030,

Answer 10

we will need 2 earths

Question 11

we will reach 8 billion in population in

Answer 11

2024

Question 12

increase of concentration of atmospheric CO2

Answer 12

40%

Question 13

atmospheric CO2 is increasing

Answer 13

2-3 ppm each year

Question 14

present CO2

Answer 14

406

Question 15

in just 20 years, CO2 level will be

Answer 15

450 ppm

Question 16

rise in global average temperature

Answer 16

1 C

Question 17

sea level rise by the end of the century

Answer 17

1 meter

Question 18

arctic is expected to be ice free by

Answer 18

2035

Question 19

ocean acidity will increase by — in the end of the century

Answer 19

170%

Question 20

within decades

Answer 20

• polar oceans will be corrosive to calcareous shells

- tropical coral reef growth will be hampered or stopped

Question 21

— of all top predator fish are now gone from the ocean

Answer 21

90%

Question 22

— of all US streams are now degraded

Answer 22

70%

Question 23

Millenium Ecosystem Assessment Report (2005)

Answer 23

sought to add value to existing info by collating, evaluating, summarizing, interpreting, and communicating it in a useful form

Question 24

tragedy of the commons

Answer 24

having open access to a common resource will inevitably lead to the collapse of the resource