Lecture 35- "Sustainable Future I" Flashcards
the goal of sustainability is to find a sweet spot that balances 3 needs
- protect the environment
- economic (including energy) development
- social justice within and among nations and between generations
for humans, the potential for long term, multi-generational maintenance of wellbeing
depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources
sustainable development
development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
human consumption of natural resources can be divided into 3 key components
- human population (P)
- levels of consumption (affluence)
- impact per unit of resource used (technology)
- I=PAT
historically, humanity has responded to a demand for more resources by
trying to increase supply (drill baby drill)
as supplies inevitably become depleted sustainable practices are encouraged through
demand management
ecological footprint
- 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
UN estimates that humanity’s total ecological footprint is now
1.7 planet’s earth
we are currently consuming — more of earth’s resources
70%, currently degrading the life support system of planet earth
if we continue our current consumption by 2030,
we will need 2 earths
we will reach 8 billion in population in
2024
increase of concentration of atmospheric CO2
40%
atmospheric CO2 is increasing
2-3 ppm each year
present CO2
406
in just 20 years, CO2 level will be
450 ppm
rise in global average temperature
1 C
sea level rise by the end of the century
1 meter
arctic is expected to be ice free by
2035
ocean acidity will increase by — in the end of the century
170%
within decades
- polar oceans will be corrosive to calcareous shells
- tropical coral reef growth will be hampered or stopped
— of all top predator fish are now gone from the ocean
90%
— of all US streams are now degraded
70%
Millenium Ecosystem Assessment Report (2005)
sought to add value to existing info by collating, evaluating, summarizing, interpreting, and communicating it in a useful form
tragedy of the commons
having open access to a common resource will inevitably lead to the collapse of the resource
