PEE 1.1 Human Use of the Earth

Question 1

The natural resources and ecosystem
services that keep us and other species
alive and support human economies.

Answer 1

Natural Capital

Question 2

Natural Capital Formula

Answer 2

Natural Capital = Natural Resources + Ecosystem Services

Question 3

Materials and energy in nature that are essential or useful to humans

Answer 3

Natural Resources

Question 4

Processes provided by healthy ecosystems that support life and human economies at no monetary cost to humans

Answer 4

Ecosystem Services

Question 5

Supply is continuous or expected to
last for a very long time―at least 6
billion years in the case of our sun

Answer 5

Inexhaustible resources

Question 6

Can be replenished by natural processes within hours to centuries, as long as we do not use it up faster than natural processes can renew it

Answer 6

Renewable resources

Question 7

Renewable resources examples

Answer 7

e.g., air, trees, topsoil, freshwater

Question 8

Inexhaustible resources examples

Answer 8

e.g., solar, wind, geothermal energy

Question 9

Those necessary for all other ecosystem services, and their impacts on people are either indirect or occur over a very long time period.

Answer 9

Supporting services

Question 10

The products obtained from ecosystems

Answer 10

Provisioning services

Question 11

Provisioning services examples

Answer 11

food and fiber, fuel, freshwater, genetic
resources, biochemicals, natural
medicine, and pharmaceuticals

Question 12

Supporting services examples

Answer 12

primary production, atmospheric oxygen
production, nutrient and water
cycling, and pollination

Question 13

Exist in a fixed quantity, or stock, in the earth’s crust

Answer 13

Nonrenewable (depletable or
exhaustible) resources

Question 14

Nonrenewable (depletable or exhaustible) resources examples

Answer 14

e.g., fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, coal)

Question 15

The benefits obtained from the regulation of ecosystem processes

Answer 15

Regulating services

Question 16

Regulating services examples

Answer 16

air quality
maintenance, climate regulation,
water regulation, erosion control,
water purification and waste
treatment, regulation of disease,
and storm protection

Question 17

The nonmaterial benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences

Answer 17

Cultural services

Question 18

The waste, depletion, or destruction of any of the earth’s natural capital.

Answer 18

Natural Capital Degradation

Question 19

Contamination of the environment by any chemical or other agent such as noise or heat to a
level that is harmful to the health, survival, or activities of humans or other organism

Answer 19

Pollution

Question 20

Single, identifiable sources

Answer 20

Point sources

Question 21

Dispersed and often difficult to identify

Answer 21

Nonpoint sources

Question 22

Involves cleaning up or diluting
pollutants after we have
produced them

Answer 22

Pollution cleanup

Question 23

Efforts focused on greatly
reducing or eliminating the
production of pollutants

Answer 23

Pollution prevention

Question 24

When the number of users is small, this
logic works. Eventually, however, the
cumulative effect of large numbers of
people trying to exploit a widely
available or shared resource can
degrade it and eventually exhaust or
ruin it.

Answer 24

The Tragedy of the Commons

Question 25

The harmful environmental impact

Answer 25

Ecological footprint.

Question 26

The average ecological footprint of an individual in a given country or area

Answer 26

Per capita ecological footprint

Question 27

Ecological footprint > Biological capacity to replenish resources

Answer 27

ECOLOGICAL DEFICIT

Question 28

Ecological footprint < Biological capacity to replenish resources

Answer 28

ECOLOGICAL RESERVE/CREDIT

Question 29

I in the IPAT Model

Answer 29

Impact (I)

Question 30

P in the IPAT Model

Answer 30

Population (P)

Question 31

A in the IPAT Model

Answer 31

Affluence (A)

Question 32

T in the IPAT Model

Answer 32

Technology (T)

Question 33

IPAT Model

Answer 33

Impact (I) = Population (P) × Affluence (A) × Technology (T)

Question 34

The lifestyles of the world’s expanding population of consumers are built on growing affluence as more people achieve higher incomes.

Answer 34

Unsustainable Resource Use

Question 35

A condition in which people are unable to fulfill their basic needs for adequate food, water, shelter, health care, and education

Answer 35

Poverty

Question 36

Companies using resources to provide goods for consumers generally are not required to pay for most of the harmful environmental and health costs of supplying such goods.

Answer 36

Avoidance of Full-cost Pricing

Question 37

Today, more than half of the world’s people (and three out of four people in the more developed countries) live in urban areas, and this shift from rural to urban living is continuing at a rapid pace.

Answer 37

Increasing Isolation from Nature

Question 38

What is ultimately good for a person: basic needs are met, individuals have a sense of purpose, they feel able to achieve important personal goals, and participate in society.

Answer 38

Wellbeing

Question 39

Enough basic necessities and enough income and wealth

Answer 39

Enough material resources

Question 40

Length and quality of a person’s life

Answer 40

Health

Question 41

Liberty of action and autonomy

Answer 41

Freedom

Question 42

Secure access to resources, safety, and predictable and controllable environment

Answer 42

Security

Question 43

Social cohesion, mutual respect, good gender and family relations and the ability to help other

Answer 43

Good social relations

Question 44

Your set of assumptions and values reflecting how you think the world works and what you think your role in the world should be

Answer 44

Environmental Worldview

Question 45

The natural world is primarily a support system for human life

Answer 45

Human-centered

Question 46

All species have value as participating members of the biosphere, regardless of their potential or actual use to humans

Answer 46

Life-centered

Question 47

Humans are part of, and dependent on, nature and that the earth’s life-support system exists for all species, not just for us

Answer 47

Earth-centered

Question 48

The capacity of the earth’s natural systems and human cultural systems to survive, flourish and adapt to changing environmental conditions into the very long-term future

Answer 48

Sustainability

Question 49

3 things to consider to achieve Sustainability

Answer 49

People & Place Economy Environment

Question 50

Scientific Principles

Answer 50

Dependence on solar energy Biodiversity Chemical cycling (or nutrient cycling)

Question 51

Solar energy warms the planet and provides energy that plants use to produce nutrients necessary for their own life processes and for most animals, including humans.

Answer 51

Dependence on solar energy

Question 52

This refers to the variety of genes, organisms, species, and ecosystems. The interactions among species provide vital ecosystem services and keep any population from growing too large. It also provides countless ways for life to adapt to changing environmental conditions.

Answer 52

Biodiversity (short for biological diversity)

Question 53

This is the circulation of chemicals necessary for life from the environment (mostly from soil and water) through organisms and back to the environment.

Answer 53

Chemical cycling (or nutrient cycling)

Question 54

The inclusion of the harmful environmental and health costs of producing and using goods and services in their market prices.

Answer 54

ECONOMICS Full-cost pricing

Question 55

Learning to work together in dealing with environmental problems by recognizing our interdependent connections

Answer 55

POLITICAL SCIENCE Win-win solutions

Question 56

Leaving the planet’s life-support systems in at least as good a condition as that which we now enjoy, if not better, for future generations

Answer 56

ETHICS A responsibility to future generations

Question 57

What keep us and other species alive and support our economies

Answer 57

Natural capital

Question 58

Many human activities can degrade natural capital by using normally renewable resources faster than nature can restore them and by overloading the earth’s normally renewable air and water systems with pollution and wastes

Answer 58

Natural capital degradation

Question 59

Scientific, economic, and political solutions to these problems

Answer 59

Solutions

Question 60

Compromises when dealing with conflicts

Answer 60

Trade-offs

Question 61

The daily actions of each and every individual are important

Answer 61

Individuals matter