Unit 1- Environment and Environmental Sciences Flashcards
Definition of environment for this course
Provides us with the ecological goods and services
Example of goods/services
ex: Forests
Goods: Lumber to build a house
Services: Regenerative capacity (oxygen)
We live in the environment and ____ separated from it
Are not
Ecology
A discipline of biology that studies the interrelationship between organisms and their environment
Resources can be…
- Perpetual
- Renewable
- Non-renewable
Perpetual resources
Unlimited
Always available
Can’t be depleted
Can’t be destroyed
Humans have no impact
ex: Solar energy, wind energy
Renewable resources
Should be available in the future
Should regenerate
High human demand (not enough time to regenerate)
ex: Forests, water
Non-renewable resources
Limited quantity
Regeneration takes millions of years
Human impact is profound
Will run out
ex: Oil, coal, natural gas
What are the two themes that explain humanities negative impacts on the environment?
Theme 1
Over-population
- People Over-population
-Too many people living in a given geographical area
-In developing countries
-Poverty - Consumption overpopulation: Each individual in a population consumes too large a share of resources
-Highly developed countries
What are the two themes that explain humanities negative impacts on the environment?
Theme 2
Over-consumption of Natural Resources
-Related to highly developed countries
-Consumption of luxury items
-20% of the world’s population living in highly developed countries consumes more than 50% of the world’s resources to meet luxury demands
Level of consumption of humans is determined by
Use of material and energy
Is economic growth evenly or unevenly distributed across the world?
Unevenly
In developing countries, the driver for overpopulation is?
Who is the driver for overconsumption?
Poverty
Developed nations
What is tied to the effects of population pressures on natural resources?
Poverty
What are the two challenges/key themes that humanity contributed to impact the environment?
- Overpopulation-driven by poverty
- Overconsumption-driven by affluence
What does ecological footprint measure?
How much land and water area a human population needs to produce the resources it consumes and to absorb the wastes
How do we use the ecological footprint to evaluate impacts on the environment?
Supply vs demand
By comparing the supply of nature (biocapacity) to the demands for nature (ecological footprint)
What can we determine by using ecological footprints?
- Determine if we’re exceeding the ability of the environment to sustain itself
- Determine if we’re threatening our future generations
- Compare supply with demand
What are the components of the ecological footprint?
- Carbon
- Cropland
- Forest
- Built-up Land (human infrastructure)
- Fishing grounds
- Grazing land (raising livestock)
Too much demand =
Decreased regenerative capacity (not enough time for the earth to regenerate)
Ecological overshoot
Our demand exceeds supply
Humanity is using ____ more resources than are avaibale anually
60%
We need 1.6 planets to meet our demands
Sustainable Development
Meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Environmental sustainability is based on?
- The effects of our actions on the environment
- Earth’s limited resources
- The impact of consumption
- A shared responsibility
What are the Principles of Sustainable Development? (3 pillars)
- Environment
-Environmentally friendly decisions don’t harm the environment or deplete natural resources - Economy
-Economically viable decisions consider all costs, including long-term environmental and societal costs - Social
-Socially equitable decisions reflect the needs of society to ensure costs and benefits are shared equally
What are the goals of the United Nations sustainable Development Agenda (2015)?
To end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all by meeting 17 goals
Environmental sustainability demands that..
Society designs activities to meet human needs while preserving the life support systems of the planet
What is The Scientific Method?
- Observation
- Hypothesis
- Experiment
- Results
- Publish/reproduce results
Why do we use scientific study to examine environmental issues?
To conduct experiments
To study how the environment behaves
Theories/laws about how our natural world works comes from scientific research
Scientific research can influence political decisions
What is Traditional and Local knowledge?
Traditional Knowledge:
-knowledge is linked to tradition and transmitted from generation to generation
Local Knowlede:
-knowledge is obtained through first hand experience by a specific group of people in a shorter period of time
What is the main difference between scientific and traditional knowledge?
What is the benefit of using both?
SK- collecting data for short period of time over a large area
TK- collecting data over a long time, in small areas
Benefit: A more complete information on time and space
