Eps 202 Midterm

New environmental paradigm

The view that humans represent only one among many species on Earth, that human activities are determined by the environment as well as by social and cultural factors, and that humans are strongly dependent upon the environment and its resources

Rachel Carson

Rachel Louise Carson (May 27, 1907 - April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist and conservationist whose book Silent Spring and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement.

Sustainable Yield

The sustainable yield of natural capital is the ecological yield that can be extracted without reducing the base of capital itself, i.e. the surplus required to maintain ecosystem services at the same or increasing level over time.

Dominant social paradigm (human exemptionalism paradigm)

The view that humans are superior to other all other species, the Earth provides unlimited resources for humans, and that progress is an inherent part of human history

Subsistence Farming

self-sufficiency farming in which the farmers focus on growing enough food to feed themselves and their families. The output is mostly for local requirements with little or no surplus for trade.

Four findings on ecosystem services based on MEA

1. substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life on Earth 2. changes to ecosystems will substantially diminish the benefits that future generations obtain from ecosystems. 3. The degradation of ecosystem services could grow significantly worse during the first half of this century and is a barrier to achieving the Millennium Development Goals 4. Significant changes need to be made

Land Ethic

A land ethic is a philosophy or theoretical framework about how, ethically, humans should regard the land. The term was coined by Aldo Leopold

Age structure

A population pyramid, also called an age pyramid or age picture is a graphical illustration that shows the distribution of various age groups in a population

Aldo Leopold

Considered by many to be the father of wildlife ecology and the United States' wilderness system, Aldo Leopold was a conservationist, forester, philosopher, educator, writer, and outdoor enthusiast. Among his best know ideas is the "land ethic," which calls for an ethical, caring relationship between people and nature.

Hetch Hetchy Valley Debate

Hetch Hetchy is the name of a valley, a reservoir and a water system in California in the United States. The glacial Hetch Hetchy Valley lies in the northwestern part of Yosemite National Park and is drained by the Tuolumne River.

Environmental risk

Image result for Environmental risk Environmental Risk can be defined as the "actual or potential threat of adverse effects on living organisms and the environment by effluents, emissions, wastes, resource depletion, etc., arising out of an organization's activities

Western Expansion

In 1803 the Louisiana Purchase took place, doubling the size of the country. By 1840 almost 7 million Americans had migrated westward in hopes of securing land and being prosperous.

Structural Adjustment (Shock Therapy)

In economics, shock therapy refers to the sudden release of price and currency controls

Trap of Underdevelopment

It is difficult to escape poverty in countries where there is: High population growth. Low education levels.

Monkey Wrenching

Monkeywrenching is a step beyond civil disobedience. It is nonviolent, aimed only at inanimate objects. It is one of the last steps in defense of the wild, a deliberate action taken by an Earth defender when almost all other measures have failed.

Natural Morality

Natural morality describes a form of morality that is based on how humans evolved, rather than a morality acquired from societal norms or religious teachings.

Impacts of agriculture on environment

Negative environmental impacts from unsustainable farming practices include: Land conversion & habitat loss. Wasteful water consumption. Soil erosion and degradation.

Ecosystem services (provisioning, cultural, regulating, and support services)

Provisioning Services are ecosystem services that describe the material or energy outputs from ecosystems. They include food, water and other resources.

Risk Society

Risk society is the manner in which modern society organizes in response to risk

Silent Spring

Silent Spring is an environmental science book by Rachel Carson. The book was published on 27 September 1962 and it documented the detrimental effects on the environment of the indiscriminate use of pesticides.

Technocentrism

Technocentrism is a value system that is centered on technology and its ability to control and protect the environment

Reasons for dramatic growth in global population

The main cause of rapid population growth is when there are more births than there are deaths, which is referred to as a natural increase. Other causes of rapid population growth include an increase in food production and distribution, improvement in public health and the elimination of many diseases.

Prehistoric Overkill Hypothesis

The overkill hypothesis argues that humans were responsible for the Late Pleistocene extinction of megafauna in northern Eurasia and North and South America

cradle to cradle

a holistic economic, industrial and social framework that seeks to create systems that are not only efficient but also essentially waste free

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA)

a major assessment of the human impact on the environment, called for by the United Nations

wilderness

a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by civilized human activity

Worldview

a particular philosophy of life or conception of the world.

Ecocentrism

a point of view that recognizes the ecosphere, rather than the biosphere, as central in importance

Suburbanization

a population shift from central urban areas into suburbs, resulting in formation of (sub)urban sprawl

Debt Crisis

a proliferation of massive public debt relative to tax revenues

Environmental Attitudes

a psychological tendency expressed by evaluating the natural environment with some degree of favour or disfavour.

earth first

a radical environmental advocacy group that emerged in the Southwestern United States

Transcendentalism

a reaction to rationalism that claimed divinity pervades all nature and humanity.

Biological cycle vs technological cycle

a series of changes in form that an organism undergoes, returning to the starting state vs the commercial gain of a product through the expense of research and development phase, and the financial return during its "vital life"

Fair trade movement

a social movement whose stated goal is to help producers in developing countries achieve better trading conditions and to promote sustainable farming. Members of the movement advocate the payment of higher prices to exporters, as well as improved social and environmental standards.

Fast food

a type of mass-produced food that is prepared and served very quickly. The food is typically less nutritionally valuable compared to other foods

valuation of ecosystem services

a widely used tool in determining the impact of human activities on an environmental system, by assigning an economic value to an ecosystem or its ecosystem services.

George Perkins Marsh

an American diplomat and philologist, is considered by some to be America's first environmentalist and the precursor to the sustainability concept, although "conservationist" would be more accurate

Dave Forman

an American environmentalist and co-founder of the radical environmental movement Earth First!

Biosphere 2

an Earth systems science research facility located in Oracle, Arizona

Slow food

an alternative to fast food, it strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisine and encourages farming of plants, seeds, and livestock characteristic of the local ecosystem

tragedy of commons

an economic theory of a situation within a shared-resource system where individual users acting independently according to their own self-interest behave contrary to the common good of all users by depleting or spoiling that resource through their collective action.

John Muir

an influential Scottish-American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, glaciologist and early advocate for the preservation of wilderness in the United States

World Bank

an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programs

International Monetary Fund

an international organization working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world

Earth Liberation front

autonomous individuals or covert cells who use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop the exploitation and destruction of the environment".

Corporative dominance in food and agriculture (from Food, Inc. movie)

only a few companies produce almost all the food. illusion of choice

Henry David Thoreau

central figure of transcendentalism

Wilderness Act of 1964

created the National Wilderness Preservation System and recognized wilderness as "an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain."

Direct and indirect drivers for ecosystem services

direct drivers include climate change, nutrient pollution, land conversion leading to habitat change, overexploitation, and invasive species and diseases.

Comparison of Brazil, China and Iran in reducing fertility rate

family planning and china had one child policy

Gifford Pinchot

first Chief of the United States Forest Service known for reforming the management and development of forests in the United States and for advocating the conservation of the nation's reserves by planned use and renewal

Frankenfoods

genetically modified food.

Multiple use

his law authorizes and directs the Secretary of Agriculture to develop and administer the renewable resources of timber

Blitzkrieg

human hunters armed with Clovis spear points overhunted naïve American megafauna

Organic farming

integrated farming system that strives for sustainability, the enhancement of soil fertility and biological diversity whilst, with rare exceptions, prohibiting synthetic pesticides, antibiotics, synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified organisms, and growth hormones.

Genetically modified foods

organisms (i.e. plants, animals or microorganisms) in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination.

biblical references on wilderness

peaceful, spiritual place

Thomas Malthus's Theory on Population

predicted that short-term gains in living standards would inevitably be undermined as human population growth outstripped food production, and thereby drive living standards back toward subsistence

Principles of conservation

preservation, protection, or restoration of the natural environment, natural ecosystems, vegetation, and wildlife.

Status of Farms in the U.S.

small farms are being consolidated and run out of business by corporations

Scientific Method

systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification of hypotheses.

Biotechnology

the exploitation of biological processes for industrial and other purposes, especially the genetic manipulation of microorganisms for the production of antibiotics, hormones, etc.

Frontier

the extreme limit of settled land beyond which lies wilderness, especially referring to the western US before Pacific settlement.

Carrying capacity

the number of people, other living organisms, or crops that a region can support without environmental degradation.

Organic Food Products

the product of a farming system which avoids the use of man-made fertilisers, pesticides; growth regulators and livestock feed additives. Irradiation and the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or products produced from or by GMOs are generally prohibited by organic legislation.

Science of Ecology

the scientific analysis and study of interactions among organisms and their environment. It is an interdisciplinary field that includes biology, geography, and Earth science.

preservation

the strict setting aside of natural resources to prevent the use or contact by humans or by human intervention. In terms of policy making this often means setting aside areas as nature reserves

Demographic Transition

the transition from high birth and death rates to lower birth and death rates as a country or region develops from a pre-industrial to an industrialized economic system.

China's approach toward development

they do business vs just throwing money at them

two fundamental design principles

use solar income and waste = food

Post-Materialism

value orientation that emphasizes self-expression and quality of life over economic and physical security