1. In 200 – 250 words, describe a hotspot somewhere in the world.
   1. The Hotspot that I will be concentrating on for my learning activity is Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands. Even though Madagascar is relatively close to Africa, due to its isolation it has evolved its own unique flora and fauna. This results in the island having a lot of endemic species which means that animals found here only live here and nowhere else in the world. For example, 89% of the plants and 92% of the mammals found there only live in Madagascar. When humans first arrived on the islands, they hunted a lot of the animals for food which resulted in killing a lot of species there. A group of people called the Malagasy came from Africa and Asia and used harsh farming methods such as slash-and-burn agriculture and cattle grazing. These types of farming are not good for the land here because it is very infertile and hurts the fragile ecosystems. There is also a lot of deforestation occurring here and it is estimated that 80% of the natural vegetation has been lost. Forests are being destroyed in order to make way for coconut plantations and cinnamon exploitation. Another threat to the biodiversity on these islands is the growing population. With more people living here there is more hunting for food, cutting down more trees for wood to build houses, and small mining throughout these islands. If something doesn’t happen to stop humans threatening this ecosystem we will lose a lot of species only found in this part of the world.
2. Create a system diagram of how the hotspot has gotten to the state it is in today and what is being done to help. Explain the efforts to stop the threats on these islands in 150 – 175 words.
   1. My diagram starts out with what I explained above and how Madagascar and the Indian Ocean islands have become a hotspot. Currently, the government in Madagascar is trying to work on their five year program of conserving the land and sustainability. 2.7% of the land in Madagascar is officially protected such as national parks and reserves to protect certain species and ecosystems. The government here is getting money for these programs and efforts to help different species out through the international community and they are receiving a lot of funding so far. Some of this money has also created different programs that are breeding certain species in order to get their population back up. For example, one group is breeding lemurs, tortoises, a threatened bird species and many more. As you can see, Madagascar is trying very hard to save a lot of their endemic species while also protecting and conserving the land and hopefully their efforts pay off in the future.

1. My diagram illustrates how the U.S. gains support for the Copenhagen Accord from other countries because they find it in their best interest to have a lot of countries supporting this. In my diagram I first start by simply stating how pollution and the burning of fossil fuels leads to climate change on earth. There are shifts in temperature and water and more extreme weather events due to this change. In 2009, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) created the Copenhagen Accord which asked countries to try and commit to specific actions in order to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. wanted to gain support for this so they went to their allies and other countries who weren’t against it. They promised countries like Bolivia and the Maldives money if they chose to support the accord even though Bolivia didn’t actually support it. Those countries who didn’t actually support the accord only chose to because they were under financial pressure and needed the money the U.S. promised to give them. It is also revealed through the leaks that they threatened Ethiopia by saying if they don’t support the accord all communication would end between the two countries. Ethiopia then chooses to give the U.S. their support. The cables sent out by the U.S. were leaked and the world saw how the U.S. was gaining political support through threats and giving countries money. 116 countries associated themselves with the accord and 26 more say they have an intent to so 140 of 193 countries support it.
2. Even though this put the United States in a bad light because the way we gained support was wrong, I think that it was good that this was publicized. I personally do not think that the U.S. should have gained their support this way. They used power and money to get people on their side and should have realized that this would most likely get out into the public somehow. It seems like the U.S. chose the easy way out by just promising money to countries or threatening them.  They should have been convincing other countries why they should care about the climate and how their support can help better the world. It might have been more beneficial for the U.S. to discuss with countries who were on the fence in order to see where they stand and try to convince them in a better way. However, we learned in module 9 that all countries care about climate change in different ways due to where they are located. Some countries really use fossil fuels in their production methods so they wouldn’t want to reduce their consumption of fossil fuels in order to emit less greenhouse gases. It is also hard to get everyone to agree on a solution to a problem because they could feel like theirs is better than the one proposed. It is very difficult for 194 nations to come together and figure out a solution but I feel as though the U.S. should have went about their way of gaining support differently.

1. I am from the Philadelphia suburbs and throughout my life we haven’t really experienced any natural hazards. According to the Nathan World Map of Natural Hazards, my area is prone to heavy rain which can be due to tropical cyclones that form along the east coast. We can also experience some moderate hail during the winter months typically. Other than that, my area does not experience many natural hazards. When I was looking all of the different maps, it was kind of hard to see where my exact town is but I was in the general vicinity when looking at them. It would have been nice to see a map of just the United States for this task but I have lived in the same place for my whole so I pretty much know what type of natural hazards I have experienced.
2. On March 5^th at approximately 4:37 pm (UTC) in Tuscany Italy there was a meningococcal meningitis C outbreak that killed 4 people. This disease is spread from person to person through bacteria when they come in close contact with each other. Luckily not many people died from this outbreak because it can be easily treated if caught at the right time. This type of outbreak could happen in my area because meningitis is just spread through personal contact with people who have the bacteria. However, there are a lot of good hospitals in my area that can treat people in an appropriate manner. I have not heard of meningitis outbreaks in my town so it does not seem like my area is vulnerable to this disease but something like this could happen.
3. The area of southeast Pennsylvania can experience the following hazards according to Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency  are transportation accidents, floods, fires, winter storms, tropical storms (tornadoes and windstorms), hazardous material accidents, geological incidents (earthquakes, landslides, and subsidence), nuclear facility accidents, dam failures, terrorism, and riots. Since I have lived in the same area for my whole life, I know which of the ones above are the most common. These would be transportation accidents, winter storms, and sometimes tropical storms. My area was hit pretty badly during hurricane Sandy and we’ve had a few bad snow storms like one who dumped about 30 inches in the area in January of 1996. On the other hand, transportation accidents are the most common because my area is becoming very urbanized and that means more people are on the road with cars. Luckily my area does not experience significantly dangerous hazards but there have been a few bad storms here and there.
4. Considering winter and tropical storms are out of people’s hands, we can only help better prepare for them. For example, if we improve our technology we can get a more accurate timeline of the storm and possibly know its magnitude. There have been plenty of storms in the past that the weather stations have made out to seem really bad but then they were wrong when it actually came through. Knowing what to expect before a storm comes can help people prepare themselves whether it means stocking up on food or reinforcing their house. The other main natural hazard in my area is transportation accidents and we could reduce the vulnerability of them by reducing the speed limit on some roads that are winding and we can also add more stop lights at intersections that do not have any. There are a couple intersections in my town that are dangerous when people try to make turns onto.

http://www.pema.pa.gov/planningandpreparedness/communityandstateplanning/Pages/Hazard-Vulnerability.aspx#.Vv3Nn5vD_IU

I am from the suburban area of Warrington, Pennsylvania. Warrington is located in Bucks County and is 25 miles north of Philadelphia. It is considered an automobile suburb because mostly everyone uses cars to get around and there aren’t many sidewalks aside from ones in neighborhoods. There are about 24,000 people living in 13.8 square miles of land. There are a couple farms throughout my town but in the past few years a lot of big shopping centers have been popping up making my town more urban than it has ever been. I’ve lived here for my whole life except for when I am away at school and I couldn’t imagine growing up anywhere else. It is so close to Philly that I can take the train and be there in 30 minutes or I can drive to New York City or Washington D.C. and be there in about 2 hours. I really like the location of my town because it is so close to so many other fun cities.

The first city I am going to talk about is Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts. This town is pedestrian-oriented with many sidewalks for people to get from different shops, go to work, or just take leisure strolls. My town is nothing like this one because we only have sidewalks in neighborhoods and for the most part people only use them leisurely. Our shopping centers do have a lot of shops and sidewalks but some of the shops for one center are across a busy road and spread out even more. I think that it would be beneficial for my town to consider placing more sidewalks all throughout because right now everyone uses their cars to get to places. By adding more sidewalks this puts less pollution in the air than cars and promotes a healthy lifestyle.

The second town I chose is Detroit, Michigan. Urban farming is very important here because this area is known as a food desert and this type of sustainability not only helps people in need but helps the environment as well. I really liked the urban gardens and think that with all the new construction going on in my town that some of these buildings should consider making them more environment friendly. My town has a couple farms that help produce some locally grown food but what I noticed is that there are a few abandon buildings that have been sitting there for almost 15 years doing nothing. It would be in my town’s best interest to clean up these hazardous areas and make this land something that gives back to the community like maybe a community garden.

1. Being an average college student, I am always rushing from class, to work, to meetings, and just hanging with friends that I don’t have much time to prepare food in a healthy manner. Even though the dorm I live in has a full kitchen on the ground floor, I don’t have time to buy food to prepare there because I’m not sure if I’ll use those ingredients again or just use them in general. It’s a lot easier for me to go get things premade or made in front of me because it’s so convenient. I actually find myself eating a lot better and healthier when I go home for break because I have so much more time on my hands. What’s frustrating is that I like to make my own food when I’m at home but with my current living situation and time constraints it’s hard for me to manage a healthy eating style. It seems today that a lot of college students just don’t have the time to prepare healthy food and make smart decisions about what to put in their mouths.
2. This norm connects to the societal issue of nutrition and industrialized agriculture. When people choose quick and easy eating options they usually choose unhealthy and processed foods. Also, when there are so many convenient food options in front of us people are more likely to order more food than they actually need and in turn wasting a lot of food. This poor diet results in obesity which is a growing problem all over the world and especially in America. The food pyramid attempts to inform people what we should be eating every day and how much of each portion is considered healthy. This social norm also relates to the concept of industrialized agriculture because the crops we produce are high in calories, sugar and fats. When we mainly eat this type of food it leads to poor diet and nutrition across our country. It’s important for people to monitor what they’re eating and know where it comes from in order to make healthy decisions.

1. The first case study is from the IRIN News from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. This study is about a drought in Somalia and the effects it has on food, money, and migration of people. The drought is forcing livestock to move outward to find food and water to live but there are too many animals eating off of the land. This is resulting in less food for the animals and when they die there is less livestock for people to eat in return. Livestock is one of the few goods in Somalia that is sold for shillings and not dollars. The value of the shilling has decreased in terms of the US dollar so livestock is being sold for way less than it should be resulting in little profit for selling their livestock. Due to food shortages people are being forced to move into towns to try and find food there. This development relates to the idea of environmental possibilism because the environment is affecting the way these people live and the people are changing the environment (exhausting the land) due to these changes.  http://www.irinnews.org/node/255998
2. The second case study I looked at is from the news source Reuters and it is about El Nino creating a drought in the Asian Pacific. It is destroying crops as well as killing their livestock which is very similar to what is going on in my first case study. A concept throughout this study that relates to class is that even though this is in a poor part of the world, humanitarian agencies are stepping in the aid the people. For example, UNICEF is working to help child affected by this especially with their nutrition, health, water, and sanitation. Since there are less crops for people to harvest and eat, another effect of the drought is that less children are going to school because they aren’t being properly fed and able to go to school. Children are greatly impacted by this drought because they are severely malnourished and need immediate attention. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-asiapac-elnino-drought-idUSKCN0V41KE
3. I am from Bucks County, PA which is located in southeastern PA near Philadelphia. The two case studies both deal with a drought somewhere in the world. My hometown and county are currently not in a drought and it doesn’t seem likely that they will be in the near future. I live across the street from a farm that is always thriving and it has never had an issue about having enough crops to harvest and sell. They also have some farm animals but not located to where I can see them and as far as I know they aren’t dying due to lack of food or water. My area is very different compared to Somalia and the Asian Pacific not only because we aren’t in a drought now but also because my town doesn’t rely on selling livestock for a living. However, if something like this were to happen in my hometown I think that it is important to get humanitarian agencies involved in order to resolve the problem as quickly and efficiently as possible.

1a: I live in Warrington, Pennsylvania and my water supply at home is from a well. The average annual rainfall is 44 inches and annual snow is 27 inches. This water from the rain and snow then goes into our well which is about 100 feet underground. Water goes from the well to a holding pressure tank in my basement then to the water softener where it removes calcium and magnesium hence making the water soft.  The water travels throughout my house to multiple locations such as toilets, tubs, sinks, the washer, fridge, outside spigots and even our heater when we have to heat the house. When I use the water out of the faucets it is already purified and ready to use. Water then goes down the drain to the sewer then finally to the municipal building. This is always an ongoing process and we have never had issues about whether or not there is enough water in our well.

1b:

1c: After seeing how much water I use, living on two gallons a day would be very challenging. I would have to shower every few days instead of every day because on the days that I would shower, I would have less water for other activities like drinking and cooking. My main water usage would be for drinking but I would have to cut down on what I typically drink now. Food is also essential for life so I would need to allocate a certain portion of water to be used in cooking every day. I could also change up what I would cook and see what foods require more water than others and this would allow me to use water for different activities. The day I did my log was my laundry day so that’s part of the reason my total is so high. I realize now that I would have two options with my laundry. The first one would be to do a very small amount of laundry every day but I would only be able to wash maybe one piece of clothing max. Option two would be to do all of my laundry on one day but that would most likely be my only water usage activity that day. It’s hard to see where I should use my water because I have so little available to me. I wouldn’t want to use more than I have because I would be taking water from other people around me which isn’t fair.

1.Is it more important to be a good person or to perform good acts (virtue v. action ethics)?

I think that it is more important to perform good acts and the saying “actions speak louder than words” definitely applies here. For example, there is a difference between people who say they want to help with the drought in California compared to those people who actually do something about this problem. It’s important for an issue to be resolved through actions because it then shows you are a good person who wants to make a difference for the good of society. Just by saying that you think people should conserve water in different ways doesn’t help fix the problem even though it makes you a good person for expressing your beliefs. Actions show people you want to be a good person and have good ethics because people can clearly see you making a difference.

2.Do the ends justify the means (ends v. means ethics)?

I do believe the ends justify the means because for the most part, people’s resolution at the end is typically positive so causing some issues along the way to solve a problem isn’t a big deal. Positive goals do justify means at the end but it’s completely different for the few things that have a negative outcome because the means to get to it aren’t worth it in my opinion. For example, going to war is usually never a good mean to solve a problem in the end. It would make more sense to think of different ways to fix the problem rather than war because even if the outcome in the end solves your problem you still hurt a ton of people, possibly an economy somewhere, and many other things. I think it’s important for people to weigh the pros and cons of situations to see if it’s worth it in the end.

4.Do ecosystems matter for their own sake, or do they only matter to the extent that they impact humans (ecocentric v. anthropocentric ethics)?

I think that we know whatever effect we have on the environment, the environment affects us in a different way. Humans know that we can’t put too much strain on ecosystems so when we do put stress on the environment we will do something after to improve it again. For example, people cut down trees all the time to use for all different kinds of things but there are also a lot of companies that have programs saying for every product you buy of theirs that has used trees in the process, they will plant a new one in its place. This type of thinking allows us to do what’s best for society and use the environment at whatever expense we need but we also make changes to fix what we did or improve the environment in some other way.

I first started out with the problem of wood burning stoves and what comes along with them such as ruining forests and putting children to work when they should be worrying about their education. The solution is in the center which is the creation of the biogas systems. The first good thing that they produce is methane gas which then flows to the house for cleaner and safer cooking. This cooking results in less smoke and better health conditions for the people using it. The second good thing produced by the biogas is slurry. This slurry is turned into organic compost which the women then sell this fertilizer to farmers for money. As a result of selling the compost, the women’s income doubles meaning a better quality of life for them and their family. This part would be considered a positive feedback loop because as women produce more fertilizer there is more to be sold and they can make more money for themselves and their family. My diagram is similar to Gerry Marten’s because we have the ecosystem and social system separated on both sides to show which concepts go where. However, I have arrows going between the concepts in each system while he has general arrows above and below his diagram illustrating the general connections. I think that mine shows the direct connections because it demonstrates how both systems are affecting each other instead of two simple lines saying how the environment affects humans and vice versa.

Hi everyone, my name is Molly McLaughlin and I am a sophomore in the College of Education. I currently live at University Park on campus but grew up in Bucks County, PA aka the typical “outside of Philly” town. I’m majoring in Early Childhood Education which is preschool to 4th grade and possibly a minor in English as a Second Language (ESL) where I would help non-English speakers learn English. For my major I need three sciences and this one will fulfill my last required class plus I’ve been wanting to take an online course. I also took a meteorology class last semester which I found very interesting and thought this one would have some similarities to it. Hopefully this one will be just as interesting and make me be more aware of our environment.

I typically do not like anything science related therefore what interests me the most is the social perspective of this class and what I find important is human’s impact on our environment. Only recently have we realized how much harm we are doing to the world by putting gases and other harmful substances into the environment. However, when we do try to help the environment there can be some consequences for that too. Sometimes when we try to alter the environment to fix what we did, it causes more damage to the earth instead of us letting it naturally fix itself. If we can just lessen the amount of pollution we put in the air instead of adding things to the earth in order to fix it, I think that the environment can naturally adapt to these changes.