1. Name a country you’ve visited outside the US, or one that you really want to visit. First paragraph, explain where it is, then in 200-350 words describe the differences in ethical views there and here.

Second paragraph, explain the difference in the urban planning and development. Touch on topics such as, the public transportation system, and business development.

2. Part 2—Design a systems diagram indicating how why there are differences between the two nations.

1. I’d like to speak on my birth country, Bangladesh. Although I left Bangladesh at a very young age, I did visit when I was a little older to remember how it is. From the moment you step off of the plane, you can tell the difference immediately. It is complete opposite of what we are used to here in the states. Bangladesh is located in South Asia to the north western region of India. The lifestyle there is completely different as the people there still hold on to their ancient traditions to the best as they can. From the moment I stepped out of the airport, I felt like a complete outsider, as I was not used to the way of living there. If we think we see a lot of homeless people downtown, you have no idea how many there are back there. It truly broke my heart to see so many disabled children wondering the streets begging for money. Ethically speaking, you most probably wouldn’t see that here in America. Something would be done to shelter these people so they didn’t have to suffer in the streets. Back there, people walk by and don’t even bat an eyelash. I’ve even witnessed a poor child being kicked by someone just because they were sleeping on the side of a road and the person walking didn’t see them so they tripped over the child. It was obviously the adults fault for not watching where he was walking, but the poor child still got beat and not one single person did anything to stop it. We all know that kind of behavior just wouldn’t be tolerated here. This experience of mine is by no means an attempt to slander the citizens of Bangladesh. There are many kind people that are fighting to help the poverty, but with so many homeless people, there’s little they can do. My main point I was making here is that our ethical views are just different.
2. The capital city of Dhaka can be compared to New York City as far as the hustle and bustle part of it is concerned. With businesses on just about every corner, it’s a very popular and extremely busy place. With so many people trying to get around, it is believed by many that walking or bicycling is a better mean of transportation. I myself have been stuck in traffic in a car for two hours for a 5 mile commute. It’s truly ridiculous. The roads aren’t just filled with cars and busses that we’re use to here. They have other means of public transportations as well for cheaper rates known as rikshaws and auto-rickshaws. A rickshaw is basically a big tricycle with a seat for 2 in the back, although it is very likelt you’ll find 3 or even 4 sometimes to a cart. The auto-rikshaw is basically the same thing, but can travel faster since it has a motor attached to it. Due to so many of these, and horrible traffic control, the roads are constantly congested.
3. 

My diagram is trying to illustrate the differences in lifestyle and ethical between Bangladesh and America. As you can see the first distinction I am attempting to make is the level of education. I personally believe that this stems to the greater problem in Bangladesh. The lack of education leads to more poverty, also leads to the way of thinking. I put the two countries name side by side and have arrows coming out from them indicating the differences.

After reading through the article, I tried my best to explain my understanding of the article into a systems diagram. Since the article itself is on the WikiLeaks, I kept that part right in the center. I feel it draws more attention to the reader and shows that it is the focal point of the diagram by sitting in the middle. From there, I have an arrow pointing towards US motives, which later emphasizes on their negotiation chips they used with other nations. The reason I have multiple arrows coming out from “US’s Motives”, is to explain the relationship between everything. I feel US’s motives had a strategical negotiation tactic which also put pressure on other nations to be associated with the Copenhagen Accord. So in order to illustrate that, I have an arrow going to each one of those box items. The section where it states that some nations were being pressured is basically emphasizing on the fact that economic and monetary incentives were used to get them on board. This eventually led to 116 countries being associated with the Copenhagen Accord, and 26 more still with the intent on being on board. The arrow to the far left that curves around the diagram itself is illustrating that the accord regulates greenhouse gas emissions which ultimately leads to climate change.

I personally believe that climate change is a major issue for everyone in the world to worry about. Just speaking from personal experiences alone is enough to think about climate change. This winter we experienced days with over 70 degrees, and now in April, we’ve gotten snow and below freezing weather. That just isn’t normal. I personally don’t think the climate change diplomacy is being handled properly. After reading the article, it’s almost like the poorer are being exploited to join the wealthier nations in their views if they believe in them or not. The best approach to climate change issues should be a global one. Where everyone puts their minds together, and tries to identify the main source of issues and work together in fixing it. At the end of the day, climate change will affect the entire world, not just the poorer nations.

Having lived in Philadelphia for the greater portion of my life, I think I’ve experienced the natural hazards at all levels in this region. I’ve witnessed storms with high winds, blizzards, and tropical storms classified as hurricanes. I say “classified” because although we were hit by hurricane sandy, our neighboring states along the shoreline took in most of the damage. Some areas did lose power, and experienced heavy flooding, but Philadelphia, for the most part did not suffer anywhere near as much as people in New Jersey and New York. I don’t think Nathan’s map document is the best to symbolize the natural hazards in my city because it shows an entire region. Even though all of the northeastern states are fairly close together and experience similar weather conditions, when it comes to natural hazards, it can vary dramatically.

Volcanoes have always been something that fascinated me. So while looking through Emergency Disaster Information Service, I saw a volcano eruption in Peubla, Mexico. Fortunately enough, it shows that no one was harmed during this eruption. The site states that the level of damage is unknown, so I think it’s fair to assume that this area may not be heavily populated, or else it might actually be something that we would have heard already. This sort of disaster I don’t think is possible in my hometown. All my years of living, here I don’t think a volcano eruption has ever been a concern for anyone. There are no known active volcanos in this region, therefore being exposed to a volcanic eruption is very minimal. Considering that there been no reported injuries or harm done to anyone, it must be in a remote location. Had it been in a more populous area of Mexico, the results could very well have been fatal. Thinking of if the eruption had been here, in my hometown, it’s hard to imagine something with zero damage regardless of the size of the eruption. I’d assume there are several parts in Mexico that are very remote, but here in the northeast section of the States, it is very crowded. Even if people would have been evacuated, I can imagine a considerable monetary amount of damage done just based on the facts of how crowded it is here. The suburbs in this region are even busier than most other parts of the country. It is known that volcanic eruptions can cause earthquakes, which can ultimately cause cyclones. This region is surrounded by bodies of water, such as rivers, streams, creeks and only one state separates us from the Atlantic Ocean. Had this volcano been anywhere near our downtown center city, the damages could’ve been very extreme. Being right beside the Delaware River, and housing many tall sky scrapers, a disaster which includes a volcanic eruption, earthquake, and cyclone would be catastrophic. There’s been plenty of instances where buildings collapse randomly in Philly, and cause severe damages. I can only imagine what would happen if we were hit by a volcanic eruption or earthquake. This would be a clear result of higher damages from natural causes due to how we humans changed our environment.

There are numerous hazards that the state of Pennsylvania faces as a whole. The most costly for the past twenty years have been the result of transportation accidents resulting in over eighteen thousand deaths. I personally know that my local city and town have been working hard at preventing this by installing cameras at dangerous intersections and having more cops on the road. Speaking for just natural disasters alone, flooding seems to be the most problematic in this area. Whenever we have big rain storms and thunderstorms, I get an alert on my phone for a flash flood warning. Annoying, yes, but very helpful at the end. My parent’s house has been flooded couple of times already due to the way it was built. According to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, floods are second in the list right behind transportation accidents in hazards in all of PA.

Having discussed some of the ongoing hazards in this region, I do believe the department of transportation is doing a great job in attempting to reduce fatal accidents. There’s always constant construction going on our roads and highways. As far as the flooding issues, there can be more work done. One way of preventing this I believe is the all of the local water departments need to work on better drainage systems. I think we have a great one in place already, but there’s always room for improvement. On a personal level I think we all should promote recycling and properly disposing your trash. Walking down city streets, I can’t remember how many times I see trash forced into drain systems. I’m no expert but I’m sure this doesn’t help our flood issue.

Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. That nickname can actually be sort of deceiving to foreigners of this region as the city is home to some of the most dangerous neighborhoods in the country. Located on the east coast, it makes it very easy to commute to neighboring states such as New Jersey, Delaware, New York, and Maryland. Within Philly, the neighborhoods vary on so many different levels. From the skyscrapers downtown to the private homes on the outskirts, each neighborhood has their own culture and heritage. Philly is the largest city in Pennsylvania, and fifth most populous in the United Sates with approximately 1.5 million people residing in it. They saying of “Product of your environment” is very realistic in Philadelphia. Different areas have different culture. You can grow up downtown around the museums and grow up loving art. Whereas in my neighborhood, every kid growing up loved football and basketball. Other areas are more baseball, or hockey. This city has molded me to who I am today, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.

A lot of the big cities along the east coast have some similarities, especially Philadelphia and New York City. Having lived in both cities, I’ve gotten accustomed to both lifestyles and cultures. The sports culture is huge in both cities, which offers a huge rivalry between the two cities. In both cities you can find pedestrian neighborhoods, and automobile dependent suburbs. New York is definitely famous for the amazing skyline it offers, and although a bit smaller, Philly’s skyline is just that much to talk about as it continues to grow. One thing I’ve always said that Philly needs to adopt from NYC is the public transportation system. Not that we have a bad system, it’s just that NYC offers the best transportation system I’ve seen in any US city. Outside of the inner city of Philadelphia, it is almost necessary to have a car. New York’s subway system is amazing, and you can get anywhere within the 5 boroughs with a simple metro card. Philly does have a system in place, they’re just not as frequent as the transportation in NYC.

Another city that might be even closer to Philadelphia in similarities is Baltimore, MD. Unlike NYC, the Baltimore skyline doesn’t over shadow Philly’s as the buildings are closer in size. If anything the Philly skyline might be a little bigger. The local neighborhoods are also a little more similar, especially those in the inner city. In both cities you can find similar road homes, where majority of the population most likely live in. One big distinction between the two however, is that Philly is a lot more crowded. With Philly’s 1.5 million count, it nearly doubles that of Baltimore’s 620k. If there is anything that Philly can do more like Baltimore to be more sustainable, is that try to gain ideas from Baltimore’s harbor. Although we do have a seaport in Philly off of the Delaware River, it is nothing compared to that of Baltimore.

Not being born in the US definitely had its challenges, especially as a new comer to the country starting first grade. Luckily for me, I had the opportunity to learn enough English to get by without much difficulty. The transition was still very difficult especially for a young child in a foreign land, and we know how cruel little kids can be. I remember growing up, it was always taught to my sister and I that we don’t eat meat from outside the house as we don’t exactly know where the meat is coming from. Silly rule, but it was a traditional custom. This made lunch time very difficult as I was limited to what I can eat. As I got more comfortable with my classmates, I would see them eat Sloppy Joes every Wednesday. Boy did they look delicious. Under peer pressure and temptation I gave in. Now to this day, it is very common for my entire family to eat meat anywhere we go.

As my family and I started to consume more and more meat, we became you regular every day American meat eaters. It became a normal part of all meals. Even though I’ve seen people eat meat before coming to the states, it didn’t compare to how we consume meat here. I guess I never really gave it much thought to how much work goes into raising livestock. In figure 6.6 it shows that humans use plant crops and livestock for food. However, one big difference is that plant crops don’t need livestock, instead the livestock needs plant crops in order grow and eventually feed us. There are several issues with a livestock diet. More plant crop input is needed in order to raise the animals. Then we also have ethical issues as how the animals are being treated. Everyone is aware of how most livestock is kept and raised, yet we continue to consume it anyways.

1a) Philadelphia’s water system is something that goes back to the days Benjamin Franklin was around. Early on, it was a process to get the clean water needed for ever day living, however, they seemed to have figured it out. Philadelphia gets it’s water supply from the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers, each contributing one half of the city’s water supply. In Philly, there are three water plants that process untreated river water. The Queen Lane Plant and Belmont Plant both get their water source from the Schuylkill, and the Baxter Plant gets it’s water from the Delaware river. Once processed at one of these plants, we get the clean form into our taps at home. This treatment process consists of eight steps; natural settling, disinfection, coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, final treatment, and lastly distribution. There are two types of sewer systems in Philly that collect waste water, and storm water. The combined, and separate sewer systems, and where your water goes just depends on what part of the city you live. These sewer systems take the water to treatment plants. There are also 164 combined sewer outfalls in case of combined sewer overflow that dump the access water into various parts of local creeks in rivers.

1b)

1c) Being born in a third world country, Bangladesh, showed me that it is possible for people to get by on two gallons of water. I was fortunate not to know what that feeling was like as I can imagine how tough it is. In my attempt to live off of just two gallons, I made a list of priorities. First priority for myself is drinking water. More than anything else, I need to be able to drink water, we have to survive right? Second would be cooking, third would be for toilet purposes because we do need to keep a sanitary environment if we want to stay healthy. Everything else such as cleaning, bathing would have to come after that, not by choice, but by necessity. For baths and showers, I would wet a hand towel and use that to clean myself rather than actually dumping the water on me. In this scenario, every drop counts and I believe you can still keep yourself clean to a certain extent without actually dumping the water. I am blessed to be living where I am that I don’t need to live on two gallons a day, as I drink almost two gallons as it is. The previous experiment of just counting how much water I use to this, how much water I can use, was a huge difference. Made me wonder how many things we take for granted living in the US. I’m using over 160 gallons per day and don’t bat an eyelash, and struggled with two gallons to accommodate myself.

1. It is more important to be a good person. I hold this view because anyone can perform a good act but not have good intentions behind it. There are people in this world that publicize the good deeds they do to earn some level of respect, however, they might not have any wishes to be a good person. While on the other hand you might have someone who is truly the nicest soul on in the world but might not have the means to do everything they wish to help others. Now, I also know that this scenario is just one of many cases and not necessarily true every time. In my opinion, I think the two go hand in hand, for the most part. I say this because someone who believes it’s good to be a good person will more than probably perform good acts. Whereas someone who performs good acts would also believe it is important to be a good person. Even though these two topics are very much alike, I feel there is a silver lining there. The silver lining being that there’s always that possibility that someone doing the good act might have the wrong intentions behind it. Which is why i feel the way I do.

3. The outcomes of decisions matter more than the process of how that decision was made in my opinion. I feel this way because more times than other, people won’t concern themselves with how we made such decisions, unless of course you are acquiring a million dollar company. I’ve learned at a young age that everything has a consequence, and it’s likely that those consequences affect others as well as ourselves. I also believe that this can vary depending on each individual situation. One might not care too much about how a mayor decides on what to wear that day, but sure will share their opinion if the mayor decides to bring a casino to town. The consequences of any decision is what people tend to remember, and that is why I believe the outcome of the decisions are more important than the process. I’m not trying to dismiss the idea that the process isn’t important. The process in how one makes a decision plays a key role in the outcomes of that decision. If one thinks about all of the negatives and positives of a decision before acting on it, the chances of the outcome to be a positive one is more likely. On the other hand, if someone doesn’t think at all, the chances of a negative outcome is more likely. Even with both having an important part, I still believe the outcomes matter more because that’s what affects our lives moe.

5. I believe that the pleasure and pain of non-human animals do not matter as much as the pleasure and pain of humans. I do understand that this indeed is a form of speciesism, but I feel I have reason to feel the way I do according to the specific scenario. This is a very touchy subject and I am by no means trying to promote violence towards other animals. Being a meat eater alone, I feel like I have to take the side I am. When eating a burger, or a steak, I’m clearly not thinking of the pain and pleasure of other animals. This doesn’t mean I don’t feel for animals. If I ever see a dog in distress, it truly does break my heart. Not just for dogs, but even the animals we use as food. I know I wouldn’t enjoy a steak or chicken wings if I actually witnessed the butchering of those animals. Is it cruel? Of course it is, but we justify it by claiming ourselves the top of the food chain. To potty train house pets, people often will keep them in a cage. If we were to walk in to someone’s house and saw a human baby in a cage, those parents would be behind bars really fast. That is why I believe that the pain and pleasure of non-human animals do not matter as much as the pain and pleasure of humans.

First, I’d like to apologize the formatting of my image I have for my diagram. I am using my ipad and the google docs appwas notcooperating with me, and I just couldn’t get it to save as a jpeg, so I had to do te next best thing.

My diagram illustrates all of the causes from a wood burning stove to a biogas stove and how they affect both the social system and the ecosystem. If you follow the directions of the arrows on my diagram, you can see how one thing leads to another. Although I got all of my information from the five mnute video about biogas in India, I got the concept from figure 2.2- Human Environment System Diagram. I felt that this video was a great example of how both humans and the environment impact one another. Another part of this module that came to mind while watching the video and working on my digram was figure 2.4- Parents and Children System digram. This video shows in India, even though over populated, continue to keep re populating because in most rural areas the children do a lot of the work for the family.

Marten’s diagram and mine are both very similar as they are different I believe. At first glance, I think the similarities stand out due to the clear distinction between the Social System and the Ecosystem on both of our digrams. Once taking a closer observation of the two, it is clear that Marten’s is  bit more complex where everything sort of intertwines one another. Where mine on the otherhand, is a bit more simple. It shows how one thing leads to another. The information portrayed on the two are different due to the difference of topics. Taking one look at my diagram, one might think it is completely different from that of Marten’s, but I feel differently. Following the arrows, you will see that the social systems provides services to the ecosystem and vice versa.

Hello Everyone!

My name is Shoheb Sarwar and I’m in my first semester as a student in the world campus as a finance major. I was born in Bangladesh and came over to America with my family when I was seven years old. In 2008, I moved to Brooklyn, NY to live with some relatives, but am now back in Philadelphia, PA which is where I’ve lived and grew up ever since I came to the States. I currently work as a business analyst for an orthopedic hospital, and plan on either growing within this company once I graduate or pursue something in the investment banking industry. My main goals however is to eventually become the director of finance and accounting, then work on my MBA to hopefully continue growing. One of the reasons I am taking this course to be honest is because this was one of the few classes available when I was registering, and also because I’ve always enjoyed geography in school. Some other facts about me, to put into one word, would be sports. I’ve always played football and basketball growing up, but the years of physical contact has taken a toll on me. Which is why I look forward to summer every year to get out on the golf course now.

While reading through this module, the one topic that stood out most to me is human-environment interactions. I can recall from this past Christmas how we experienced 75 degree weather on Christmas day. Never did I ever imagine playing golf, in the east coast, on Christmas! First thing I could think of was global warming, it’s happening right before our eyes. Everything in this section from sustainability, governance, and ethics are all topics that I want to learn more about. These are things that actually get brought up in conversations amongst my friends, and I am looking forward to learning more about it as they are things that affect the world we live in.