Is There a Connection Between Global Warming and Natural Disasters?

This is a topic that I have heard a lot about before I found an article pertaining to it. And to be completely honest, this is something that I have really wanted to know. I think that everyone has noticed that there have been more droughts, floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes in the last couple years. And the popular question to this is, "Why? Why have there been so many more hurricanes and tornadoes now more than ever?" Well, the article 'Extreme Weather Research Makeover' starts to investigate that question. The journalist who wrote this, Sarah Kuck, starts the article out by stating that a group of scientists that specialize in climate have formed the coalition ACE, Attribution of Climate-Related Events. What this coalition is trying to answer is if there is a connection between the increased number and severity of hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and droughts. Kuck goes on to explain that, 'In 2010, extreme heat waves caused massive wildfires in Russia, while heavy monsoon rains brought severe floods in Pakistan. The global average temperature was one of the highest since records began in 188o, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration," Kuck continues this statement by saying that, "Previously, scientists have said that an increase in extreme weather events like these would be consistent with global warming but were hesitant to make a direct link between specific events and climate change because of the natural variability of weather".

I really do not understand why the scientists, who have previously stated that if there was an increase in these intense weather conditions, are not making a connecting these two together. I realize that there is a 'natural variability of weather', but if that is what they were so sure about before what made them change their thoughts?

"The ACE coalition asserts that it is now possible to prove that greenhouse gases, resulting in observable increase in atmospheric moisture, are causing extreme weather events," Kuck explains. It seems like while the members of ACE think that global warming is what is causing these severe weather issues. However, it seems like the scientists that they are trying to work with don't agree with that. Dr. Kevin Trenberth thinks that the evidence of the links that are between these severe weather problems and climate change are 'unequivocal'.  He has also told them that the only things to really focus on are changes in rainfall, heat waves, drought, flooding, and other severities like hurricanes and tornadoes. "All weather and climate events are affected by climate change because the environment in which they form is different,” wrote Trenberth. “The failure to realize this means that the cost of climate change is greatly underestimated".

The Hidden Meaning Behind Wall-E

We have been watching Wall-E in class for about the last week.  I have seen this movie countless times, and the simple fact is that I absolutely love this movie.  The main reason that I love this movie so much is that my nephew, Brayden (whose five years old) absolutely adores this movie.  Since this is one of his favorite movies, I have watched this movie with him so many times to the point that I can even quote certain parts of it.  It wasn't until we started watching it in class that I began to see all of the true mean  Things and messages that this film portrays.  Obviously, these messages are hidden more since it is a movie for children, but once you get back the fact that it is a children's movie, you can see what this movie is really saying,

As the movie begins, we see the Earth, or what is left of it.  There is absolutely no signs of human life.  All that is left of our 'formal' planet is waste. pollution, and garbage everywhere.  It is obvious that this is what our planet has resorted to due to the mass consumerism and over consumption that we have left behind.  We have no idea what has happened to the human.  The movie later reveals that all human life force is living on a planet it space.  These humans, who are extremely lazy, do not do a single thing for themselves.  All of them remain seated in these huber crafted chairs that they never get out of.  They also so robots and computers so every little thing for them.  As I said before, they are all incredibly lazy and all morbidly obese.  This whole film is a huge environmental wake up call.  All of the metaphors in the story line are simply saying the following: if we humans do not change our ways, we are going to completely destroy our planet until it is complete waste and rubbish.  The message is about over consumption the humans do.  It is about how we are gluttons, not just with food, but with all other material goods.  It is saying that we do not care about our planet, and are so quick to just throw whatever we  have on the ground, and not care about recycling or littering.  

Now that I think about it, this is one of the most environmental films (and it isn't even classified as that, it is classified as a children's love story) that I have ever seen.  I think that the producers of this film made these connections not just for adults, but for the children, too.  Obviously, it is known that adults watch children's movies because of their children.   So, it is no surprise that these 'true and hidden meanings' are there for the adults. I think that it is intended for the children as well, so that they can see what would happen to our planet if they just stop caring about it.  What happened in the movie is what is going to happen to this planet and us if we don't: recycle, pick up our trash, use less energy, become more 'green', stop over consumer everything.  This film is an eye opener for everyone.  This film is a warning.  A warning that if we don't start taking care of our planet, and if we don't stop over consuming, this is what will happen to us, too. 

Coal Plant Free Nation

There was an article in June entitled "Closing Down Coal Plants". Obviously, the article was about closing down the coal plants in the United States, but it went deeper than that. The article starts out by stating that during this past April, different states across the United States has definite plans to shut down more than twenty coal-fired boilers by 2025. Sarah Kuck, author of the article, is stating that this is very important because "These measures to reduce greenhouse gases may signal big changes for the nation's energy future". Kuck goes on to explain that the closure of the coal plants will help the Pacific Northwest by, "...limiting air pollution produced by coal-powered electrical plants..." I think that this is something that is wonderful and that will the environment in more ways than one. Obviously, it would help decrease the pollution of the air. Yes, the air is polluted by a lot of things, but coal plants are a big culprit, too. It will also help the environment by making people use a more green, more high efficient energy source that is more is more useful to the Earth.

"The resulting Washington State Senate Bill 5769 requires the phase-out of the TransAlta energy plant, the only coal-powered operator in the state. Additionally, the bill requires that TransAlta provide $55 million for pollution control, energy efficiency and local job creation," Kuck explains.  I feel as though that this is another good thing.  Not only is it a good thing that they care getting rid of the coal plants, but they are making the companies that are still running them pay for energy efficiency and pollution control.  The money that the company is providing will help create more ideas for more energy efficient products and more green ideas to help the environment.  

Overall, I feel like this is more than a great idea.  By cutting out coal plants, we are not only cutting down the air pollution, but we will also helping the environment by cutting down the greenhouse gases that are caused by them.  This is showing us that the more that make try to make changes and make "greener" choices the more we are saving our environment and our planet.

Why More Cities Should be Like Seattle

After reading the article "The Carbon-Neutral City" I made the realization that more cities should model themselves after Seattle. The author of this article, Richard Conlin, talk about how the Seattle City Council approved of a new resolution, Resolution 31321. According to this resolution, Seattle is planning on reducing their net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by the year 2050. This resolution is also preparing the city for "the likely impacts of climate change". This resolution, which has taken a year to finalize, is focusing the the top three biggest emission sectors: building energy, transportation, and waste. Conlin states that, "This action is a historical and significant step in our quest to stabilize the Earth's climate. Seattle becomes one of the first city governments in the world to declare that the goal of being cultural neutral-reducing our net (GHG) emissions to zero-is desirable, realistic, and attainable".

Seattle originally started to cut down on their emissions in 2001 by adopting the goal of the Kyoto Protocol. By doing this, they have reduced their GHG emissions by seven percent in 2010. Conlin states that, "Now the impacts of climate change are increasing, and the Copenhagen Accord of 2009 acknowledged that the world must reduce carbon emissions by more than 80 percent by 2050 if we are to avoid the risks of catastrophic impacts".  To me, that is extremely scary.  It is so scary and frightening to think that if we do not change the way that we are living, we may not even have a planet to live on.  It is frightening to think that it cannot be predicated on what would happen to this planet if action to change how we are living are not made.

"The resolution launches the Climate Action Plan update, which will be the next major step in the process," Conlin explains. This plan outlines four steps that will help cut down some of the emissions and help aid the climate change. What we need to do first is, "Evaluating potential changes in City regulations and policies, incentives for private action, intergovernmental coordination at the regional, state, and federal level, and public education campaigns;". Secondly, we need to learn how "Addressing how offsets and other beneficial City actions can be used to reach climate goals, such as urban and watershed forest management, recycling, and energy conservation and renewable energy resource development that could help position City Light as a climate restoration utility;". Thirdly, we have to be able to "Identifying how climate protection and adaptation actions can be integrated with City economic development objectives;". Lastly, we need to figure out how "Developing strategies (including consumption-based GHG reduction strategies) for businesses, households, and individuals to contribute to climate protection through their purchases, participation in the Local Food Action Initiative and other means".

I think that this is amazing what Seattle is doing. They see that there is a major problem going on with our environment and they are choosing to do something about it. They are taking the right and necessary steps in changing our environment for the better. I think that more cities need to do what Seattle is doing. If more cities do these steps, that would clearly cut down everybody's carbon footprint and help cut down all of the environmental issues that we are currently dealing with today. I think that if more and more cities take the on the precautions of what is going to happen to our planet, that it would further any potentially problems from happening, or maybe even stop it in general. By doing this, this is going to help save our planet, and having the Earth be around longer.

Farming Becoming More Relevant

I was extremely surprised about the content of the one article that I have recently read. The article "Young Farmers: A Growing Movement" brings up the issue of how the idea of purchasing and owning a car for people in the twenty's and older. According to Fran Korten, the author of this article, "Something in our culture is changing. A growing segment of people don’t want to just buy organic, healthy food. They want to grow it. This new lust to farm seems to cross class, race, and politics".  There are there main categories that Korten discusses in her article (that I will address later), and one of those reasons is that people today want natural, organic food.  They want the food that is not chemically enhanced and that is filled with things that end up just hurting your bodies.  These are the three major cultural trends that are causing the want of owning a farm?

The first cultural trend is that this is a response to certain times ahead.  "Awareness is increasing that climate change is affecting crop yields and that the global economy can’t be relied on to supply safe food," Korten states, "In the face of such uncertainty, there’s an almost instinctual desire to secure one’s food supply. A good place to start is growing your own".  

The second cultural trend is that this is a rebellion to the certain times ahead. Korten continues explaining by saying, "A lot of Americans of all political stripes are appalled at what mega-corporations are doing to our food supply," Korten continues explaining by saying, "Whether their revulsion is driven by compassion for animals and/or farm workers, concern for their families’ health, worry about destruction of the environment, or resentment of concentrated wealth and power, the practices of agribusiness are driving people to look for alternatives that are humane, healthy, and community-friendly".  

The third and final trend is that this is an enhanced trend in good food. "Relishing delicious food has become part of mainstream culture, which brings an appreciation of really fresh food. After all, what is more delicious than a ripe tomato or an ear of corn just picked from the garden?"  It is quite obvious that food that is not filled with chemicals and God knows what else is not good for our bodies.  

After reading this article, I can't lie, I kind of want a farm, too; or at least the availability to be able to get fresh, healthy food that is not loaded up with chemicals. 

Why we Should Sacrifice for the Climate

I have recently read an article by Brooke Jarvis ("Tim DeChristopher: Sacrifice for the Climate) about how it is "a blessing to risk it all to stop climate change-even if it means jail time". According to Jarvis, the reason why the climate is changing is because "...people aren't willing to take real action to slow the warming of our planet, because it is asking too much: too much inconvenience, too much to sacrifice, too much planning ahead". After she made that statement, her article starts talking about the activism that Tim DeChristopher has done because he thinks the opposite of Jarvis' statement. "We made to ask more of ourselves, and of each other," is the statement that Jarvis say that DeChristopher believes. She made the comment about risking everything to stop climate change, even risking going to jail, because that it actually what DeChristopher has done. Jarvis then fills in her readers about the events that he is now known for in December 2008 (which I am glad that she did, because I was not even aware of whom Tim DeChristopher was to begin with). Just about exactly three years ago, DeChristopher decided that he wanted to try and stop the Bush administration from selling gas and oil developmental leases at an auction. In order to stop this, he pretended like he was going to bid in the auction, and people actually thought that he was being sincere about it, so he played along. I honestly think that because he decided to bid on so many different parcels (he ended up bidding on a total of fourteen), he was removed from the auction by federal agents and taken into custody, He was sentenced to be in a federal jail for two years, and he is still in there as I am typing this. Jarvis then goes on to state that when he gets out of prison "he has every intention of continuing to push himself-and the climate movement-to make bigger demands and take bigger risks".

Honestly, I agree with everything that Jarvis talks about in her article, and everything that DeChristopher did (even if he did end up in prison for it). If no one sticks up against the government and does not stand up for what they believe in, what good is that going to do not just us humans, but our planet? So many environment issues are going on around us that are destroying Earth, destroying the planet that we live on. If no one is willing to stand up and protest for a change, then we are not going to even have a planet to live on.

I am going to end this blog with something that was in Jarvis' article. "DeChristopher believes that failing to respond to such a profound threat isn’t just dangerous for environmental reasons, but also for psychological ones: The result, as he’s seen, is too often anger, frustration, apathy, or despair. In contrast, DeChristopher says his decision to take big risks feels deeply right: It’s a relief to stop pretending that everything is fine. It feels healthier to turn fear and anxiety into action than to ignore them".  This is a statement that I completely, one hundred percent agree with.  We need to stop pretending that everything on this planet is fine.  The environmental issues that are destroying our Earth is something that I am pretty sure that most of the population already knows about it.  So why are we just sitting around and doing nothing about it, while we are having panic attacks about the climate change and global warming?  These are issues that we all need to stop ignoring.

The Reasons as to Why We Need Less Gas

I read an article entitled, "Four Reasons We Need Less Gas".  This article obviously struck my interest, because of how the price of gas has been continuing to get higher and higher each and every year.  This is something to I have been looking in to more and more, because I am buying a brand new car over Christmas break.  Obviously since I am buying a new car, gas mileage i something that I have been looking at in order to help my decision with what car brand, make, and model that I am going to purchase.  As we all know, gas mileage is something that is an important factor when looking at new cars, because of the price of gas.  After reading this article, it made me realize how much gas America alone uses. In one year alone, America tuses more gas than sixteen over countries combined.  These countries include: Brazil, China, Germany, Japan, and Russia.  You know how much gas that is? That fact in itself is completely mind boggling.  That just proves that Americans really do overuse and over consume way too many things.  Clearly, the author of this article, Lester Brown feels the same way, too.  He also states in his article that most Americans are noticing and are aware of these facts, mostly because they notice the rising of the gas prices and that most cars are being purchased now because of their gas mileage.  Brown states in his article that, "But now this is changing. Not only is the affluence that sustained this extravagant gasoline consumption eroding, but the automobile-centered lifestyle that was considered part of the American birthright is fading as well. U.S. gasoline use has dropped 5 percent in four years". 


The article points out that there are four main reasons as to why the usage of gasoline is declining.  Those reasons are: there is been a decline in miles driven by each car, a decrease of the fleets of cars, the change of what kinds of fueling a car uses (instead of using gas to fuel cars, more and more cars are going out where electricity is being used to fuel them), and the inventions of fuel efficiency in new cars.  The article then goes into brief detail for each of the categories about why the usage of gasoline is declining.


Honestly, I think that this is an extremely good thing.  The fact that America alone is using so much gasoline is completely insane.  People wonder why we are running out of the resources that the planet gives us, I think it is pretty easy to figure out.  We are consuming way, way, way too much of a resource.  I do not understand why people do not understand that concept.  We are using up all of the natural resources that the Earth has given us, and so many people just do not seem to care about that.  And I know that this goes for other resources other than gasoline.  As humans, we really are overusing and completely destroying this planet.  When is everybody going to see that?  We are consuming way too many natural resources, and until everybody sees that, and tries to change the way that they over consume, we are going to destroy our planet. What is going to happen when we use up all of our natural resources, when we use up our planet, and have nothing left?  All I hope for is that more people start realizing what is going on, and that they start to make a change in their lifestyle.  As humans, we have the technology and power to find an alternative to overusing the natural resources that we are.  

Green Jobs

I recently read an article "Green Jobs Calling".  This article was about New Bedford, Massachusetts. The article explains that this town has not really seen much economic prosperity since the beginning of the 20th century due to the rise of the textile company.  However, the leaders of the community are hoping to "be the center of a green economy boom".  "Last year, a team of community organizers knocked on 3,000 doors, urging homeowners and small businesses to commit to energy audits and energy-efficiency improvements. Community organizers also founded a minority-owned green company to do the weatherization work and to help locals prepare their homes for efficiency upgrades—for instance, replacing old wiring so they can install insulation. The project is partly financed by a public utility, in response to state energy mandates" (Madeline Ostrander).  The people of this town are not only trying to make there town more prosperous, but also, and most importantly, become more green.  


New Bedford, Massachusetts is not the only town across this country that is making green jobs.  "Communities across the country are creating green jobs from the ground up, financed by consumer demand, utility fees, some creative new funding models, and a combination of federal, state, and local money" (Ostrander).  More and more different cities around the country are becoming greener and greener, which is something that is great.  The more that a city gets more green, the more it is helping out our planet and environment.  The article goes on to talk about another city in this country that is making more green jobs as well.  " In Oakland, Calif., an organization called Solar Mosaic is “crowdfunding” solar power. For $100, anyone can buy a share in one of several planned solar projects, to be installed atop community buildings" (Ostrander).  This is something that I feel like more and more companies, and people, should do.  It would do wonders for our planet if we made every roof on top of a huge building a green roof.  I think that this would do even more wonders for our environment if we made every roof in a huge city, such as New York City, Chicago, or Miami.  If every town, major cities or a small rural town, made at least half of their buildings' roofs have green roofs, this would majorly help out our environment and help with the green movement to making our planet and environment better.  


"The Ella Baker Center and a coalition of community groups have also successfully pushed the city to investigate whether more green-jobs financing could come from a public fund generated by consumer fees paid to Pacific Gas and Electric. Twenty-two states require energy utilities to maintain similar funds, according to the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The coalition believes that Oakland’s share of the fund could help finance the city’s greenhouse-gas reduction plan, which aims to slash carbon emissions 36 percent below 2005 levels in the next decade" (Ostrander).  As I have previously stated, I think that this is something that would help our environment and our planet.  I think that how much the carbon emissions would  go down by would be great for not just our environment, but for us as well.  I think that this is something that should be happening at least in all the major cities, then slowly moving to smaller cities. 

Fracking

When we were in class one day, we were having a discussion about fracking.  Now, I was a little bit confused and lost during this conversation, because I was not aware of what fracking was.  So obviously I looked up the definition of what the procedure was and everything.  I then did some research on the matter, and found that only a few days ago, there was an article about fracking in Pennsylvania.  The article was entitled, "A Debate Over Who Regulates Gas 'Fracking' in Pennsylvania".  The article was about a new Pennsylvania law that could drastically change the ability for people to zone and regulate fracking.  The act that the lawmaker's are trying to change is the old Oil and Gas Act that is extremely out f date and does not keep up with today's standards.  "Right now, local regulations on where drilling rigs can go, how loudly they operate and how far they need to be from buildings differ from community to community. Pennsylvania lawmakers who support the natural gas drilling industry are trying to standardize the rules across the state" (Scott Detrow, author of the article).  I personally agree and think that there should just be one standard law that the whole state has to abide by.  I think that it gets too confusing that the regulations change for the different areas and regions that someone is in.   I think this is one of the greatest factors as to why fracking happens, because the people that are doing the procedure may not know what is or is not allowed in the region that they are drilling, so they do not know what thy are doing is an issue.  Clearly, fracking is a serious issue, and something needs to be done about it so that it stops.  


I also read another article about an incident that happened in Pennsylvania, just the other day.  On November 30, 2011, in Dimock, Pennsylvania, there was a fracking incident that left all of the surrounding water of this place infected and not able to drink.  This water that they are left with is not only extremely toxic, but it is also flammable, and allows for the risk of illness and skin lesions for the people that have contact with it.  Many of the people that live in this area actually have gotten ill and have had skin lesions due ingesting, touching, or having any contact at all with this contaminated water.  What the biggest issue is of this article is sadly not just the fracking, but that the Cabot Oil and Gas Co. have decided to stop any other water delivery to the people of this town.  This is completely absurd.  First of all, that oil and gas company never should have been allowed to have contaminated their water by fracking.  Second of all, it is complete crap that they are not letting these people have any regular water that will not cause them to get sick.  This article pretty much just sums up why fracking should not be allowed.  It is not only hurting our Earth and our water supply, but it is hurting the people that are living in these areas that had nothing to do with their water getting contaminated. 

Recycling

Another thing that I cannot understand why people do not do is recycling.  Seriously, is it that hard to get a separate trashcan and put your recyclables in there rather than the rest of your trash?  The apartment building that I am currently living in in Kutztown has a very good recycling system.  In the back of our building is our dumpster.  Not only is there a dumpster, but there are trash containers for plastic, cardboard, aluminum cans, aluminum beer and soda cans, clear glass, green glass, and brown glass, along with a container for paper.  I think that my landlords had done something very good with putting all of these containers out.  I think that they are teaching their tenants to not just recycle more, but to really split up all of their recyclables.  I know that personally, Tim (my landlord) has taught me more about recycling and really got me into the habit of splitting up all of my recyclables.  I mean, I did recycle before, but I did not take the time like I do now to actually split up all of the different items like I do now.  I would just throw all the glass bottles, aluminum cans, newspaper, and cardboard into one bin, and the garbage men in my hometown would just take it all away and recycle it.  I actually do enjoy the fact that my landlord actually took the time and effort to put these separate containers out, because I actually made me divide and split all the recyclables up instead of just putting them all in one recycling container. I think that more people, and especially landlords not just in this town, but in all towns, need to set up these containers and make recycling more available and easy for their tenants and everyone in general.  By putting out all of the recycling containers, they are putting out the knowledge to recycle more.  I think that it is just pure lazy when people cannot take out ten seconds of their day to just instead of throwing their glass bottle into the regular trashcan just throw it into a recyclable trashcan.  It is the small things like this that are slowly destroying the planet.  These recyclables are filling up the landfills when they easily be recycled and made into something else. 

 And there are so many other benefits that recycling does.  Recycling saves natural resources.  "By recycling over 1.2 million tons of steel in 2005, Pennsylvanians saved 1.4 million tons of iron ore, 829,786 tons of coal, and 71,124 tons of limestone. Through recycling newsprint, office paper and mixed paper, we saved the equivalent of 78 million tree seedlings grown for 10 years. Recycling often produces better products than those made of virgin materials; for instance, the tin in "tin" cans is more refined (thus more valuable) after being processed for recycling." (http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.ptopen=514&objID=589516&mode=2),  

Recycling also saves energy, adds value to our economy, and most importantly saves our environment and our planet.  It literally goes beyond me that so many people do not take the few seconds it takes to recycle.  Just imagine that if at least one person just started recycling just one item a day, how much of the Earth do you think we would start saving?

Electricity Usage

I guess this is an issue more to me now, because of personal reasons.  I have to pay for the electricity in my apartment, which this year is a new thing for me.  I also have two other roommates, so the three of us divide the bill into three and each pay the same amount.  Obviously, this is something I care about, because this s money that is coming out of my own bank account.  I almost feel kind of silly to have to fact that I have to pay my own electricity really spark my interest in this topic, but I guess it is better late than never.  It's not like before I did not care at all about electricity, it is not like I always left the lights on whatever I left the room or anything.  That is something that I have just grown up with, is that whenever you leave the room or house you turn off all of the electrical devices and lights that you were not using.  But now, with me having to pay my own electricity in my apartment, and with the help of this class that also really made me open my eyes to all of the environmental issues going on.  Clearly using too much electricity is causing major issues on this planet.  The overuse of electricity is one of the causes of global warming, just think how much electricity could be cut if everybody turned off all of their lights and electrics every time that they left the room or when they left their house?  I know that every light bulb in not just my apartment, but in my house at home are the compact florescent light bulbs that not only save money on your electric bill, but they last longer, and they do not use as much electricity as regular light bulbs.  And I know that this is a something else that may seem huge, but it is something that is very simple and that could save even more energy.  This is something that I do along with my roommates.  When an electric device is not being used, other than turning it off, why no just completely unplug  it from the outlet all together?  When an electric device is turned off, but still plugged into the electric outlet, that device, no matter what it is, is still receiving energy from the outlet.  If you take the two seconds it takes to actually unplug something, you would be saving so much more energy.  I honestly do not understand why some people do not even turn off their lights, or turn off their television or whatever other electric device they are using.  It really does not take that much time or energy to do, and it is a simple task that can not only cut down their electric bill, but it can help stop global warming and help save the world.

Littering Around Kutztown

I know that this topic was brought up in class recently, but it caught my interest so I decided to blog about it.  In the previous years, I have participated in the KU Cleanup that is held in the fall.  Me, along with various members of other sororities, fraternities, sports teams, and other volunteers, took two hours to go through the campus and the town to clean up the trash that was littered all over. And to be completely honest, and I am a little embarrassed to say this, but that was really the only times that I have had gone not just around the campus, but all of the town, to clean up the trash.  It was truly appealing to see how much trash (wrappers, paper, glass bottles, plastic bottles, alcohol bottles and cans, cigarette butts, etc.) was littered all across campus and the  whole town.  I am not talking about just an alley here or there, I am talking about every street, every alley, every parking lot, everywhere! I think a few things need to happen to help this problem.  The first and most obvious is that people should not litter as much.  Obviously, people are going to litter, but maybe there could be more public trashcans installed around the town so that people would have more incentive to throw away their trash.  Secondly, I think that there should be more events like KU Cleanup.  As I know of, there is only that event once in the fall semester and once in the spring semester.  I feel as though there should be more of these events.  Also, these events should be more publicized.  Not many people know about when this event is happening.  I feel as though that if this event was publicized not only through Bear Essentials, but through Twitter, Facebook, and posters around campus that more people would attend these events.  And most importantly, there needs to be more people interested in actually throwing away their trash and not just littering.  And I personally do not understand it.  It really is not that hard to just hold onto your trash until you reach a trash can.  I do not get why people have to throw their trash out of their car, or just throw it down when they are walking.  It really is not doing them any harm at all to just hold onto it until they reach a trashcan.  The trash is not causing them any physical pain or harm, so why can't people just wait until they see a trashcan to throw it away?  If more and more people started doing this, and started to pick up the trash that was around their area and town, there would be less and less garbage on the ground until there was none at all.

Climate Change

I recently read an article about how the recent rapid climate change is making the biodiversity loss increase. Clearly, this is not just an issue for the animals and humans, but it is also a threat to the Earth and the environment.  Clearly, it is a problem for humans because this has an interaction with the food chain.  It is also an issue for humans, because if there is an increased climate change (global warming) then there is the great possibility that the water that is on this Earth is going to reduce and some are going to probably disappear.  With the amount of water on the Earth decreasing, this will lead to a drop in the resources that are gotten for that area.  Also, if there is less water, obviously there is going to be less animals that live i the water, because at first there will be too much of the animals that live in the water.  After there are too many, the ecosystem will neutralize itself, and their population will distractedly lower.  If there are less animals and less types of animals, then there is less for the humans to eat.  There are also less animals for other animals to eat.  This is a problem, because there is a highly likelihood of more animals becoming endangered and possibly even extinct.  These issues are more significant in the Arctic Ocean then in any other place.  The Secretariat of the Convention of Biological Diversity stated that, " Ecosystems are already showing negative impacts under current levels of climate change … which is modest compared to future projected changes…. In addition to warming temperatures, more frequent extreme weather events and changing patterns of rainfall and drought can be expected to have significant impacts on biodiversity" (Global Biodiversity Outlook 2, May 2010, Page 56).  It is clear that while some of the species may be able to adapt to these changes, more of them are not going to be able to.  And as I have previously stated, this is going to lead to the endangerment and extinction of most animals.  


Clearly, something needs to be done about these issues; but honestly what can be done?  It is obvious that due to the rise of the climate due to global warming is causing all of these issues.  Clearly, there needs to be more information available for the people that do not know much about global warming, because personally, I do not know much about Global Warming.  I have seen "An Inconvenient Truth" by Al Gore, but other than that, I do not know much about what I can do to stop these issues for getting worse and to help the planet.  I think that these issues should be more publicized, because until I researched it, I knew nothing about this whole issue.  I feel like if there is more resources available for people to know about what is going on, then there is a higher likelihood for more people to get involved.  And if more people know about the problem, and get involved, then more people are there to help aid this problem.