The Earth Charter

Photo by: earthcharterfuture.blogspot.com

1. Respect and Care For the Community of Life

The first principle of the Earth Charter says that people should "recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings."(Earth Charter, 2) This idea is very similar to Shiva's ideas. Shiva states "Humankind is one among millions of other species. It does not have a right to push other species to extinction, or to manipulate them for greed, profit, and power without concern for their well-being." (Shiva, 40) I agreed with this quote when I first read Shiva's article and I still agree. Humans do not have the right to disrespect any living organism.

2. Ecological Integrity

The Earth Charter's second principle explains that we should "promote the recovery of endangered species and ecosystems."(Earth Charter, 2) We talked about this a lot throughout the past few weeks in class. Something that comes to my mind while reading this part of the Earth Charter is Leopold explains that many places that people ruin because they think the area is a waste, turn out to be very beneficial. By the time we figure out how beneficial the area is, it is too late. Humans need to do much more research before ruining the way the world works. Plus, it costs people so much more to fix something they destroyed than it does to just leave it alone.

Photo by: cityprojectca.org

3. Social and Economic Justice

In The Earth Charter, the third principle says that we should "empower every human being with the education and resources to secure a sustainable livelihood, and provide social security and safety nets for those who are unable to support themselves."(The Earth Charter, 3) A great example of people following this principle was on one of our field trips. ECHO has a program that hosts interns who live on their land and find ways to grow different things to help others. Then, they travel the world teaching people in other countries how to use the plants and products. One example is the moringa tree. Every part of this tree is beneficial, the most beneficial is the seeds, they naturally purify water so people can have drinking water that is much less contaminated.

4. Democracy, Nonviolence, and Peace

Principle four of The Earth Charter highly reflects the meaning of this class when it says, "recognize that peace is the wholeness created by right relationships with oneself, other persons, other cultures, other life, Earth, and the larger whole of which we all are part."(The Earth Charter, 4) This quote reminds me of the definition of sense of place which was a major point in this course. People must find their sense of place in order to be at peace, Colloquium taught us that and helped us to find our sense of place.

Photo by: earthcharterinaction.org

Endangered Species

Neem tree, one of many natural resources. Photo by: neemtree.org

"From the very beginning of the project, Rene had held the firm belief that, if he looked hard enough, nature would provide the solutions to all his problems." (Goodall, 163)

Many people believe that the nature has the answer to every problem. This can sometimes be true. There are many fruits and species in this world that can be so much better and solve many more problems than chemicals can. At ECHO there were many species of plants that could help with a variety of things. Neem oil can help with many problems such as gum and mouth problems and many skin conditions. Another thing was moringa, this can be used to clean contaminated water, clean hair, taken as medicine. There are so many physical helpful species in nature. There can be so many more answers out there, we just have to explore them.

Cleaning waterways. Photo by: theguardian.com

"This chemical pollution has led to the destruction of many endangered species' habitats. Yet there are signs of hope here: Slowly our waterways are being cleaned." (Goodall, 165)

Although the money needed for cleaning up our waterways is high the costs of leaving the pollution could be even worse. The rivers and lakes take a long time to clean up but the time and the effort are worth it. The wildlife will return and the world will be a better place.

Shawn Gressel is working to reintroduce the Swift Fox on tribal lands. Photo by: fs.fed.us

"'Some people ask me why it matters. They want to know why am I doing it. And I tell them it is because these animals belong on the land. They have a right to be there.' He feels 'obligated' to the animals he is working with." (Goodall, 178)

All species have the same rights. Humans do not have the right to kill off other species just to help themselves. Yes, other living things do the same, kill for what they want, but humans have a higher brain capacity and should know better than to ruin the world for their happiness, but they do not.

Silent Spring

Photo by: increasingdisplaced.blogspot.com

 "On the mornings that had once throbbed with the dawn chorus of robins, catbirds, doves, jays, wrens, and scores of other bird voices there was now no sound; only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh." (Carson, 151)

The story Rachel Carson tells in "Silent Spring" is the perfect example of how much something can change and that things can change much more quickly than you would think. The world can be changed so easily, maybe not as dramically as this example portrayed but it can change very dramically. If you could travel back in a time machine, you would not recognize most areas. If you traveled forward in time, it would probably be the same case.

One of many species. Photo by: immediateentourage.com

"Only within the moment of time represented by the present century has one species--man--acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world." (Carson, 153)

Like the reading from last week said, mankind feels they are better than any other species. This is completely wrong. Humans are just one more species in the world, although we have more knowledge about the world we are not better. Human beings may be know how to change the world more, but other animals do not destroy it as much as we do.

Common chemicals. Photo by: Buildingcleaningsolutions.com

"500 new chemicals to which the bodies of men and animals are required somehow to adapt each year, chemicals totally outside the limits of biological experience." (Carson, 155)

Every time I turn on the television or go to the store, there is a new cleaning or household product on the market. These products come in all shapes and sizes and contain so many different chemicals that we have no idea the long term effects of. These chemicals are everywhere, people rarely use natural products anymore. If a product is completely natural, it is most likely very expensive and does not work as well as the chemical containing products.

What is biodiversity and why is it so important?

The world. Photo by: telegraph.co.uk

"Biodiversity is the very fabric of life--it provides the conditions for life's emergence and maintenance, and the many different ways in which that life is expressed." (Shiva, 38)

This definition describes that if left alone the world can take care of itself. The world does not need humans changing things to save it. Humans are the reason the world is falling apart. We, as humans, should find a way to live in this world without ruining it. Almost all other animal species have found a way to live in this world without destroying it, maybe we should take some notes and follow by their example.

Many Species. Photo by: management science.biz

"Humankind is one among millions of other species. It does not have a right to push other species to extinction, or to manipulate them for greed, profit and power without concern for their wellbeing." (Shiva, 40)

Humans believe they are the top of all things. We change things constantly to help ourselves and ruin things for everything else in the world. Killing animals just because we want to. Using materials we know will ruin the world. It has come down to killing ourselves to make things easier. These examples can come from Food Inc. the documentary. People are adding terrible chemicals to our food and ruining what we eat, just so they can make more money.

One effects all. Photo by: www.cod.edu

"The extinction of a species means not just the loss of that particular species, but also a threat to the other species that are supported by it through ecological processes." (Shiva, 45)

The loss of one species means everything, although many humans think it means nothing. One little plant can be a large part of the food chain and can ruin many other specie's lives. Many humans think the world is okay as long as they are living but if they keep this mindset they will not end up being okay. If we keep ruining other species, karma will finally get to us. We need to find a way to change humankind's perspectives and beliefs.

A Tale of Two Farms

Unpredictable changes. Photo by: Oceanworld.tamu.edu

"The economies of both farms were hostage to forces beyond the owners' control, such as the changing affluence and tastes of their customers and neighbors." (Diamond, 16)

Every business is subject to changes that they cannot control. For example, my parents own a company that makes skimboards and surfboards. After the oil spill and the economy collapse, my parents company almost collapsed. Thankfully my parents had a decent amount of money saved up. Many people in their industry went out of business though. The surf industry continues to suffer. Everything is subject to change, especially by things we cannot always control. This can be anything from a family or a small business to entire nations or the world. They can all be destroyed.

Books filled with history. Photo by: nwenergy.org

"The past offers us a rich database from which we can learn, in order that we may keep on succeeding." (Diamond, 17)

One of the best reasons to study history is to help prevent the same problems from happening again. Thankfully, we have a lot of history to look back on but some events are complete mysteries and could happen again because we do not know what caused the events. From what we do know, we should make changes to avoid future problems.

Maya City ruins. Photo by:historymuseum.ca

"Will tourists someday stare mystified at the rusting hulks of New York's Skyscrapers, much as we stare today at the jungle-overgrown ruins of Maya cities?" (Diamond, 20)

This reading asked many intriguing questions. This quote is the one I found most interesting. I've always thought of the world ending but never thought of what future generations will think of our world when we are gone. Will they wonder why we found our technology so helpful? Will they think we were crazy for using so many throwaway products? What people will say about us is a total mystery.

Plan B 4.0

Advancing Deserts. Photo by: Treehugger.com

"Advancing deserts in northern and western China have forced the complete or partial abandonment of some 24,000 villages and the crop-land surrounding them." (Brown, 7)

This is just one more example of how the way we live affects the world and environment around us. When we change one little thing about the environment, many more things are completely changed as well. In this example, the advancing deserts are because of humans overusing the land. This could be because of plowing or farming too much. There are many examples in which people have changed nature to benefit themselves. Such as filling in rivers to make more land to build on or destroying habitats and area to sell. These changes affect many things such as the animals, organisms, and the physical land. Many people do not think about these things when they are destroying the land, they only think of the benefits for themselves.

Lack of water. Photo by: blog.strauss-group.com

"With the vast majority of the 2.4 billion people to be added to the world by 2050 coming in countries when water tables are already falling, water refugees are likely to become common-place." (Brown, 53)

I think it's completely crazy that there are so many water shortages in the world but I rarely ever hear about them. Often I hear of these types of things when the area is in extreme drought or when people say it is happening in other countries. I do not understand why it is not brought to our attention how bad the future could be. I never knew Florida was having a water shortage until last week when we heard about it in class. I live in this state and had no idea. People should be making this information known. I think this is much more important than which celebrity is pregnant or reality shows about random people. This information and ways to prevent loosing all of the water should be shown to people instead.

Wake up call. Photo by: fojailnohel.wordpress.com

"Many social changes occur when societies reach tipping points or cross key thresholds. Once that happens, change comes rapidly and often unpredictably." (Brown, 257)

Like in most situations, people need a wake up call or an intervention before they will realize that their habits are wrong. People don't understand what they are doing wrong until they see the actual proof. I think people should be more informed on what is going on around them. Maybe providing the information will help before it is too late. Often when you reach the wake up call moment with the environment, there is no turning back. We should work the information into the television shows and social media that our society is so obsessed with. If they can do it with advertisements
 of things they want people to buy, they can do it with information about the environment.

The Nature of the Everglades

I apologize for not doing this chapter last week!

Arial of the Everglades. Photo by: water.columbia.edu

"There are no other Everglades in the world." (Douglas, 104)

This quote is the first line of this chapter and it definitely caught my attention. The Everglades are very different from any other land in the world. So open and welcoming but dark and mysterious at the same time. So much space but it is unkown what we can do with it. The Everglades are mostly made up of sawgrass and water. The weather, like much of Florida, is hot, humid, and wet. The area is right in the middle of Florida and has gone down in size due to humans making changes to it over the years.

Saw grass. Photo by: sofia.usgs.gov

"They call is saw grass. Yet in the botonical sense it is not grass at all so much as fierce, ancient, cutting sedge." (Douglas, 108)
Saw grass is one of the main reasons people are so scared of and don't mess with the Everglades. This 'grass' is terrible, it is majorly painful and there is nothing you can do about it. The name is completely self explanatory. The blades of this grass are literally like a saw, it you walk through this you will be bleeding all over. It's been said that saw grass cuts feel like "paper cuts from hell."

Rain in the Everglades. Photo by: adventuresfrombehindtheglass.com

"Here winter and spring and summer and fall blend into each other subtly, with nothing like such extremes of heat and cold. Here, actually, there are only two seasons, the wet and the dry, as there are in the tropics." (Douglas, 112)
The Everglades, like most of Florida, does not have seasons. Leaves don't change, it does not snow, and there are rarely any dramatic changes in the weather. Most people say Florida's seasons are hot and hotter but Douglas say they are wet and dry. Both statements are completely accurate.Usually around the end of August, Florida begins having sunny mornings and afternoon rain. This is cause by the heat and humidity. We usually do not have droughts because there is almost always rain.

Alligator in the Everglades. photo by: www.miamiphotoblog.com

"The otter has been seen to swim and flirt and turn among a crowd of thrashing alligators from whose clumsy attack he has only to dive and flash away." (Douglas, 145)

Animals are such fearless creatures sometimes. It's amazing how well the animals and other living things work together. Humans are the only living creatures that cannot just live in harmony with the world. This otter is fearless, it is able to swim around a group of predators and it doesn't even seem to phase him. I wish I had the courage of that otter.