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.

Endgame

Wildlife of the Everglades. Photo by: policy.audubon.org

“Smith was a devout Roman Catholic, and he believed in the sanctity of life—not only for unborn children but for egrets and otters too.” (Grunwald, 79)

It is interesting that someone’s religion is influencing them to make such important decisions about the environment. Many people forget about the creatures when they are talking about the environment. The animals that live in certain habitats are very important. People tend to think of the land by itself and think that animals will take care of themselves. Luckily people like Smith and other organizations pay attention to these animals, so not all animals will go extinct.

Arial of the Everglades. Photo by: wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu

“The Everglades was really ‘America’s Everglades,’ as the Florida senators kept calling it, then a threat to the everglades was America’s business.” (Grunwald, 82)

I think it’s important to think of land as something we share. Such as the Everglades, they do not only belong to Florida, they belong to the USA, North America, the World , and the even the galaxy. Many people think that a creator owns the land as well. Our society bases many things on what you own and many arguments start because of this. Having an area that we all share is important for many reasons. It’s great to have an area that everyone shares.

Pollution in the Everglades. Photo by:jrosedaly.wordpress.com

 “He wasn’t convinced tht the airport was central to the plumbing problems that were destroying the everglades.” (Grunwald, 84)

People always want to place blame for problems, especially if they have history with the other party. Even if it’s obvious they are not the ones to blame. It is people like Gore who think of both sides of the argument and and don’t make a decision until all the facts are straight that keep our country going. When it comes to pollution, there are many people and things to blame; they should not have picked the closest large company/building to blame. When the politicians looked into the complaint, they realized that the problem was more with the noise than the actual pollution.

Everglades. Photo by: www.merid.org

 “Senators Mac and Graham—as well as Vice President Gore and Governor Bush—believed that passing CERP depended on maintaining a consensus among Florida’s interest groups, and there was a consensus among every group, except environmentalists that the Clinton administration had unfairly elevated nature over people.” (Grunwald, 84)

It’s weird to think that almost all of the interest groups  in Florida were against CERP (The certified Everglades restoration plan) but that still went on with it without actually addressing the public’s concerns. I’ve heard things about the government doing this but I always thought those were rumors but this is actual evidence. It’s completely wrong of them to not at least take these concerns into consideration.

A Land Remembered

Photo by: rickpowersartist.com

While reading the book "A Land Remembered" by Patrick D. Smith one of the characters that really caught my attention was Emma. She is Tobias's wife and Zech's mother. Her role is the role of a typical woman in the 1800's. She cooks, cleans and usually stays home. I found her to be an amazing person though. She traveled with her husband and stayed by his side, no matter what. She was often the voice of reason and stood her ground when she knew something was right. She made the most of everything that happened and was always supportive of her family, no matter how difficult things got. She always found something good out of a bad situation and made the best of what she had.

Emma spent most of the time in the beginning of the book in the house or in a wagon. When things would happen, Zech usually had to go fill her in on what was going on because she couldn't leave the sheltered area. Although, she prepared meals from things in nature, those things were usually brought to her. She also experienced nature when traveling to different areas in the wagon. She did some work outside but was usually inside the house, unlike her husband that was almost always outside.

Emma's sense of place would be he kitchen. That is where she would feel the most "at home". She enjoyed cooking for her family and others along the way, although it got more difficult when they didn't have much to prepare. She also was great at sewing and fixing things. I believe she was a lot less scared then most women in that time would be if they were put into some of the situations that she was forced into, such as, almost being attacked by bears or watching her house get burned to the ground. Her sense of place would be anywhere with her family. She was content with let herself go in order to help her family. She was a very family oriented woman.

There are many ways that I relate to Emma. Yes, I cook and clean but that's not all. I feel in relationships I have with people, I am often the voice of reason. I try to be respectful and quiet when I don't have something nice to say but when someone needs to hear it, I will talk some sense into them. I wish I was able to be as humble and accepting as she was though. She went through so much more than someone should but she stood with her family and never complained. She put off having more children, she left all of her friends, and she lived and traveled in terrible conditions without ever complaining. I hope someday I can be even close to as amazing as Emma was in this book.

The Land Ethic

"A land ethic changes the role of homo sapiens from conquerer to plain member and ciitizen of it." (Leopold, 60)

Leopold explains his land ethic as a way that humans can be one with their environment. If the land ethic was reality people would respect the land around them. They would take care of it and not ruin it by exterminating plants, filling areas with sewage and promotions, or killing off animals. I think the world is far from a land ethic. We ruin areas without even thinking twice about it. Many people are trying to be more conscientious about these issues but fail to make a difference. I am definitely not one to judge because I am also guilty of this. Although recycling and avoiding littering are a good start, they are not a solution and not a way to conserve and love our world. I believe people should be more aware of what is going on in the world around them. This article was written sixty eight years ago and not much has changed since then.

Some of the pollution ruining our world. Photo by: foe.co.uk

"Despite nearly a century of propaganda, conservation still proceeds at a snail's pace; progress still consists largely of letterhead parties and convention oratory." (Leopold, 62)

Governments seem unconcerned with conserving the environment and the world around them. So my question is... Do they not care or are they just not informed about the world around them. While I was growing up teachers, parents, and other leaders taught me about conserving our world and explain how important it is. It's basically common sense to know that the world needs to be taken care of. So, if everyone knows it is  problem why do they refuse to do anything about it? I understand that some companies may loose a decent amount of money but in my opinion making the world a better place for us as well s future generations is much more important than the amount of money you have at the moment. Who gave humans the right to ruin the world and kill things just to make their own life better? There are plenty of other living things that are dying because of our selfish ways. I wish one important official would stand up for the world and help or even force the world to make the change.

Our environment affects us everyday. Photo by: commondreams.org

"In some instances, the assumed lack of profit in these 'waste' areas has proved to be wrong, but only after most of them had been done away with." (Leopold, 66)

People in this world make changes and do things without thinking of the consequences for the future. This is just one of many examples. This topic reminds me of what people say about the butterfly effect. This is the thought that if people were able to travel back in time, if they changed one minor detail, the entire world would change. I think every little thing we do to our environment effects the future of the world. So when we change things in the environment, we are ruining more than just the physical object. If we kill off one species, it could mess up the entire food chain. Killing one type of plant could do the same.We must be careful what we do to this world, we have no idea how much influence we have on it.

We must protect the environment. Photo by:reformjudaism.org

Nature Deficit Disorder

“In the era of test-centric education reform and growing fear of liability, many districts considered recess a waste of time or too risky.” (Louv, 1)

I cannot imagine thinking that taking physical activity would be good for children. We live in a world of constant worry. The adults are constantly worrying about things that they cannot control. Taking way recess will cause students to have too much energy and not pay attention in class. So, the test scores that people are so worried about will actually end up being worse. Also, children get hurt no matter what, not just while doing physical activities so people should not think of that as the problem.

Failed test. Photo by: www.thedeal.com

"Studies suggest that nature may be useful as a therapy for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), used with or, when appropriate, even replacing medications or behavioral therapies." (Louv, 2)

This study is extremely interesting to me. I am always supportive of ways to help the body without medication and things that could possibly harm the body. It also seems like nature could be a more long term solution, unlike medicine that is usually only a temporary fix.Especially when it comes to children, medication should only be used when absolutely necessary. It is also interesting how many more people are being diagnosed with ADHD these days. Could this be because many people are spending less time outdoors and more time inside in front of screens? I believe so. I think people could be the ones causing ADHD.

Medication is not always the answer. Photo by: www.bloodsugarsolution.com

"The boy was hyperactive, he had been kicked out of his school, and his parents had not known what to do with him--but they had observed how nature engaged and soothed him." (Louv, 5)

It's amazing how so many different people have noticed the difference when children with ADHD are exposed to the outside more. I would love to do an experiment on this information since I plan to work with children in the future. The proof behind these findings is extraordinary. I wonder why more people lean toward medication rather than trying nature first. While reading this, I was thinking about my future classroom. I hope to have windows in my classroom and have the ability to take my students outside often. In addition to that, I will also do many of my lessons outside and have plants in my classroom, I will teach children about taking care of plants and the 'green' in the room will help children with different types of disabilities to concentrate, hopefully.

The outdoors. Photo by: www.chaplingonet.com

Biophilia vs. Biophobia

"Biophobia, in short, is the culturally acquired urge too affiliate with technology, human artifacts, and solely with human interests regarding the natural world." (Orr, 187)

I never knew before reading this that there was such a thing s biophila and biophobia but I had noticed it. I did a speech in Public Speaking last year about paying attention to the world around you. At FGCU we have a beautiful campus but so many students and faculty don't take the time to enjoy it. People are often too busy in their daily lives... using phones and getting where they need to go as quick as possible. I think people should look up every once in a while and just experience how beautiful the world is.

FGCU Boardwalk. Photo by Johnson Engineering

"Biophilia or something close to it was woven throughout the myths, religions, and mindset of early humankind, which saw itself as participating with nature." (Orr, 188)

People in the past were much more interested in the world around them. I believe this was because they didn't have the technology that we do now to distract us from nature. If a person today is bored, they can easily find thousands of different things to do inside. Early humankind didn't have that luxury, therefore they were more interested in nature. In our lives today there are way more distractions from the world. Early humans did not litter because they only had natural resources from the earth. They felt more of a connection with the world because they were in it more often. I wish people today could be as involved with the earth as people were back then but I don't think that is possible. We are too technologically advanced and complicated to think so innocently.

Early humans using natural resources. Photo by kohlerhistory

"We, in contrast, must choose between biophobia and biophilia because science and technology have given us the power to destroy so completely as well as the knowledge to understand the consequences of doing so." (Orr, 188)

As I had previously mentioned, I believe that early humans lacked the ability to destroy the world as easily as we can today. Of course this is not a bad thing but they also didn't have the knowledge we do to understand it and how to take care of it. Humans today need to be self aware of how they are effecting the world and if they need to change that. I feel we are now making steps toward a healthy world by reducing the resources we use and recycling. As well as many other ways. I think people should look more in depth at how they are changing the world and get involved in making the world a healthier place.

Cleaning up our planet. Photo by: Scholastic