Term Paper on "Sustainability Movement"

Term Paper 10 pages (4827 words) Sources: 12 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Sustainability

For the planet and her people to survive, the world's people must embrace the sustainability movement, for modern man is using up the Earth's resources at an alarming, and perhaps catastrophic rate.

Define Sustainability

Use national and international definitions.

Also define sustainability and natural resources.

Describe the sustainability movement, and use some specific examples

Biodiversity

Ecology

Community

Commerce

Natural Resources

Biospehre

Biodiversity

Describe how biodiversity and sustainability support one another.

Use "biodiversity in food" to show how consumers can make a difference when they buy food.

Sustainability and Natural Resources

Describe how the natural world works in relationship to sustainability.

Discuss the overfishing of the oceans.

Discuss genetic crops

Discuss the natural world and the effects of global warming.

Discuss other natural resource issues, such as animals displaced by global warming and other issues.

Problems

Application of Elements.

Education and Sustainability

Use Goodall Institute information to show how educating children now can create future sustainability leaders.

Create new sustainability project that has to do with natural resources. (Create a local, accepted currency.)

Identify and describe project.

Explain how to pitch it to community, including businesses it would affect.

Problems and Solutions.

Conclusion

The Sustainability Movement

This paper analyzes the sustainability movement. Specifically, it discusses the definition of the sustainability movement, examples of the movement, and focus on sustainability and natural resources.

The sustainability movement is gaining ground in the United States and around the world. For the planet and her people to survive, the world's people must embrace the sustainability movement, for modern man is using up the Earth's resources at an alarming, and perhaps catastrophic rate.

The sustainability movement is made up of many different groups, organizations, and ideas, blending together to create a more sustainable planet for humankind. Without sustainability and all it entails, the planet is on a collision course with catastrophe and deficiency. The editors at the Citizens Network for Sustainable Development define sustainability using three terms, economic, social, and environmental. The Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development, developed in 1995 defines sustainability as,."..economic development, social development and environmental protection are interdependent and mutually reinforcing components of sustainable development, which is the framework for our efforts to achieve a higher quality of life for all people" ("What is Sustainability?"). Thus, sustainability involves not only natural resources and the planet's environment; it involves creating workable solutions to maintaining resources, the economy, and society to ensure the survival of all facets of life as we know it today.

The sustainability movement is a social movement that attempts to blend a high quality lifestyle with environmental and scientific approaches to life to help maintain human existence. The movement is difficult to define and describe because it comprises so many different groups, organizations, and individuals working for a sustainable future. Everything from natural resources to genetically engineered foods, endangered species, and alternative forms of energy fall into the sustainable movement, so it is all encompassing. Yet, many people now recognize while the movement's scope is broad, it is absolutely necessary to ensure the survival of the human race on Earth.

Some of the specific areas addressed in the sustainability movement include ecology, and the maintenance of specific ecosystems, such as the Amazon River watershed and tropical jungle. The ecology includes the interaction between all life in an area, and is vital to maintaining a biological and environmental balance on the planet. It includes water and crop management, and many other aspects of the ecological landscape.

Another area addressed by sustainable movements is community. The community must be aware of sustainability options and choices, but communities can also group together to form their own sustainability resources and movements. This is illustrated by the communities engaged in local currencies, discussed later in this article, as well as communities involved in developing green programs, recycling, and alternative forms of energy. Communities must embrace the sustainability movement to begin to educate the public about sustainability and begin workable programs at the grassroots level of society.

Many people worry that the sustainability movement will affect the economy and commerce, so the movement attempts to address these areas as well. Poverty is a main contributor to hunger and low-grade lifestyles in many third-world countries, and the aim of the sustainability movement is to improve economies to sustain a higher level of life. Developing viable commercial options is one of the ways the movement hopes to create a better lifestyle for everyone. Reducing poverty also takes a load off local ecological systems, by giving more people the means for making a viable living away from low-level agricultural and other resource-based occupations ("Various"). In addition to improving lifestyles by reducing poverty, the sustainability movement hopes to increase global trade to help improve the economies of many third-world countries. One way to improve economies is to reduce the exploitation of large, multi-national corporations who do business in foreign countries and pay low wages and support sweatshop-like conditions. The ultimate goal is to improve commerce through viable means that aide corporations and people alike, to improve commerce and the economy around the world.

Improving the condition of the biosphere is another element of the sustainability movement. The biosphere is the global layer or environment that sustains life. Currently the Earth is growing warmer due to the effects of global warming, which have weakened the biosphere and allowed greenhouse gases to accumulate at a rapid level, creating global warming and a change in the entire biosphere. To sustain the Earth, the biosphere must be protected, and this is another important goal the sustainability movement is moving toward ("Various"). Many groups target each of these areas of sustainability, or target several of them at once. Some groups target all of them.

Biodiversity and sustainability go hand in hand because they are both geared to create ecologically sound choices that will help the planet survive. Biodiversity studies the relationships between life and its environment ("Biodiversity and Your Food"), while sustainability attempts to create solutions when life and its environment are threatened. In fact, the two movements support each other in a number of ways, from research and development to creating solutions consumers and everyday people can utilize in their daily lives. One of these solutions relates to the food chain, and indicates how consumers can make a difference when they shop and prepare food.

Of course, biodiversity exists in every area of the natural world, but one area where consumers can make a difference in is the food they purchase and consume. Basically, to sustain the plant life of the world, consumers can make choices when they shop that will help conserve resources and add to the sustainability of the food chain. Organic produce, for example, uses no chemicals or fertilizers, and so has less impact on farmland than other types of crops. When consumers choose to buy local, organic produce, they are choosing to help local farmers and have less impact on farmland. Another thing consumers can do is buy produce when it is in season, rather than relying on foreign grown produce, which is shipped thousands of miles to market. Buying products with minimal packaging requirements helps cut down on waste, and recycling waste or creating a compost pile helps reduce the amount of waste in landfills. All of these things have an affect on the biodiversity and sustainability of the planet, because they use fewer natural resources and leave more of the planet in balance, which is the goal of biodiversity ("Biodiversity and Your Food").

Sustainability and the Earth's natural resources also go hand in hand. Sustaining the natural resources of any area can keep the biodiversity of the area intact, but it also ensures resources will be available for generations to come. For example, creating alternatives to building with wood can help save the forests throughout the world, and ensure there is enough wood to go around for many centuries. Raw materials such as lumber, and of course many others, are the very "foundation" of our lives ("Natural Resource Commodities"). If we do not sustain their availability, then life on the planet cannot go on as it has been going on, and the change could be so great it harms the planet forever. That is why sustaining the world's natural resources is such a vital element of the sustainability movement ("Natural Resource Commodities").

Another problem facing the sustainability movement in the area of natural resources is the overfishing of the world's oceans. In fact, "Over 2/3 of the world's fisheries are presently overexploited fully exploited or depleted" ("Biodiversity and Your Food"). Some of the affected species include sea scallops, salmon in the Atlantic and Pacific, flounder, herring, black sea bass, monkfish, and many others. The object of sustainable fishery practices is to ensure many of these overfished species survive in order to feed the world for generations to come. The most recent American Sustainable Fisheries Act was signed in 1996 ("Office of Sustainable Fisheries") and it oversees a wide variety of species from the Atlantic and Caribbean to the… READ MORE

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