Unit 7 Reflection

This unit was all about ecology. Ecology is the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organism in their environments or surroundings. There are many different factors that are hurting all of our ecosystems and our planet in general. Biodiversity is the variety of life in a specific ecosystem or habitat. Habitat loss is one factor that contributes to the threatening of biodiversity. How are plants and animals supposed to survive when we cut down, drill, and industrialize their homes? In the last three decades, we have cut down a quarter of how many forests have been destroyed in the last 10,000 years. This is unacceptable and it is not sustainable. Another big factor in the threatening of biodiversity is climate change. Animals and plants are adapted to a specific climate and specific temperatures. When the climate and temperature goes too far out of what they are adapted too, they can no longer live there. We are causing climate change with global warming, which is being caused by our pollution. If someone found an alternate source of renewable energy to completely wipe out the use of fossil fuels, it would help to put a stop to global warming.

I was very pleased with my group for the conservation biology project. I feel that everyone did their part to contribute to the project, and I am happy with the final result. I feel we all worked hard and well together, and did a good job to stay focused and on task.

We watched a movie in class called "Bag it". This video was about how much waste we produce. A lot of the stuff we buy are meant to only be used once, then thrown away. The main example used in the movie was plastic bags. We only use a plastic bag for about five minutes, but it stays on our planet for up to 1000 years. Plastic bottles are another prime example. They can stay on our earth for up to 450 years, when we use them for about five minutes. Many different places around the world have started to completely ban, or charge a fee for plastic bags. One thing people can do to help the environment is buy reusable bags. It is a simple solution to this massive problem. Just keeping a few reusable bags in the trunk of your car can be very beneficial to our planet's health.

The other video that we watched was "The Story of Stuff". This video was about the textbook "materials economy". However, the textbooks don't give the true definition. They define the materials economy as being a five step, simple process. Extraction to production to distribution to consumption then finally to disposal. In the extraction step, natural resources are exploited from the earth. This is trashing the planet. In the production step, over 100,000 synthetic chemicals are used. Most not tested for their safety. In distribution, they are selling toxic junk as fast as possible. Consumption is the golden arrow. You can definitely feel the effect of this. If someone doesn't have the newest iPhone, or the newest computer, they feel left out. Only four percent of the goods we buy are still in use six months later. That is a shocking statistic. Finally, disposal is the "throwing away" of all our stuff. Each American produces 4.5 pounds of trash every single day! Also, burning our junk just releases all the toxic chemicals from those products into the air, further polluting our only planet. This video has shocked me and has made me want to change the way I live my life. I will start with small steps, such as not buying plastic water bottles for an example. Like Mr. Orre said, you vote with your dollar.



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