Environmental Science

1) Ecological Footprint Calculation. Calculate your individual ecological footprint. Describe the major contributors of your lifestyle to your ecological footprint. What can you do to reduce your footprint? 2) Pick an ecosystem (e.g. hydrothermal vent, temperate forest, Arctic tundra, semi-arid desert, etc.). Describe the abiotic and biotic components that make it unique from other ecosystems. What could you measure that would indicate the “health” of this ecosystem as the climate changes. 3) Describe an “environmental success story”, a case study of an area/resource/system that has recovered. Describe the increased ecosystem goods and services that are once again provided to society that were not existent in its degraded state.

Descriptions of how you feel you improved your knowledge, skills, abilities, and yourself in this session through this course.  Evaluation of the work you did during the session for the class and explanations of ways you could have performed better.  Topics you have identified that you did not understand or were not successful in trying to implement and suggestions you may have about how to improve the course material on those topics.  Ways you might measure the future effects of what you have learned in this course or your future progress/improvement.  State whether you achieved the course outcome : Analyze methods of human consumption, standards of living, and personal health practices influence on the health of individuals and communities Discuss the evolution of the practice of environmental health Assess the influence of food production, water use, climate change, population growth and energy resources on community health Investigate relationships among behavioral, environmental, and genetic factors that enhance or compromise health Examine environmental justice and its associated history and principles Compare and contrast between federal and state regulatory programs that contribute to managing environmental health issues Explore the roles of risk communication in environmental health Evaluate the effectiveness of global health education initiatives in environmental health

This paper should follow the Water Footprint exercise.  Reflect on the importance of water in your daily life and your own water consumption.  What emotions did the activity provoke? What did you learn? What surprised you? What can you possibly do to conserve water in your own life?  Beyond water conservation what could you do to promote water justice? This is the website: https://www.watercalculator.org/wfc2/complete/

Microplastics lab   Microplastics are non-biodegradable particles made from polyethylene, less than 5 millimeters long, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA).They can come from different sources, including larger plastic items breaking down; microbeads in health and beauty products; and plastic threads in clothing. NOAA says when microplastics end up in bodies of water it can cause problems. They can end up in the bodies of fish and other marine life and in our water system, both resulting in human consumption of microplastics. Sampling Procedure (if you have access to a lake or river beach) **If you can’t access a beach safely, you can use the Microplastics Sample Data to make your graph. Materials needed: string or tape measure to measure area sampled; two pencils;  bucket or bag to carry tools; trowel/hand shovel; ziplock bags; sharpie; strainer or collander  • Step 1: Choose two local beaches or rivers that have sand where you can access the sand safely. Arrive at first sampling location (look along the highest high-water mark or wrack line)  • Step 2: At the sampling location, use the string to measure the distance you wish to sample (approx. 4 feet), using pencils stuck into the sand to hold the string in place. . • Step 3: Using hands or trowel, scrape off top ~1/2-inch of sand from along the length of your string line.  • Step 4: Pour the sand through the strainer, removing any rocks, pour the contents that remains in the strainer into the first Ziploc bag. Label the bag with the beach name and date using the sharpie.  • Repeat for the other sampling location Upon returning home, come up with a hypothesis about which area you think will have the most microplastics present (before you count) think about proximity to town and how often the beach is used. Spread the contents of the first bag on to a cookie sheet or paper towels and count any plastic pieces observed.  Use the microplastics ID card at the end of the lab to help you identify the plastic pieces. Record in the Excel Data Table and make a column graph of your data Copy your graph into Microsoft Word Don’t forget to label your axes and give your graph a graph number, a capitalized title, and a sentence that says which microplastic you found the most of.  **If you can’t access a beach safely, you can use the Microplastics Sample Data to make your graph. Write a Conclusion:  The hypothesis was _________________________________ (fill in your hypothesis here). This was __________________________ (supported/ not supported by the data you found (plastic pieces that you counted)). _______________ beach had the highest total plastic pieces in the sample _____________(fill in the total plastic pieces for that beach). Does this make sense considering the location of the beach? (is it closer to town or used more often in the summer)

Points rubric:  Minor omission or minor misunderstanding of course concept (2-3 point deduction), major omission or major misunderstanding of course concept (4-5 point deduction), two or more errors related to grammar or spelling (2-3 point deduction). Full sentences shall be used for all parts of the responses. Sentences beyond the sentence count may not be read (1-5 point deduction). 1. According to Campbell and Corley, what are three methods that enhance citizen participation? Provide one example that enhanced citizen participation on a matter pertaining to environmental justice (other than the citizen involvement relating to the Torrance refinery) and took place in the last 36 months. Include a reference with the response (5 complete sentences maximum). 2. Review the five types of power described by French and Raven. Identify a leader in your life (The leader could be from home, work, social circles, your favorite company, or other areas where leaders reside). Describe which one of the five types of power are most clearly exhibited or maintained by your subject leader. Also, describe how one of the five types of power is unlike or not well connected to your leader. Finally, identify and discuss three key terms from the Kouzes and Posner Leadership Practices Inventory that describe the leader (5 complete sentences maximum). 3. Consider the following statement: Wealthy people are healthier than others. Is the statement a reflection of cultural relativism, classism, racism, or feminism? Choose one position and support your response with two credible references from 2015-2020 other than the one in the module. (5 complete sentences maximum) 4. Identify three different types of “citizens” (one small, one medium, and one large) who have the potential to impact air quality. Discuss two contributions that each can make to improve local, regional, or global air quality. (6 complete sentences maximum). 5. How can corporations improve conditions relating to racism and environmental justice? Support your response with two credible references from 2015-2020? (5 complete sentences maximum). Resources: https://www.citizenscience.gov/catalog/# https://www.ted.com/talks/jesper_brodin_and_pia_heidenmark_cook_how_ikea_is_growing_its_business_while_shrinking_emissions https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/each-countrys-share-co2-emissions

Mitigating Human-Wildlife Conflict in Protected Areas and Local Communities in Africa

-Write this paper in a word document. MLA style -The chosen topic for this essay is Clean Car -here are the three sources: https://www.startribune.com/walz-says-minnesota-will-adopt-higher-fuel-efficiency-standards-for-cars-and-trucks/561349092/?refresh=true https://www.mprnews.org/story/2020/02/20/rural-lawmakers-push-back-against-clean-cars-proposal

To reduce the negative environmental impacts of an ever-growing human population, and increasing demands for energy as technological advances continue, individual countries, states, cities and even households could shift their energy sources to those that are renewable. However, not all locations are equally amenable to any form of renewable energy. For this Assignment you will assess your own location, existing energy use, and the advantages and disadvantages of different energy sources. Be sure to explore the following resources to begin your research in order to support your ideas with accurate facts. While the provided resources focus on the United States, you are welcome to explore the energy situation within your own state of residence, one that you would like to live in or have visited in the past, or an international location. To focus your discussion, only use one region for your entire argument. Review the Unit 4 Assignment resources. For additional information on different energy sources review the Science Center Resource. Your Assignment should be a compare-contrast essay written using APA formatting. The Assignment should include a title page, introduction, and conclusion. The paper will require you to include details from research including the course materials and sources you locate on your own. Use APA format to cite your sources of information, both within parenthetical citations and also within a reference page at the end of the Assignment. Your paper should include all the following parts. Assess your own energy use. Think about how you rely on different types of energy throughout your day. Identify the energy source you use to do the following tasks and indicate if the energy source is renewable or nonrenewable. The main energy source you use to heat your home if applicable The main energy source used to cool your home if applicable The main energy source you use to run your household appliances (reminder: if you use electricity you will need to do some research to determine what energy source is used to generate your electricity) The main energy source you use for transportation Using the provided materials, determine, and discuss both the renewable source of energy that would be the most appropriate, and that would be the least appropriate for use in your chosen location. Explain how you arrived at your decisions, so it is clear why one is the most appropriate and why one is the least appropriate. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the energy sources you currently rely on as well as the two renewable energy sources you identified above. Include both the economic (costs/benefits) and ecological impacts of each. In your opinion, should the US pursue the use of more renewable energy sources going forward? Should any policies be put in place to encourage people to use more renewable energy sources? Support your position with reputable sources. Basic Writing Expectations: At least 1000 words not counting the title or reference pages Include a title page, double spaced, font size 10 or 12 Include a reference page and use a minimum of five sources Include a highly developed viewpoint/thesis, purpose, and exceptional content Demonstrate superior organization: use logic to present a unified argument Free of grammar and spelling errors No evidence of plagiarism Use the APA style for all citations No more than 10% of your assignment should be taken verbatim from any outside sources. For help with citations, refer to the APA Quick Reference. For additional writing help, visit the Writing Center and review the guidelines for research, citation and plagiarism. Be sure your essay analysis is clearly written, uses correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling, and that the writing is well ordered, logical, unified, as well as original and insightful.

How has Donald Trump’s presidency shaped United States and global climate policy, as compared to Barack Obama’s presidency?

Explain how our current economic system creates, exacerbates, or reduces our vulnerabilities to your disruption scenario of Winter storms, causing power outages and road blockages.  Explain how our current economic system supports or creates barriers to an ideal disruption response.  Explain how the economics of the previous era discussed this week might create a different situation in the face of this disruption.   Explain how you might use mechanisms of our current economic system to plan for resilience.   This week’s report should be between 500-750 words, presented in APA formatting, and supported by evidence from a minimum of 4 credible sources. Use scholarly sources (i.e. journal articles, books published by university presses, etc.), government websites and reports, or publications from any of the organizations the American Association of Geographers: list of leading climate change organizations  (Links to an external site.) . You may not use popular sources, including news media, unless you can make a case for the information being otherwise unavailable (e.g., a highly local and well-respected newspaper).  In addition, you may also find that newspapers, documentaries, and television news coverage found on YouTube may give you a good illustration of your scenario to help you think it through, although these should not count as part of your four cited sources.