Key Themes in Environmental Sciences 1

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Institutional Outcomes (IO)

As a result of their educational experience at MAC, graduates will exemplify:

IO Institutional Outcomes
No.
Living Faith. A growing, transforming relationship with God, applying biblical truths expressed in the Seventh-day Adventists beliefs and spirituality
1
in response to global and personal issues.
2 Professional Competence. Expertise and leadership in their academic or professional discipline, continually improving through s lifelong learning.

3 Social Responsibility. Commitment and engagement to improve the quality of life for all people and care of the environment.

4 Selfless Service. Application of knowledge to real-world challenges with the spirit of unselfish service, fulfilling God’s calling in their life work.

5 Balance Lifestyle. Pursue wholeness by maintaining a balanced healthy lifestyle – spirituality, mentally, physically, and socially.
ents to develop the knowledge of interrelationships among components of natural world; environmental problems, their causes, associated risks, preventive measure

s and Course Objectives


e end of the course, a student is expected to: P
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a
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Learning Outcomes
O
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c
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Knowledge
1 Explain and describe how natural world works and operates 1
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5
2 Discuss the relationship of the living organism including animals, plants and humans within the environment 1
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5
3 Decipher the different environmental problems the world is facing today, its effect on the earth and the way humans 1
have influenced the environment -
5
Skills
4 Use the knowledge the students obtained to be more aware of their surroundings especially to the environment 1
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5
5 Apply the different information about the natural world to develop scientific and wise decision on how to preserve 1
and restore the environment -
5
6 Use the understanding of the relationship between the environment and humans to become mindful and vigilant when it comes 1
to doing or performing activities that will greatly affect the environment -
5
Values
7 Appreciate the beauty of our natural world 1
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5
8 Learn to protect and guard and place value on the natural world 1
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5
Grading System (Student Handbook, Article XIV, Section 3, page 87)
Student Score
Grade = ---------------------- X 50 + 50
Perfect Score

Components % Percentile Numeric Percentile Numeric


attendance 30% 98 – 100 1.00 80 – 82 2.50
Examination 30% 95 – 97 1.25 77 - 79 2.75
Class Participation 20% 92 – 94 1.50 75 - 76 3.00
Class activities, projects
Class behavior 20% 89 – 91 1.75 74 and below 5.00
Total 100% 86 – 88 2.00
83 - 85 2.25
Key Themes In Environmental
Sciences
• “ you alone are the Lord. You made the
heavens, even among the highest heavens,
and all their starry host, the earth and all
that is on it, the seas and all that is on them.
You give life to everything and the
multitudes of heaven worship
you”Nehemiah 9:8
1. Human Population Growth *
Our Rapid Population Growth
• The most dramatic increase in the history of
the human population occurred in the last
part of the 20th century and continues today
into the early 21st century.
• In merely the past 40 years the human
population of the world more than doubled,
from 2.5 billion to about 7.8 billion.
• Population bomb
• Human population growth is, in some
important ways, the underlying issue of the
environment.
• Much current environmental damage is
directly or indirectly the result of the very
large number of people on Earth and our rate
of increase.
Famine and
Food Crisis
• Famine is one of the things that
happen when a human
population exceeds its
environmental resources. *
• Famines have occurred in
recent decades in Africa
• Famine in Africa has had
multiple interrelated causes.
– Drought - Food destruction
as weapon of
political
distruption
– Deforestation
– Poor farming practices =
erosion
• Today, malnutrition contributes
to the death of about 6 million
children per year.
• Low- and middle-income
countries suffer the most from
malnutrition, as measured by
low weight for age
• The emerging global food crisis
in the first decade of the 21st
century has not been caused by
war or drought but by rising
food costs *
2. Sustainability and Carrying
Capacity *
The
environmental
objective

• Environmentalists agree that


sustainability must be achieved
• Sustainability has two formal scientific
meanings with respect to the
environment
– Sustainability of resources: such as
species of fish in the ocean, a kind
of tree etc
– Sustainability of ecosystem: strictly
speaking, harvesting a resource at
a certain rate is sustainable if we
can continue to harvest that
resource at that same rate for
some specified time well into the
future.
Sustainability
of resources
• An ecosystem is sustainable if
it can continue its primary
functions for a specified time
in the future.

• Economists refer
to the specified
time in the future
as a “planning time
horizon”
• Sustainable ecosystems
endure, and they sustain the
organisms within them.Every
ecosystem has biotic and
abiotic parts. Biotic parts
include living things and the
interactions among them.
Abiotic parts are the non-
living parts of an ecosystem,
such as water, light,
nutrients, oxygen, and soil.
• Economists, political scientists, and others
also use the term sustainability in reference
to types of development that are
economically viable, do not harm the
environment, and are socially just (fair to all
people).
What are the attributes
of a sustainable
economy in the
information age

• Populations of humans and other


organisms living in harmony with
the natural support systems,
such as air, water, and land
(including ecosystems).
• An energy policy that does not
pollute the atmosphere, cause
climate change (such as global
warming), or pose unacceptable
risk (a political or social decision)
A plan for renewable resources—such as water, forests,
grasslands, agricultural lands, and fisheries—that will not
deplete the resources or damage ecosystems.
A plan for non renewable resources that does not damage
the environment, either locally or globally, and ensures
that a share of our non renewable resources will be left to
future generations.
A social, legal, and political system that is dedicated to
sustainability, with a democratic mandate to produce such
an economy.
* How to achieve
a sustainable
global economy

• Develop an effective population-


control strategy. This will, at least,
require more education of people,
since literacy and population
growth are inversely related.
• Completely restructure our energy
programs. A sustainable global
economy is probably impossible if it
is based on the use of fossil fuels.
New energy plans will be based on
an integrated energy policy, with
more emphasis on renewable
energy sources (such as solar and
wind) and on energy conservation
• Institute economic
planning, including a tax
structure that will
encourage population
control and wise use of
resources. Financial aid
for developing countries is
absolutely necessary to
narrow the gap between
rich and poor nations.
• Implement social, legal,
political, and educational
changes that help to
maintain a quality local,
regional, and global
environment. This must
be a serious commitment
that all the people of the
world will cooperate with.
* Moving toward
Sustainability:
Some Criteria
• Evolutionary rather than
revolutionary. Developing a
sustainable future will require
an evolution in our values that
involves our lifestyles as well as
social, economic, and
environmental justice.
• Inclusive, not exclusive. All
peoples of Earth must be
included. This means bringing
all people to a higher standard
of living in a sustainable way
that will not compromise our
environment.
• Proactive, not reactive. We must plan for
change and for events such as human
population problems, resource shortages, and
natural hazards, rather than waiting for them
to surprise us and then reacting. This may
sometimes require us to apply the
Precautionary Principle,
• Attracting, not attacking. People must be
attracted to the new paradigm because it is
right and just. Those who speak for our
environment should not take a hostile stand
but should attract people to the path of
sustainability through sound scientific
argument and appropriate values.
• Assisting the disadvantaged, not
taking advantage. This involves
issues of environmental justice. All
people have the right to live and
work in a safe, clean environment.
Working people around the globe
need to receive a living wage—
wages sufficient to support their
families. Exploitation of workers to
reduce the costs of manufacturing
goods or growing food diminishes
us all.
The Carrying
Capacity of the
Earth

• Carrying capacity is a concept


related to sustainability. It is
usually defined as the maximum
number of individuals of a
species that can be sustained by
an environment without
decreasing the capacity of the
environment to sustain that same
number in the future *
C

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