Weekly Statement #2

Yu-Jen(Chris), Tsai
ADP III

The human race has been living with the nature for at least thousands of years. However, as time went on, the balance between the environmental resources on earth and the humans seem to fall on one side. Ever since the industrial evolution, us human have done everything to better our lives convenience-wise, which later become a major issue on the planet. It is not until the nature warned us in a catastrophic way that we realized and decided to find the solution for out mother earth. It can be possible for us to live with nature, just like the animals.

Above is a picture that I took on the trip to Arbor Land with my friends. It is a field that has been constructed be become a baseball field, and behind and outside of the railings is the little mountain full of trees. On the other hand, the sky occupies the major part of this photo; the light of the sunset shows the beauty of the natural world and how we should be thankful. You can also see airplanes flying in the clear sky, which I think delivers similar message as does the forest-baseball field composition.

We need every piece of plants and every space in the sky not only because they were there since the beginning of the big bang but also they provide us shelter and we must learn a way to live with it.

Weekly Response #1

Yu-Jen(Chris),Tsai
ADP III 005

Beyond Hope

Finish reading articles at the length of this is usually a painful task for me; however, the way Derrick Jenson discusses the term "hope" and the relationship between us and the environment make the article a quick-read for me. "Hope is, in fact, a curse, a bane." Mr. Jenson stated in this very article, which is correct in some ways to me once I have finish reading rest of the passages. He supported this idea by using the story of the Pandora Box as an example; however, the idea of the story is saying that the last thing that came out of the box, hope, besides plagues, sorrow and mischief is suppose to be the only goodness that should've get released from the box.

Derrick Jenson explains how the word "hope" works; to hope is to idealize the current situation we are in and not practical. He says that people always "hope" that the natural crises can have an end, which is same as assuming the situation would only get worse in the future. We shouldn’t just hope things to get better as time goes on. Over the summer in early August, in my hometown, Taiwan, had a serious natural catastrophe caused by the typhoon, similar to United States’ “Hurricane”. Dozens of buildings got drawn into the river by the landslide due to the shocking amount of precipitation. And when the residence saw their entire house destroyed in matter of seconds, the villagers burst into tears and kneeled down while crying out loud. When I saw the image on the news, I couldn’t imagine how would I feel when all of a sudden everything that matters the most to me got taken away from me. Many family members died during the tragedy; little kids that are still in grade school cried because they knew they won’t be able to see some of their classmates ever again. And people around the world “hope” that disaster like this never happened; they “hope” they could do something about it. But how much of them did?

I went down to the disaster area with some of my high school friends back in Taiwan and helped the victims of the terrible tragedy carried food and supplies, dug out the mud that caused by the landslide. Even though it was only a three-day volunteer work, I felt like I was part of something that can make a difference to the world and our society. I do whatever I can to make an impact on the planet instead of just sitting in front of the television and “hope” things to improve. I believe this is what Jenson has been trying to tell us through this article.

Work Cited:

Jensen, Derrick. "Beyond Hope." 8th Paragraph Orion.

Weekly Response prompt #3: YOU, Spirituality, and Global Systems

Consider one of the main goals of this course (that Professor Trumpey mentioned in the first two lectures) which is to have you start thinking about yourself and your stuff in relationship to “Global Systems.”



Relate this concept to Leopold’s assertion that “there are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other that heat comes from the furnace” (Leopold 6).



Do you think this statement is still relevant (given that he wrote it in 1949)? Is he talking about the importance of literally owning a farm and leading an agricultural life? Are there other ways of interpreting this for the 21st century? What does he mean by “spiritual”? How/Do you relate to this statement?


Please be sure to carefully read and respond to each component of this prompt and to cite your sources correctly!


(Please post a comment to this post as opposed to clicking on the upper right hand "New Post" button as I think the blog will seem a little more organized. There are still a few of you that I have not received one or both of the other assignments and am wondering if they just got lost in the 'pile'...)

World Changing Response 2

Lily Porter

9/24

 

Reading “This Steer’s Life” really sparked my interest in genetically modified animals.  The article definitely made me not want to eat genetically modified meat, but rather only grass fed animals.  It seemed to me that genetically modifying things was tampering with nature and it was all unhealthy and harmful.  So I read “The Benefits of Bioengineered Crops”.  Turns out, scientists seem to have a better handle on controlling plants than animals, yet it is still risky.

            Genetically modified crops may have dangerous results (on human health and the environment) in the future, which we simply haven’t had enough time to learn from.  Still, these crops do have positive outcomes, such as New Rice for Africa (NERICA).  NERICA is “a strain of rice that may succeed in bettering health in West and Central Africa, restoring agricultural sustainability there, and improving the economics of food importation in the regions” (Steffen 68).  Bioengineers have the ability to make crops specific to a region’s needs.  For instance, they can take two very different plants and mix them together into one to create a more sustainable and useful crop.  This fairly new idea of genetically modified crops has so much potential to improve, and since no major problems are arising from it, it seems to be a much better process then genetically modified animals. 

            Because I think genetically modifying animals has mainly negative effects, I was expecting to think the same of genetically modifying plants.  The opposite happened.  I think genetically modified crops have great potential.  This proves how that it is important to educate people on where their food/stuff comes from and the new ideas that are changing our world. 

 

Steffen, Alex. World Changing: A User's Guide For the 21^st

 Century. New York, NY: Abrams, 2008. Print.

world changing response 2

“Do it yourself” has become a very well know term that we often use in our society today. This new idea of doing things on our own has not only influenced products that can be made by the common individual, but it has affected our media, and how we interact with our environment as well. Nowadays people enjoy personalizing their own products, and making them unique to themselves as individuals, making it impossible for others to own the same items. Maybe this new phenomena of making our own products has to do with the satisfaction of doing something on our own. It gives people the opportunity to feel like they too can be creative individuals, even if that is not how they normally perceive themselves. A question that I came up with while reading this text has to do with alternative reasoning for this new fetish with “do it yourself” projects.

It boggles my mind that a book that was published so recently about the changing world in the twenty-first century, contains absolutely no mention of how the falling economy may have something to do with it. We are currently facing a recession, and people everywhere are looking for ways to cut costs, and save money. This may in fact have a great impact on why we are now “doing things ourselves”, instead of giving into the way of life we have previously been so accustomed to living; paying for things that we could do just as easily by ourselves. My dad always has a comment about the clothing I buy and then bring home. He simply does not understand the reasoning behind buying a pair of jeans for close to two hundred dollars, that come with holes and rips in them already. Little does he know, they are designer jeans, and are meant to look like that. I believe that my dad would be much more understanding of the concept of wearing ”distressed clothing” if I were to take an old pair of jeans that I already owned and personally distressed them, for the low low cost of nothing. 

world changing response 1

World changing response  #1

Samara Harte

Buying Better Food

 

I have always been a firm believer in eating healthy foods. Buying and eating fresh foods has always been important to me as well. To be honest, buying food locally has never really occurred to me, and I never really thought it would make such a difference. In some areas, certain foods are unavailable, yet are made available by flying the food in from an area in which that particular item is naturally found. This seems to be a good idea, until we realize the other things that are happening in order for us to receive such foods. Packaging up food and sending it elsewhere, seems to be a convenient move, when really its just hurting our environment. The idea of “farmers markets” is quite interesting as well. I have seen them multiple times in my home town, and always wondered where they got their  produce, breads, and various other items to be sold. I never realized that these individuals were selling foods and products that they themselves were responsible for growing, seeing as how they were selling their products in the middle of a suburb, Scarsdale NY, not near any farm land that I was aware of. It never really occurred to me that these products were being made closer to home, and were much healthier and fresher then any of the foods I would normally go to the supermarket to buy. When taking time to think about this I realize that buying locally is healthier for both myself as an individual, and as a part of the greater community in trying to preserve our environment.

 

Response 2

In this day in age its hard to remove ourselves from the world we have learned to become so reliant on, and move into a primarily “natural world”. We have all been brought up to depend on materialistic objects, and rely on the many comforts within our homes. To many people the “natural world” no longer is necessary. Who would prefer going camping without cell phone reception over a trip to the mall, or a gathering of friends in front of the television screen? In my opinion the answer is not many, and this is solely the outcome of us not appreciating the natural environment that we were originally intended to rely upon.

I do however believe that the “natural world” is very important to our own well being. It’s important to look at nature and the environment that surrounds us, and realize that without it we wouldn’t be able to live the lives we now live today. For example, I love to shop. I am fascinated by clothing, and probably enjoy shopping more then any other activity. I also have a deep appreciation for food. Without the natural resources provided by our “natural environment” there would be no clothing to buy, or food to eat. I think that on a larger scale, and a less materialistic one at that, escaping the lifestyle we are used to and appreciating the natural world as it really is can help clear our minds and keep us morally grounded. Often I find that the materialistic objects in my life distract me, and cause me more stress, even though they are there to try and make things easier and more comfortable.

Another one of my favorite activities is skiing. I love being on the mountain, surrounded by trees, enjoying the outdoors, without the disruption of my cell phone, or caring about how I look. Being on the beach is yet another example of how the natural world creates an environment purely based on relaxation. Sometimes being outside in nature, and accepting the environment for what it truly is (and for its original purpose) relaxes me, and helps me be reminded of the things in life that really matter. You can’t buy family, friends, or happiness, all of these things are part of the “natural world” that I believe we as a community need to work harder at appreciating and understanding.    

I chose this images to correlate with the above statement, because it is a prime example of getting away from the materialistic world around us, and going to a place that only offers relaxation. Its funny because usually my cell phone is on me at all times, but when looking at a picture like this, I know that if I were in this particular setting, my cell phone would be the last thing on my mind.