...Name Tutor Course Date Ecological footprint Introduction The planet Earth is the only planet that supports and sustains human life. The human activities carried out on the planet are gradually making the planet unfavorable to live on (Perman 81). Ecology involves the study of relationships between living organisms and their usual natural environment. This paper will define ecological footprint, present a deep understanding of the ecological footprint and show how it applies in measuring the peoples’ effects to the environment. The paper will also explain how the ecological footprint can be used in making choices that go in line with people’s lifestyles. The principles of ecological footprint date back to literatures related to geography, ecology and economics. However, the idea of the earth’s ecological footprint has been present since early 90’s (Wackernagel 35). William Rees in 1992 produced the first academic publication on ecological footprint. The concept of ecological footprint and calculation criteria was later developed by Mathis Wackernagel as a PhD dissertation under the supervision of Rees at British Columbia University in Vancouver. Originally, the concept was called the appropriated carrying capacity. Rees later came up with the ecological footprint term in order to ensure that the concept is accessible. The ecological footprint in the planet has transpired as the earth’s vital gauge of the individual’s demand on the environment and the...
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...Population Growth and Ecological Footprints The population size (N) of a species at any point in time (t) is determined by its size at (t-1), its per capita birth rate (b), its per capita death rate (d), and immigration and emigration. Each of these values is, in turn, affected by a huge suite of biotic and abiotic conditions. Human populations are governed by these same variables. In this laboratory, you will use models of population growth to understand how population growth is affected by changes in b and d, and why the actual values of b and d are important. You will also explore some dimensions of human impacts on the environment. A model is a mathematical description of how one thinks a system works. For a population growing at a constant rate, where b and d never change, an appropriate model for population growth is the exponential growth model: dN/dt = rN where r = b – d, assuming that immigration and emigration are negligible. This is a density-independent model since neither b nor d change with increasing population size. Conversely, the logistic model is a density-dependent model, where b and d change with changes in the population size: dN/dt = rN [(K-N)/K] where K = carrying capacity of the environment. In this lab you will use a simple Excel spreadsheet model to explore how population size (N) changes as b and d change under the two different growth models, exponential and logistic. The spreadsheets have areas that you...
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...Atomic theory (p29) Abiotic (p42) Aerobic respiration (p43) Adaption (adaptive trait) (p64) Age structure (p101) Artificial selection (p69) B Basic solution (p30) Background extinction (p69) Biosphere (p41) Biotic (p42) Biomass (p45) Biomes (p62) Biogeochemical cycles (p48) Biological capacity (p10) Biological diversity (biodiversity) (p60) Biological evolution (p63) Birth rate (crude birth rate) (p98) C Capital (p7) Carnivores (meat eaters) (p43) Carbon cycle (p50) Carrying capacity (p86) Cell (p31) Cell theory (p31) Chemical bonds (p30) Chemical change (p32) Chemical composition (p32) Chemical equation (p32) Chemical formula (p30) Chemical reaction (p32) Chromosome (p31) Coevolution (p83) Commensalism (p80) Compound (p28) Compromises (p8) Component of sustainability (p7) (p8) Cultural carrying capacity (p96) D Data (p25) Decomposers (p43) Death rate (crude death rate) (p98) Degrade natural capital (p8) Demographic transition (p104) Detritus (p43) Developed countries (p13) Developing countries (p13) E Ecological niche (p71) Ecology (p42) (p6) Ecological deficit (p11) Ecological footprint (p10) Ecological succession (p89) Ecological tipping point (p12) Ecosystem (p6) Endemic species (p69) Energy (p34) Energy efficiency (p35) Energy quality (p34) Electron (p29) Electromagnetic radiation (p34) Element (p28) Environment (p6) Environmental degradation (p9) Environmental ethics (p18) Environmental impact (p13) Environmental...
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...ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES. Natural and Environmental Science is a vast interdisciplinary study within Mathematics, Science and Mechanics which integrates physical, biological and information sciences to the study of the environment and the solutions to environmental issues. It developed during the insight from the areas of Medicine and Natural Antiquity. Quantitative reasoning is vital to the understanding of environmental processes. As mentioned earlier Environmental Science is an integration of different branches of science and in the area of Physics, Chemistry and even Biology. Mathematics is essential and plays a very important role in this discipline. In the biological and ecological aspect of environmental science, there is a subtopic known as the Carrying Capacity in an Ecosystem. Carrying capacity of a biological specie in an ecosystem is the maximum population size such specie can reach in that ecosystem and survive indefinitely with the necessities available. This is calculated by rationalizing the specie per square meter in a hectare of the ecosystem land. Mathematics is also used in environmental science in the aspect of solar and wind energy conversion, where the direct current is converted to alternating current. Also there are energy conversion rates which are as follows: The solar energy conversion rate is 1,800,000 (kcal/ m2/year). Ecosystem Efficiency = 0.012%, Energy conversion to mass - 2,500 kcal/m2/yr = 3,900 kg/ha/yr. a factor of 1.56. 1 hectare = 10,000...
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...Homework #1 – Basic Terms and Concepts Name: Intro to the Environment - Eco Footprint - Homework #1 (HW1) – Fall 2012 1. An ecosystem is a community of organisms living in a particular environment and also the physical elements in that given environment, in which these organisms interact. Its diversity is profoundly substantial. An ecosystem can extend from the icy artic zones to the tropical forests. They occur in many different scales with smaller systems pierced inside larger systems. Depending on the scale, an ecosystem can be small or profoundly large. 2. Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water. In plants, photosynthesis generally involves the green pigment chlorophyll and generates oxygen as a byproduct. 3. A producer in an ecosystem, converts energy from the environment into carbon bonds. For instance, green plants use energy from the sun to create more complex molecules like carbon dioxide into glucose. Consumers on the other hand are organisms that obtain nutrients from other organisms. They attain their energy from the carbon bonds made by the producers. An example of a consumer is animal that gets its energy from plants. It is also called an herbivore. A few examples of herbivores include cows, moose, gazelles, rabbits and elephants. The trophic level of an organism is where the organism is situated in the food chain. A food chain is similar to...
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...Urbanization Processes – Environmental and Health effects in Africa Panel Contribution to the PERN Cyberseminar on Urban Spatial Expansion by Kwasi Nsiah-Gyabaah, PERN Steering Committee member and Principal, Sunyani Polytechnic, Sunyani, BA, Ghana, E-mail: spolytec @yahoo.com Introduction Urbanization is increasing in both the developed and developing countries. However, rapid urbanization, particularly the growth of large cities, and the associated problems of unemployment, poverty, inadequate health, poor sanitation, urban slums and environmental degradation pose a formidable challenge in many developing countries. Available statistics show that more than half of the world’s 6.6 billion people live in urban areas, crowded into 3 percent of the earth’s land area (Angotti, 1993; UNFPA, 1993). The proportion of the world’s population living in urban areas, which was less than 5 percent in 1800 increased to 47 percent in 2000 and is expected to reach 65 percent in 2030 (United Nations, 1990; 1991). However, more than 90 percent of future population growth will be concentrated in cities in developing countries and a large percentage of this population will be poor. In Africa and Asia where urbanization is still considerably lower (40 percent), both are expected to be 54 percent urban by 2025 (UN 1995; 2002). Although urbanization is the driving force for modernization, economic growth and development, there is increasing concern about the effects of expanding cities, principally...
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...and tt tt t he Ehe E he Ehe E he E cc cc c oo oo o nn nn n oo oo o mm mm m yy yy y 1. AGRICULTURE TAKES A BIG BITE: THE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT OF THE GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEM After air and water, food is the most essential resource people require to sustain themselves. These resources are provided by the layer of interconnected life that covers our planet: the biosphere. Yet the way the food system provides food often severely damages the health of the biosphere through soil and aquifer depletion, deforestation, aggressive use of agrochemicals, fishery collapses, and the loss of biodiversity in crops, livestock, and wild species. The global food system has become such a dominant force shaping the surface of this planet and its ecosystems that we can no longer achieve sustainability without revamping the food system. At the same time sustainable food systems provide great hope for building a sustainable future—a future in which all can lead satisfying lives within the means of the biosphere. In this brief, we use Ecological Footprint analysis to document the current food system’s demand on the biosphere. Ecological Footprint accounts track the area of biologically productive land and water needed to produce the resources consumed by a given population and to absorb its waste. The Ecological Footprint allows us to monitor a central threat to sustainability: the liquidation of the planet’s natural capital as we consume more resources than nature ...
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...Name Professor Course Number Date How Do You Think Humans Interact With the Environment? Introduction The term environment has different definitions depending on the context and the people involved. Culture and technological advancements of a people are some of the criteria used to define the term environment. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the environment as the “complex physical, chemical, and biotic factors that act upon and organism and ultimately determine its survival.” An important point to note from this definition is that, in this particular case, the human being is the organism whose survival is dependent on the environment. Among all living organisms on earth, none has influenced the environment as humans. In their daily activities, people build houses, roads, cities, dams, and carry out various other activities in order to make life more comfortable. Consequently, human beings adapt, depend on, and modify the environment in order to make life more comfortable. This has resulted in consequences such as climate change that have only recently been appreciated by the global community. It is an irrefutable fact that human beings cannot survive without the environment. Therefore, the topic of how humans are interacting with the environment is becoming an increasingly debated topic. This paper seeks to discuss how humans interact with the environment and the impacts that have resulted from these interactions. Finally, a solution to the challenge brought about...
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...Are Humans Special? I believe that the Human population will only increase as time moves forward. The reason for this increase is due to the human population eradicating every natural limit that threatens its survival, thus leaving humans in ‘control’ of an earth we are taking advantage of. In this essay I will be comparing human populations to non-human populations to prove how humans are special and seem to go against the laws of nature. First humans over time has gone through several revolutions, the first and most important revolution being the agricultural revolution, also referred to as the neolithic revolution, was when humans transitioned from being hunter-gatherers to being agriculturalists. Due to this change, around 1000 years ago, humans went through natural cultural changes, now with less movement of groups women had more time to create children, which was necessary for free labor to attain their food. This simple change years ago started the exponential growth of the human population and the degradation of the earth. After some time there was the industrial revolution which saw a huge increase in, not only human infrastructure and transportation but also in human healthcare, sanitation and food growth. Since the industrial revolution introduced engine run tractors and farm equipment food production increased tremendously, which in turn increased the size of families to work on the now larger farms.Agriculture wasn’t the only benefit that was created by the industrial...
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...Urbanization Insert Name Here Insert Affiliation Here Urbanization/CASE Urbanization refers to the reallocation from a rustic to an urban social order due to shifts in global variants. It is a product of economic, political and social advancement that has paved the way for the emergence of large metropolis, cause a spike in the population density of the region. A survey predicted that half of the earth’s inhabitants would reside in urban centers towards the end of 2008 (United Nations). Intimately connected to the processes of modernization, industrialization and rationalization, the phenomenon has it genesis in the Renaissance period. Continuous attacks by the Turks caused the Christians to migrate from the east to the west of Europe. Consequently, the volume of trade rose and European cities besides the coastline progresses impressively. An additional push was given to urbanization upon the advent of the Industrial Revolution; the population density of European and American cities continued to intensify. For instance, the city of Chicago saw it population rise from fifteen individuals to over twenty million in a timeframe of seventy eight year. Yet, the phenomenon took hold of the Asian and African region only after sovereignty from colonial subjugation; in the first and second half of the 20th century, respectively (Howard Gillette Jr.). As mentioned before, the process of urbanization takes place when individuals abandon their rural lifestyle and migrate to...
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...focusing on the juxtaposition of the benefits of biotechnological advancements in the food industry with the synergetic natural relationship of all living organisms. The argument supporting our technologically enhanced farming is often overlooked by the idealists of our society vying for the end of world hunger. Is it realistic to believe that without these processed foods which make up over two thirds of the world’s diet; the population would be remotely similar in size to that of a population using non-biologically engineered or enhanced foods? Has our society grown to such magnitudes merely as a result of our ability to produce food as quickly and efficiently as we currently do? At what point will humanity’s demand, exceed the Earth’s carrying capacity? This then raises the question of morality. Is it ethically right to turn our backs and deny a portion of our ever-growing population the ability to eat knowing we are beginning to challenge global sustainability? Arguably, it is reasonable to assume that if you were to take away our overly processed, biologically re-engineered foods in order to reach equilibrium, there would be a proportionate loss of human life. This however, may be the only way to ensure humanity’s survival. This is where ethical relativity has to be decided as a society. Is it more morally right to knowingly cause damage to our civilization and future generations in exchange for the ability to sustain life in the present? Or do we need to focus on our future and...
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...The Negative and Positive Ecological Impacts of Technology Introduction In today's society more people are working longer hours and utilizing more technology in their everyday life. As a result of these longer hours and increased use of technology, more energy is being consumed. (Hayden and Shandra 575) The impact that this is having on the environment is substantial in both negative and positive ways. It is hard to deny the benefits modern technology has produced for the world, in industry and in everyday life. With more and more technological breakthroughs, there have been many positive ecological impacts. However, it is also hard to deny that there are considerable negative impacts as well. Supporters of a work reduction scheme maintain that the reduction in hours will have a positive effect on the environment and the raw materials that are used on a daily basis. (Hayden and Shandra 576) Though the argument that a reduction in hours will result in a better quality of life is largely agreed upon, the theory that a reduction in hours will reduce the negative impacts on the environment is still one of contention as there is no concrete evidence to back it up. (Hayden and Shandra 576) To counter this theory, there are those who argue that a reduction in hours will not result in a redution in damage to the environment. Each year, technology is making advances in producing low energy products that will reduce the damage to the environment. It is argued that with these advances...
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...humans? Ecological Footprint is the average per capita amount of resource data used that spread across the country. Wealth is unequally distributed against member of society. The exception are the individuals with the greatest number of wealth may have the biggest impact on the environment through an unlimited amount of resource use. In those developed counties, the wealthy tend to own larger homes, do more traveling, purchase high cost jewelry, and have an input on policies and procedures and each of these things place a strain on the environment. The human impact plays a big part on the natural environment and on each other. The resources that we use and chose such as our home, clothes, shelter and the necessities which is food, energy, water, and affect long term availability of other resources. 22. How did the industrial revolution enable humans to increase their carrying capacity? When the population hits carrying capacity the growth rate will be zero because the number has stabilized where birth rate equal death rate. Humans have found ways to offset limitations with advances in medicine, industrialization of food, and transporting food from one supermarket to the other and the harvesting of fossil fuels. These factors have greatly decreased death rates especially of infants and human populations. Decreases in infant rates have decrease the number of births per mother in a life time which in return has led to an average life expectancy. We cannot predict the carrying of...
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...as a surprise, given that Traditional Conservatives share a substantial chunk of belief with Classical Liberalist. However, when one looks at “Burke’s criteria for what constitutes a “conservative”…change must contribute to furthering the well-being of the community…what is being conserved needs …whether it contributes community self-sufficiency… a smaller ecological footprint”(Browers). Here author C. A. Browers, applies the old Burkean Conservative to a modern problem, the effect of human evolvement to the environment. Browers argues that the word conservative is misused and being applied to modern republicans, who, diminish environmental progress. As Browers also states, “conserving the self-renewing capacity of nature…also conserves the well-being of human communities—as Burke understood their organic continuities”(Browers). This highlights that Traditional Conservatives have a sense responsibility for the environment. The Keystone Pipeline which, “poses other environmental challenges, like toxic sludge ponds, greenhouse gas emissions and the destruction of boreal forests, constitutes to worsen the ecological footprint”(Krauss & Rosenthal). A Burkean Conservative would view this environmental impact of the pipeline as a way to destroy the environment, in which the next generation will live in, and would disagree with its diminishing ability to lower the quality of the next generation’s...
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...Resorts and Climate Change Name: Institution: Date: Resorts and Climate Change Introduction Resort business is affected greatly by different climatic conditions. The purpose of this report is to identify and discuss the potential impact of climate change on beach resorts and destination resort marinas. The report will: evaluate the fundamental issues and trends that relate to developing, managing, and operating beach resorts and destination resort marinas; outline the internal and external factors influencing the market position of property; review the social, environmental, and economic issues that relate to planning and development process of resorts; and lastly, critique sustainable practices and policies related to resorts. Wherever appropriate, particular reference will be made on resort sector particularly in Western Australia and across other coastal areas in Australia. For example, Perth is popular for beach resorts and destination marina resorts owing to its proximity to the coastline. Indeed, the region is an attractive site for tourists. According to Pham, Simmons and Spurr (2010), tourism contributes significantly the total GDP and resort business is a major economic activity in Western Australia. Development, management and operation of beach resorts and destination marina resorts: key issues and trends Most resorts in Australia are in situated in regional zones. In Australia, major development...
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