Reflection posts – Mackenzie Hoult

The Informal Waste Sector

December 5, 2018December 7, 2018Leave a comment

Over the course of the second half of the semester, we have been looking at the capitalocene in our labs. The Capitalocene aims to looks at how as countries become more economically advanced, their impact on the environment worsens through human interaction and altercation. The Kuznet curve is one way to interpret the capitalocene as it theorizes as countries begin to develop they will be less environmentally efficient until they are developed, then they will begin to become more environmentally friendly again. We use this theory and others for our final project of looking at waste issue in Chile, which you can read more about here in my project summary page. In this reflection post, I wanted to reflect a little deeper into a reading I read about the informal waste sector in developing countries, as it was only addressed in a small sense in our project.

In many developing countries there is a lack of funding for a formal waste sector, but there is still a surplus of waste. This leads to a formation of the informal waste sector which are lower income populations in these countries that sort, collect, transport and trade waste. A paper titled “Approaches to formalization of the informal waste sector into municipal solid waste management system in low and middle income countries” stated that the informal waste sector consists of, “individuals, groups and micro-enterprises performing informal waste services and/or informal valorization ‘but are not sponsored, financed, recognized or allowed by the formal solid waste authorities’” (Aparcana, 595). The issue with this type of waste management is it creates poor working and living conditions as well as negatively affects the health of a large portion of the poorer parts of a developing country. This paper by Sandra Aparcana talks about how the transition of this informal waste sector to a formal one would improve conditions for workers as well as validate these type of jobs that are normally looked down upon. A report released by OECD stated, “ This type of work only allows for basic survival. This area in Chile is under development… it opens up a field for the collection, transportation, recycling treatment and disposal of waste, as well as energy use of organic waste or waste exchange between companies” (OECD, 43).

I thought this was a really interesting human perspective on what initially seems like a solely environmental issue. While waste in developing countries is a large issue, as we discovered throughout our research for our project, I thought this more human perspective on the way it was being dealt with was very interesting. Shifting from the informal to the formal waste sector gives developing countries an opportunity to greatly improve and take advantage of waste management. By shifting this informal waste sector to a more formal and recognized position, there is large opportunities for creation of jobs along with safety for lower income populations who rely on these types of jobs.

Citations

Aparcana, Sandra. “Approaches to Formalization of the Informal Waste Sector into Municipal Solid Waste Management Systems in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Review of Barriers and Success Factors.” Waste Management 61 (March 2017): 593–607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2016.12.028.

“Chile´s Pathway to Green Growth: Measuring Progress at Local Level – Projects – Wikiprogress.” Accessed November 15, 2018. http://wikiprogress.org/data/dataset/chile-s-pathway-to-green-growth-measuring-progress-at-local-level.

Featured Image: “An informal sector waste worker picker sorting through different types of plastics. Photo by Enrico Fabian. Not for republication.”

Tracing Waste – The Kabari’s Contribution To Society

Whats at Steak?

November 21, 2018November 27, 2018Leave a comment

Vegan, vegetarian, NO animal products! All diet trends that are becoming more common in society today, but are they more than just a fad? I love bacon, I wont lie, and I love a good burger, but I had to ask myself, why are all these people switching to a meatless or animal product free diets? The meat industry is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gases in our atmosphere as well as deforestation, droughts and pollution from sewage and pesticides. In this reflection post I’m aiming to look at the facts of the meat industry and how they actually affect our climate, not only to learn more myself, but also to give a more clear general understanding of how all these things come into play.

The EWG (environmental working group), an activist group focusing on research and advocacy in areas such as agriculture, did a study on the different effects meat has on the environment. They studied the production and distribution lifecycle of 20 different agricultural products. Through this study they found that the meat industry uses huge amounts of pesticides, fertilizers, fuel, feed and water. But how do these processes effect the greenhouse gas emissions in our environment and how are they all interconnected in a “lifecycle”? Starting at the source, livestock are fed large amount of grains, like corn, which take an immense of land, fertilizer and water to be grown. To put this into perspective and numbers, the EWG estimates livestock feed requires 167 million pounds of pesticides and 17 billion pounds of nitrogen fertilizer. This process not only puts large amounts of greenhouse gases into our atmosphere, but also is creating food that could go directly to our large population to feed more people. Continuing on, because cattle ranching needs so much land, the affects of deforestation are tremendous. Forests are not only a carbon sink but they also provide important homes and ecosystems for biodiversity.

While all of these steps may seem very daunting, it becomes more clear as you read that the meat industry not only uses so many of our precious resources but continually builds on its negative impacts on the environment. To simplify the process I included a graphic below to compare how meat is produced.

Photo courtesy of: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/06/27/155527365/visualizing-a-nation-of-meat-eaters

While there are so many articles and propoganda out there about what we should and shouldn’t eat I think a couple things are important to consider when reading and making environmental decisions. A lot of these stats are daunting and it seems as if you as one person can’t do anything, but that’s not true! Even if you cut meat out of your diet a couple days a week, there is always something you can do to change your carbon footprint. I also believe it is imparative to stick to the facts and figures and not get bogged down in propoganda and flashy articles. I hope this article was helpful in gettting the facts straight in your mind and maybe even convincing you to at least cut some small portions of meat of your diet. Check out meat consumption per capita below to see where your country falls in meat consumption.

Map courtesy of: https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption

Featured Image Courtesy of: http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-130949000/stock-photo-funny-cow-on-a-green-summer-meadow.html

Daryl Davis – Environment Across Boundaries

November 5, 2018November 7, 2018Leave a comment

Daryl Davis is a famous musician, activist and author famously known for his engagement with members of the Ku Klux Klan. As an African American man he is responsible for around 40 people leaving the KKK. But, you’re probably wondering, how was he capable of this? And, what does this have to do with environmental studies? Well, in this post I’m going to focus on a lot of the ideas Daryl talked about in how to engage people with severely different views then you and how this relates to the environment and climate change.

Daryl Davis’s presentation at Lewis and Clark spoke a lot to how we engage across boundaries and difference. For him, he was also confused about how someone could be racists towards him as he stated, “how can you hate me when you don’t even know me?”. This question brought him to meet with many KKK members, even in dangerous situations just to basically ask them that question. Daryl believes that when it comes to different, we must address issues immediately in order to open the conversation. Fear, he says, is our biggest weapon because ignorance fuels fear which fuels hate and then destruction. Daryl strongly believes in personal connections, as these have shown him time after time that when you can sit down and talk to someone you begin to feel empathy for the other. Rodger Kelley, the leader of a KKK group, who ended up leaving the klan after many years of being friends with Daryl, stated, “at least he respects me enough to listen to what I have to say”. This respect that he felt from Daryl made their friendship open to conversation about sensitive topics and eventually changed Rodger Kelleys mind. Without this feeling of mutual respect, conversations can never begin.

Now, what exactly does this have to do with environmental studies? Daryl Davis, after all, is a man who has been fighting racism for years through his relationships with KKK members. Well, his ideas about how to engage with people with wildly different views then you hold true to environmental studies. Per my last post, I talked about how climate change today can be incredibly frustrating and scary as more looming statistics come out about how we need to make change now while not even our president believes it’s happening. But, with the ideas of Daryl Davis, even though there are people who don’t believe in climate change or are not willing to do anything about it, it’s important to stay kind and patient and simply have a conversation. Many times we let fear kick in and we get so angry at “the other side” who don’t believe what we believe so we just talk to people who share our ideas because that feels easier. This type of approach gets nothing done and truly splits people into “the other”. Instead of being fearful and discouraged we have to engage people and discuss like we respect and care about everyones opinions. This is a very important step when it comes to climate change, one that very few people take, and one that is very easily forgotten as people become more fearful from current science articles and statistics.

Daryl Davis is an incredibly interesting and intelligent man and I feel grateful to have seen him speak. He truly gave me a different outlook on engaging across difference, no matter the subject.

Featured Image Picture Link: https://college.lclark.edu/programs/environmental_studies/symposium/

Climate Change Today

October 16, 2018October 17, 2018Leave a comment

In an environmental analysis class we are often focusing on taking information in and figuring out why a or how a certain event is occurring. This type of research and learning is important but when looking at climate change today it can be incredibly alarming. Words such as crisis, extinction, mass migration, and irreversible destruction ring in my head time after time while reading articles about climate change. Not only that but the seemingly more detrimental words of President Trump who not only does not believe in climate change, but is actively trying to pull the United States out of the Paris agreement. It’s all a lot to read and digest, but it is important to do especially as someone who is an environmental studies major.

My thoughts on climate change today are that it’s important to get your voice and scientific voices heard in a world so divided by politics that some won’t even admit environmental threats are right outside their door. I also think it’s important to make changes in your lifestyle, no matter how small, that can positively affect the environment. As environmentalist, and especially environmentalist in an analysis class I find it hard not to get caught up in the daunting question of how do we solve it? What can we do? And while these are very important questions, they can drown you in all the negative things that people around the world will and wont do. A way to focus on positivity is focus on the facts, and especially for this class, the analysis. Reading information, knowing the facts, and analyzing what is going on.

I find it interesting how articles often focus on “saving the world or earth”, but in reality the earth would be much better without us, in fact the earth was doing great before humanity. It’s in reality the human race which we have to save which is ironic cause it is us as humans that are causing these issues to arise. It’s hard not to see the overall human race as selfish and unwilling to recognize when theres a problem, but I’ve also met so many smart and angry individuals who will fight for our climate and the human race.

Screen Shot 2018-10-15 at 6.00.31 PM — Picture Link

In todays world, climate change is not only real, but right around the corner, and every individual should make small changes in their lives to work towards a better future. While the people in power, especially in economically powerful countries, don’t seem to see climate change as an issue, there still are so many of us who are willing to fight this and fight for our place on the earth. As environmentalists specifically in this class, being open, skeptical and being able to reflect on all the information out there is a very important skill to learn and use. The world may be changing, and it may feel devastating and out of our control, but we aren’t alone.

Featured Image link: http://www.theeventchronicle.com/study/strange-things-california-fires/

Local Change and Our Recent Panel

October 2, 2018Leave a comment

While doing environmental studies, it’s hard not to look at change in a negative light. Words like development are often associated with change in an area. For example, the land use cover change labs we’ve been doing the best month have been analyzing the change in the greater Portland area since 1931. I found that when analyzing data that has had a change over a certain amount of years, whether it is positive or negative change, it is hard to not give change a negative connotation. As our population rises and the demand for housing, public transport, water system, paved roads etc. rises, we tend to focus on the negative impacts expanding will have. But, during our Lewis and Clark vicinity panel I realized that while mass development can have a negative impact on the environment, it’s not always set in stone when local change can be a large shifting factor. In River view natural area, one of the areas studied in our land use cover change lab, there had been requests to the city to develop it. The city denied this request as river view has been an especially natural and reserved area for the neighborhood and greater Portland area. John Miller, one of our panelists who lives in the neighborhood, even told us that Tryon creek was targeted for development but was stopped as the locals and neighbors would not allow it.

These stories from people who have lived in this neighborhood made me realize that small changes in an area may not inherently be negative, but big changes can be. Although, despite the grim look on our ever diminishing environment, not everyone is out to develop on top of our natural areas. Local solutions really shown through at this panel, as these 5 people and most of their neighbors love the environment and the natural areas set aside, and they are determined to keep them that way. I found this very inspiring considering our outlook is often grim for the future of the environment with climate change and people in power always pushing the environment aside. The panel really showed me that small fights can make a big difference even if it is in a small neighborhood just outside of Portland.

This panel was really interesting not only to get more information on our labs but it also illustrated how important getting local opinions on change, especially having to do with the environment, really is. Using our lab as an example, we had been looking at data points and photos of the area in order to make assumptions about the change in the area. But, after talking with these people who have actually seen the change and fought for different areas to be kept natural, my view on the land has changed completely. The local and personal perspective is a very important aspect in doing environmental studies, because it is very easy to see areas as data points rather than an actual environmental area with different types of people living near it.

Land-Atmosphere processes reflection post

September 19, 2018September 26, 2018Leave a comment

Land-use and land-cover changes have many layers that are all worth diving deeper into. One that really stuck out to me was the land-atmosphere processes as well as the connection to biodiversity. Agriculture is one of the biggest components of gases being leaked into the atmosphere. As we intensify areas of land we are release more N20 and CH4 then would normally be released if the area of land had been kept in its original form. Verburg et. al states that these this release from agriculture is produced by “N2O from fertilizer application (Zaehle et al., 2011), or CH4 from cattle and rice production (Verburg, 34). Not only that but when converting areas of land for Agriculture, large forests are often cut down which further affect our CO2 emissions as forests are carbon sinks. I think this issue is only recently coming to the surface because the idea of food shortages because of extreme weathers, such as droughts or torrential rain, have overshadowed it.

While food shortages as a negative effect of climate change is very real, it becomes an endless cycle as we convert more land for agriculture we put out more CO2 causing more extreme weather and therefore more food shortages. I think it is extremely imperative we efficiently use our agriculture land use as well as preserve our forests in order to mitigate this endless cycle. In the land atmosphere process Verburg states, Finding ways to synthesize available data and knowledge in these communities will allow further development of the mechanisms represented in models, advance our capacity to evaluate model performance, and yield information to support policy development and societies towards successful adaptation and mitigation strategies” (Verburg, 35). This idea of working together, or telecoupling*, is a key component to the endless cycle of the land-atmosphere process I mentioned above. If we are able to give information that support policy development, we can become more efficient in our agricultural processes and preserve other land not only to help biodiversity but to also eliminate more CO2 emissions.

*Telecoupling- “Tele” meaning, distance, “Coupling” meaning, bringing things together. Represents the interconnected nature of our world and our connected network with everywhere around the world.

Sources:

Verburg, Peter H., Neville Crossman, Erle C. Ellis, Andreas Heinimann, Patrick Hostert, Ole Mertz, Harini Nagendra, et al. “Land System Science and Sustainable Development of the Earth System: A Global Land Project Perspective.” Anthropocene 12 (December 1, 2015): 29–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ancene.2015.09.004.