ENVS 22 mid term

anthropocene

epoch characterized by impact of human activities on earth's processes

reconciliation ecology

branch of ecology that encourages biodiversity in the human-dominated ecosystems of the anthropocene era

thomas malthus

population growth will outpace resource supply, disease/famine/conflict are natural limiting factors

paul erlich

population bomb theory, population growth will lead to scarcity and environmental problems

esther boserup

idea of induced intensification, population change drives the intensity of agricultural production

barry commoner

technology has by far the greatest influence on environmental impact (instead of population)

birth rate

measure of growth, number of births/1000

death rate

mortality in a population, # of deaths/1000

zero population growth

of births = # of deaths, no net increase

carrying capacity

limit of a population that a system can sustain

ecological footprint

spatial extent of earth's surface required to sustain an individual

green revolution

technological innovations were applied to agriculture in the 1950s-1980s which increased yields, chemicals, water use, and machinery

I=PAT

an equation that determines a person's environmental impact = population*affluence*technology

cornucopian

population growth leads to the creation of new thinkers who can innovate new solutions

cap and trade

total limit placed on emissions, individuals and firms possess transferable shares of that total

coase theorem

externalities are most efficiently controlled through contracts and bargaining between parties

green taxes

tax levied on activities harmful to the environment -> decreased use of resources

externality

spillover cost/benefit

green certification

credential that a product/service reaches sustainability criteria

greenwashing

positioning a product to environmentally friendly, even if its not

market failure

production/exchange of a good is not efficient

market response model

model that predicts economic responses to the scarcity of a resource (increase in prices-> decreased demand for resource OR increased supplies)

market environmentalism

emphasizes markets as a solution to environmental problems

prisoner's dilemma

situation in which multiple individuals making decisions in pursuit of their own interest create collective bad outcomes for everyone

principles for institutions

boundaries, collective choice, monitoring, sanctions, conflict resolution, autonomy

garrett hardin

helped develop idea of the tragedy of the commons, growing population increases burden of humanity on earth, proponent of privatization

elinor ostrom

neo-institutionalist, stakeholders are more likely to cooperate if they all help to determine rules to govern common resource

john locke

freedom to acquire property from nature, nature only has value if its useful to humans

gifford pinchot

conservationist, resources can be used sustainably to create greatest good for greatest # of people

john muir

preservationist, nature should be left alone and protected from further human impacts

aldo leopold

conservationist, wrote about 'the land ethic', ecocentrist pov - a thing is right when it preserves integrity/beauty/stability of nature

peter singer

proponent of animal liberation and moral extensionism to nonhuman beings

animal liberation

radical social movement aiming to free all animals from the use of humans

anthropocentrism

ethical standpoint that views humans as the central factor in deciding right and wrong toward nature

conservation

management of a resource to sustain its productivity over time

preservation

nature should be left alone and protected from human use/abuse

dominion thesis

developed from the bible, states that humans are the pinnacle of creation and have the right to use nature in any way deemed beneficial

ecocentrism

ecological considerations should be central to decisions about right/wrong of actions

ecology

the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between them and the habitat that they live in

environmental justice

equitable distribution of environmental goods/bads between people no matter their race/gender/ethnicity/ etc.

factory farms (CAFOs)

intensive animal raising agricultural operations

holism

a whole system is more than just the sum of its parts

intrinsic value

value of something measured in a way that is objective, inherent

moral extentionism

humans should extend their sphere of moral concern beyond the human realm

naturalistic fallacy

the derivation of an ethical "ought" from a natural "is"

utilitarian

value of a good should be judged by its usefulness to society

Hetch Hetchy Valley

drawn along utilitarian vs non-utilitarian lines---conservation vs preservation regarding the issue of building a dam

wilderness

a natural parcel of land more or less unaffected by human forces

indigenous ecological knowledge

understanding of the environment developed by communities native to places around the world, history of land stewardship

sovereignty

right of a group to govern themselves

structural racism

system of organizational or institutional policies that supports a continued unfair advantage (or harmful treatment and disadvantages) for certain groups

redlining

process by which housing authority associations in the US mapped areas as "risky" for loans/investments - often people of color were redlined despite their economic class and ability to maintain credit

robert bullard

"father of Environmental Justice", brought attention to the unequal/unjust distribution of waste facilities in minority neighborhoods

carbon cycle

the system through which carbon circulates through the earth's geosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere

carbon sequestration

the capture and storage of carbon from the atmosphere into biosphere/geosphere through biological/engineered means

greenhouse gas effect

water vapor and carbon dioxide trap and retain heat -> temperatures that can sustain life on earth

surplus value

value produced by underpaying labor and over extracting from the environment

uneven development

geographic tendency with capitalism to produce highly disparate economic conditions/activity in different places

mitigation

trying to fix root causes of environmental problems (ex: decreased ghg emissions)

adaptation

adjusting to climate (ex: building seawalls)

carbon offset programs

customers send money to support an activity that retires carbon from the cycle (ex: sequestering it in trees)

mary douglas

cultural theory, had the idea that the way people think about environmental risk is closely tied to how they think about the place of individuals within society, every culture has distinct way of viewing qualities of non-human world

gilbert white

single minded focus on engineered solutions was the problem with addressing mississippi river flooding -> more adjustments (evacuation planning, insurance subsidies, zoning, relief systems) needed

affect

emotions and unconscious response to the world that influence our decisions

cultural theory

the way individual perceptions of risk re reinforced by group social dynamics

hazard

an object, condition, or process that threatens individuals and society in terms of production (making a living) or reproduction (being alive)

risk

the known/estimated probability that a hazard related decision will have a negative consequence

risk perception

impacted by individual biases, culture, human tendencies

uncertainty

the degree to which the outcomes of a decision/situation are unknown

fallout

airborne radioactive pollution caused by nuclear weapon/power plant explosions

depleted uranium

by product of uranium enrichment ->dense, pure, u238 used in armor and weapons

the manhattan project

US nuclear research/engineering program during WWII -> creation of the first nuclear bombs

nuclear fission

nucleus of atom is split into 2 nuclei, releases energy

nuclear proliferation

spread of nuclear weapons to other countries

nuclear power

electric power created by utilizing nuclear fission to generate heat, steam, and electricity

risk communication

field of study dedicated to understanding the optimal way to present risk related info to aid optimal/rational outcomes

primary sector

industry involved with extracting and producing raw materials

political ecology

approach to environmental issues that unites issues of ecology with a political economic perspective

rewilding

process by which people return ecosystems to how they might have been before human influence

ecological novelty

unprecedented changes in ecological systems caused by human impacts

demographic transition model

a model of how the size of a population changes as a country develops its economy

green consumerism

leveraging consumer demand to reduce negative environmental impacts

game theory

used to model and predict people's behavior in strategic situations were people's choices are predicated on predicting the behavior of others

tragedy of the commons

each individual uses resources to get what they want-> depletion of that resource

settler colonialism

system of power typical in places where non indigenous settlers displaced indigenous people through violence/forcible treaties

ecomodernism

expectation that technology can lighten the human impact on earth