IB ESS Final Topic 1

Technocentric

Assumes all environmental issues can be resolved through technology

Anthropocentric

Views humankind as central, humans are central to any decisions being made

Ecocentric

Sees the natural world as having pre-eminent importance & intrinsic value - minimum disturbance

Systems

Any set of interacting or interdependent parts, organized to create a functional whole & produce emergent properties

Reductionism

Looks at systems individual parts

Emergent properties

The whole can do things the individual parts can’t

Hydrosphere

Water system

Cryosphere

Frozen water system

Atmosphere

Air/gas system

Biosphere

Organism system

Anthrosphere

Human system

Geosphere

Earth/core & layers/rock

Energy loss in a system

Respiration/metabolic processes release energy & re enters ecosystem

Transformations

Move energy/matter with a change of state or form

Transfers

Moves energy/matter with out changes

Open systems

Both materials & energy are exchanged across the boundaries of the system (ex.e rainforest, all ecosystems)

Closed systems

Energy is exchanged across the boundaries but matter isn’t (ex. nitrogen cycle)

Equilibrium

State of balance in an ecosystem

Steady-state

Maintains stable state b/c of constant flow of inputs & outputs that are required to function

Static

Doesn’t apply to natural systems b/c no input or outputs, always in balance, inanimate objects

Negative feedback loop

Dampens effects & promotes return to stability

Neg. Feedback ex.

Predator-prey relationships, human body temps.

Positive feedback loop

Destabilizing will tend to amplify changes & drive the system towards a tipping point where a new equilibrium is adopted

Tipping point

A threshold at which a system undergoes a rapid & irreversible change

Resilience

Tendency to avoid tipping points & maintain stability due to a balance of pos. and neg. feedback loops

Factors affecting resilience

Fires, flooding, overexploitation, invasive species, biodiversity, climate, human activity

Sustainability

A measure of the extent to which practices allow for the long term viability of a system

Natural income

The yield/harvest from natural resources

Natural capital

The stock of natural resources of Earth

Environmental sustainability

The use of land management of natural resources that allows replacement of the resources and the recovery and regeneration of ecosystems

Social sustainability

Focuses on creating the structures and systems that support human well-being, including health, education, equity, community, and culture

Economic sustainability

Focuses on reading the economic structures and systems to support production and consumption of goods and services

GDP (Gross domestic product)

Measures the total value of all the goods & services in a country

GDP Equation

GDP = Consumption + invest + Gov’t spending + Net exports

Green GDP

Monetizes loss of biodiversity

GDP & Env. degradation

Higher GDP = Higher CO2 emissions

GDP Env. Impact & Social wellbeing

Higher GDP = Higher env. impact & life expectancy

Ecological footprint

The area of land & water required to sustainably provide resources at the rate of consumption

Biocapacity

Generates an ongoing supply of renewable resources & to absorb its resulting wastes - looks at environment vs. human impact

Biocapacity & footprint

Higher footprint = more stress on resources

Model

A simplified representation of reality used to understand how a system works & predict

Model advantages

Simplifies complex systems, makes predictions

Disadvantages

Loss of accuracy, can be interpreted different ways