ESS - Units 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1

Perspective - point of view influenced by;

• personal assumptions

• economic status

• ethical beliefs

• personal values

• cultural environment

Pragmatism - evolution of something in reference to it's practical use

Types of values: 

Moral, Personal, Societal 

Values:

• indigenous values: traditional knowledge based on concepts passed down through generations

• instrumental values: usefulness something has for humans

  • providing a good/service for human development

• Intrinsic value:

  • value something has in itself, regardless of use or benefit to others

  • inherent value something holds

Types of world views: 

• imperialist -> sacred bond between humans and god, nature is separate. Science is used to control nature (technocentric)

• stewardship -> humans are responsible for environment, we can manage and exploit it. Human duty to treat it respectfully and sustainably

• romantic -> nature is valuable to humans due to being beautiful and unadulterated

• utilitarian -> greatest good is happiness and freedom from suffering, actions with outcomes that benefit the greatest number of humans is morally right. Nature must have value for humans

Environmental Value systems:

Cultural Theory:

• suggestion that individual beliefs are influenced by the surrounding group

  • people align environmental views with cultural group views

Chapter 1.2 - Systems

System - group of interacting or interdependent parts forming an integrated whole

Two views on systems: holistic vs reductionist

Parts of a system:

• storages, flows, boundaries

  • flows have tranfers and transformations

• also need a function/purpose and emergent properties

3 Types of systems:

• open (eg. pond)

• closed (eg. Biosphere 2)

• isolated (eg. theoretically the Universe)

Earths systems:

• biosphere

• hydrosphere

• cryosphere

• geosphere

• atmosphere

• anthroposphere

Gaia Hypothesis:

• Earth is a self regulation system naturally searching for state of homeostasis

• albedo → level of light reflected away from a surface

Negative feedback loops:

• procedure to keep systems in balance (at equilibrium)

Positive feedback loops:

• when a disturbance to a system triggers a chain reaction that increases the disturbance, causes rapid + extreme changes in a system

Tipping points:

• usually in a positive feedback loop

  • point when system can no longer recover

  • rapid + extreme changes lead to new equilibrium point

☆ steady-state equilibrium -> ecosystem maintains relatively stable conditions over time

☆ new equilibrium reached -> occurs when system develops over time to add new factors into system

☆ ecological succession -> different species developing and overtaking system from each other, species die out / evolve -> changes interactions in entire community

Emergent properties:

• properties that appear only when different parts of a system are connected

• affected by various factors:

  • non-linear interactions

  • feedback loops

  • hierarchy of emergence

  • scientific understanding

Resiliance of systems:

• ability of a system to absorb disturbances + return to equilibrium

• Other factors:

  • species biodiversity

  • size of ecosystem / storages

  • speed of human response

  • genetic diversity

  • complexity

  • rate of reproduction

  • presence of feedback systems

Chapter 1.3 - Sustainability

Sustainability - "approach that guides towards a world of balance, harmony, and resilience"

focus on 3 key elements: ESG (environment, society, governance+economy)

Environmental sustainability:

• use and management of natural resources allowing for replacement, recovery, and regeneration

Natural capital:

• value gained from natural resources as goods or services, which produce natural income

Natural income: 

• sustainable annual yield gotten from natural resources

ecosystem restoration -> opportunity to halt degradation of an ecosystem through sustainable practices

Social sustainability:

• focus on social equity, environmental justice and human well-being

• cultural sustainability -> preservation of indigenous languages, cultural knowledge, and heritage

Biomimicry: 

"practice of looking to nature for inspiration to solve problems in a regenerative way"

Examples of social sustainability:

• universal healthcare, community-led green spaces (eg. gardens), indigenous rights + land management, affordable housing initiatives

Economic sustainability:

• efficient use of resources, minimise waste, protect ecosystems, relies on environmental sustainability and social elements

Sustainable development:

has 3 pillars (equal values) -> social development, economic growth, environmental protection

Overexploitation of natural resources → damages ecosystems

GDP

economic development measured in GDP per year

Green GDP

Green GDP = GDP - Environmental cost

Env. justice:

right of all people to live in pollution-free environment and have equitable access to natural resources

Inequalities:

• access to clean and sustainable resources, wealth, and technology within nations and internationally

Environmentalism - protection and conservation of nature

Scales of action:

• Individual level

• Business level

• Community level

• City level

• Country level

• Global level

Sustainability indicators:

anything used to describe and measure components of the environement (eg. GDP, HDI, poverty index, etc)

Ecological footprint:

• EF is hypothetical area of land and water required to provide resources needed to a population

• if EF is bigger than resources available -> unsustainable population

Carbon footprint:

amount of greenhouse gases emitted (can be direct, indirect, embodied)

Water footprint:

amount of freshwater used to produce a product (green water, blue water, grey water)

Biocapacity:

• capacity a biologically productive area has to generate renewable resources

Crowdsourcing -> obtaining data from large group via internet / social media

Sustainability frameworks and models:

UN SDGs

Planetary Boundary model

Doughnut Economics model

Circular Economy

Chapter 2.1 - Individuals to Ecosystems

Ecosystem - community of living species and non-living components that interact

• parts of an ecosystem:

  • community

  • population

  • individual

Species 

• group of organisms sharing specific characteristics that can breed and produce fertile offspring

• can evolve into new species

Classification of species

• taxonomy is used to classify species -> give them one common name

Tools for classification:

1. Dichotomous keys:

• Series of questions used to determine physical characteristics of an organism

2. Comparisons with known specimens:

• comparing the new specimen against a known one to identify new species

3. DNA surveys:

• looking at the structure of DNA and comparing it against known species

Biotic -> living components and organism (animals, plants, fungi, etc)

Abiotic -> non-living components (rocks, water, sunlight, temperature)

Ecological Niche:

• particular set of abiotic and biotic factors which an organism / population depends on

Identical niches

• 2 species with same niche cannot live in same habitat (too much competition)

• example: Eurasian red squirrel vs Eastern grey squirrel compete for food

Population Interactions:

Carrying capacity:

• maximum population number and ecosystem can support based on availability of resources (abiotic and biotic components)

• creates a logistical graph

Population size:

• regulated by density-dependent factors and negative feedback loops

Density-dependent factors - get worse as population increases:

• Competition for resources

• predation and herbivory

• disease and parasites

J Curve:

• if there is no limiting factor = exponential growth in population

• assumptions: unlimited resources, no competition, no environmental constraints

ways to calculate carrying capacity:

• 1 / ecological footprint = ~carrying capacity

How to estimate population abundance:

1. Random sampling -> unbiased measure of population, good for large populations

2. Systematic sampling -> when there is a regular pattern or clustering in population

3. Transect sampling -> analyse population changes along environmental features

Estimation of population size:

• Capture M amount of individuals -> mark them -> release them

• Recapture N amount of individuals -> separate from already marked R individuals 

• (M * N) / R = estimated population size

Community Stability and Diversity

High diversity communities - more stable:

• wide variety of species -> complex food web

• interconnectivity between species provides resilience against disturbances

• many alternatives

Low diversity communities - less stable:

• simpler food web

• less resilient, disturbance has bigger effect on ecosystem

• few alternatives

Trophic connections:

outside level: decomposers -> bacteria and fungi (break down dead organisms + waste materials into nutrients for producers to use)

Habitats:

• location in which a community, species, population, or organism lives

• each species has particular habitat requirements based on ecological niche

Ecosystems:

• function as open systems -> exchange of matter and energy

Inputs of an ecosystem:

• solar radiation (energy source)

• organic matter

• inorganic nutrients

Processes (transformations in an ecosystem):

• photosynthesis

• nutrient cycling

Outputs of an ecosystem:

• heat (dissipated energy)

• dead organic matter

• gases released into the atmosphere

Sustainability:

• inherent central attribute of ecosystems, has balance of inputs and outputs

example of a sustainable ecosystem: Tropical rainforests

Human impacts on biodiversity:

• overharvesting

• poaching + illegal wildlife trade

• climate change

• pollution

• invasive species