Reflection on Chapter 0

Even though, I came from AP Cal class, but I still feel like there are many areas that I should improve and practice more. Most people might think that since I already took AP Cal, then this class would be very easy for me. But to be honest, I feel like my basic math such as Algebra and Geometry are not that strong. For example, rational and irrational number, percentage, convert decimal to fraction, and simultaneous linear equations. One of the most challenging part of this chapter is to covert decimal into fraction, specially recurring decimal. I had never know how to convert recurring decimal into fraction before, therefore this is consider as my new knowledge. Although these are things I suppose to know, but I forgot most of them already. Therefore I think this class will help me to improve my basic math knowledge. I did help my classmates sometime, and they also help me back as well. It’s actually fun when we discuss the questions together, we can get to know different ways in solving the problems, sometime our classmates might have a easier way so we share our knowledge. Therefore working together can help us in learning and get new knowledge as well.

Learner Profile Creations

   

Our IB Learners Profile poster is make from recycle object which is the plastic bottle lids. We use them to create a petals and having the 10 traits of IB learner profile placing on top of each petals.

This group has a very colourful and creative poster design. They had make the poster into a lightbulb shape and use those candy and sweets wrappers to create a brain on the lightbulb shape poster. And therefore, I think the design is very matching with the topic of IB learner profiles because they shows that IB learner profile required thinking, and creativeness.

   

 

This is also a very nice poster design. Instead of using recycle objects to create the poster like what other group did, this group create it by drawing. And drawing is not that easy, especially the hand part, it’s very hard to draw but they did it. The middle part is represent as our world, which shows that we are protecting and taking care of the world we live in. So i think their design is very unique and creative.

   

This group’s poster is also very creative as well. I like the colour they choose in here which are green, blue, brown, and yellow, it represents the environment and earth. They use cookie box and colour it into blue to represent our world, and the stems is made up from the plastic bottle. The only thing that I think should be change is the colour of the text, since the text background is green, the text should be bright colour so that it should be easier to read. Other than this, everything is perfect.

 

 

Sustainability Mind Map

Education of Sustainability

After reading the article about “sustainability education (SE)”, I would said that this is a hard concept to understand and it might took time for us to really know the the meanings and importance of it.

The discussion points: 

Should every school be focus on “sustainability education” ?

What is the disadvantage if students not follow the sustainability education system ?

Definition of Sustainability

Group Definition of Sustainability ..

Definition of Sustainability from websites..

• able to maintained at a certain rate or level.
• the ability to continue a defined behavior indefinitely.
• the quality of not being harmful of the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance.

Sources:

• http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/sustainable
• http://www.thwink.org/sustain/glossary/EnvironmentalSustainability.htm
• http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sustainability

 

 

Intro & Environmental Perspectives

Introduction

• We will be study the culmination of the ideas and work of many teachers and students, which it will introduce about the environmental issues facing humans and the world we live in.
• We will be discuss the issues facing the Earth. Think about the environment and our actions so that we can build up knowledge to solve problems.
• In order to be adequate guardians of the planet, we need to care about it, have principles by which we live, and be responsible for our actions after due reflection.
• “Think globally, act locally” is the IB Diploma Programme CAS requirement.

1.Historical overview of the modern environmental movement

• Setting the scene
  • modern environmental movement begin in the 1960s, but the effect of humans on their environment was evident long before. For example: air and water pollution which are reported at Roman times.
  • to understand modern environmentalism must look back historically.
  • 2 groups: people who see the reason to conserve nature being to continue supply goods and services to humankind, and people who believe that we should conserve nature unconditionally, for its spiritual value.
• Who is involved in the environmental movement?
  • Influential individuals: through media, raises issues and debate.
  • Independent pressure groups: through awareness campaigns, can be called as non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Example: “Friends of the Earth”.
  • Corporate businesses: involved supplying consumer demand, using resources and creating environmental impact. Example: mining for minerals.
  • Governments: make decisions, and apply laws to manage the country. Talk to other governments to consider international agreements.
• The growth of the modern environmental movement in outline
  • population rise after the Neolithic Agricultural Revolution(10000 years ago).
  • Industrial Revolution (early 1800s) burning a lot of fuel in form of tress and coal in order to produced goods and services. These cause the cities to became crowded and smoky, and the natural was polluted.
  • Green Revolution of 1940s – 1960s build machinery and burn fossil fuels such as oil in order to mechanised agriculture and boosted food production.
  • These cause many problem to the global. However, the environmentalist had solve the problem and the modern environmental movement becomes public and gained momentum.
• Landmarks in the growth of the modern environmental movement 
  • 1800-1900: Early days
    • 3 bacis principles of environmental movement
    • natural resources are not infinite
    • natural environment and the life within it must be preserved
    • the pollution that we create and our activities endanger life on Earth.
    • Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau: wrote about a respect for the natural world and experience when surrounded by nature that could not be rationalised.
    • Theodore Roosevelt: first US president to act on environmental concerns, finding the US Forest Service and setting aside lands for national parks.
  • 1900-1960: Environmental awareness grows
    • In 1949, Aldo Leopold wrote “A sand County Almanac”, saying that nature is not our secant to be used and abused as we wish but we should maintain the balance of nature.
    • In 1930s, the grass plains of North America had turned into “Dust Bowl” and their agriculture was ruined.
    • In 1956, people in a fishing community in Japan developed a strange disease that affected their nervous systems, killed over 900 people. This disease came from the chemical factory discharging waste into the bay, people ate it so got disease.
  • 1960s: The modern environmental movement gains momentum 
    • Rachel Carson wrote books “Silent Spring”. She warn about the pesticides on insects and the harmful causes of it that can kill others. She also believe that pesticides such as DDT can cause people cancer.
  • 1970s: The movement goes global
    • In 1971, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace led campaigns against exploitation of endangered species.
    • In 1972, first Earth Summit on the environment was help in Sweden, and attended by 113 nations. It’s the bringing of an era of international environmentalism.
    • In 1975, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and 173 other countries aimed to protect those endangered species from extinction.
    • In the mid 1970s, the major shift in philosophy was the move from regarding the environment as an endless and resilient provider to regarding humankind as a steward responsible for caring for the environment called as stewardship.
  • 1980s: Sustainability, the way forward
    • In 1982, Earth Summit was thought to be ineffective.
    • In 1982, UN General Assembly formed the UN world Commission on Environment and Development under the concept of “ Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. This was seen as the way forward.
  • 1990s: Global warming and global economics 
    • major issues was the burning of fossil fuels causing harmful effect to the greenhouse.
    • Recycling bin appeared
  • Early 2000s: climate change, a time for action
    • 5 areas identified as needing attention globally were: water and sanitation, energy, health, agriculture, and biodiversity.
    • reducing agricultural and energy usage in developed countries and stop degradation of fish and forest resources.

2. Environmental perspectives

• Setting scene 
  • people thought that Earth’s resources are unlimited. It has been true in the past.
  • Now it’s clear that Earth’s resources are not limitless.
• What is your environmental worldview?
  • Your worldview affects how you view environmental issues, it can be optimistic or pessimistic based on your values and attitudes.
• A classification of different environmental philosophies 
  • Major categories:
    • Ecocentric worldview (earth-centred): respects the rights of nature and the dependence of humans on nature.
    • Anthropocentric / technocentric (human-centred): humans are not dependent on nature but nature is there to benefit humankind. Humans the dominant and manage the environment to suit our needs.
    • Technocentric worldview: include the cornucopias and environmental managers.
    • Cornucopians: people who see the world as having infinite resources to benefit humanity, and able to solve any environmental problem and continue to improve our living standards.
    • Environmental managers: see Earth as a garden that needs tending. Protect and nurture the Earth. Believe if we look after the planet, it looks after us.
    • Birocentric (life-centred): see all life as having a value for its own sake, not just for humans. Example animals are not just for hunting and eating, trees for logging, etc. Believe we should not cause the premature extinction of any other species.
    • Ecocentrists include the self-relian / soft technologist. They see the importance of small-scale, local community action and the of individuals.
    • Deep ecologists believe in biorights (universal rights) where all species and ecosystems have its own value and humans have no right to interfere with this. They want to reduce our impact on environment which included reduce the human population.
    • Other 2 environmental value systems are nurturing and intervening / manipulative. 
    • The way each person view the environment are biased. We only discuss this using our human-centred viewpoint. We also believe in changing the environment to be better by work together to reduce resource use.
• Various environmental world views 
  • Communism and capitalism in Germany
    • Communism was seen as the antidote to capitalist greed, and also claimed that their system could make more wealth than capitalism.
  • Native American environmental worldview
    • They tent to hold property in common, have a subsistence economy, exchange for goods rather than use money, and use low-impact technologies.
  • The Modern Western worldview 
    • Christianity and Islam share the belief in a separation of spirit and matter, and a believe of power over the Earth.
    • God commands humans to “refill the earth, and conquer it; and have power over it.”
  • Buddhism’s environmental worldview – a religious ecology
    • Buddhism see the world as combined in 4 ways: morally, existentially, cosmologically, and ontologically.
    • Buddhists believe that all living being share the conditions of birth, old age, suffering, and death.
    • Every living things is dependent on each others.
    • Human are not self-dependent and cannot be more important than other living things.