WEEK 10 (PART 2)

(image source: http://paradigms4progress.wordpress.com/2008/06/05/go-leed-leadership-in-energy-and-environmental-design-is-a-no-brainer/)

       For the second meeting of the week, we discussed about companies and businesses hitting the earth's limit. Most of the people, companies and businesses are fighting for the available resources. We also learned about the triple bottom line. Which was about economy, equity and ecology. 

          As mentioned in part 1 of this blog, "People. Planet. Profit." We need to be in the middle so that there would be a balance and this would result to sustainability. The question is, "Why should we be concerned?" I think that we need to be concerned because we all live in one planet and this is where we get all our sources. An applicable example would be the Pasig River, it was very beautiful and pleasant before it was polluted. There were ferries that pass by and people would bathe and catch fish from the river. However, people became careless and they polluted the river which killed the fishes and the businesses. Although I think that the Pasig River is improving now because of the organizations that help in cleaning and maintaining it. I came across an article saying that 2 companies are interested in reviving Pasig River ferry service. I think this would be helpful in raising awareness that the river is now safe to use. 

       Miss told us about how Boracay was 30 years ago, she defined it as beautiful. It was not polluted because there were only a few people who knew about the place. Today, Boracay could still be defined as beautiful since it is considered as a tourist destination. However, I think that the island has been to commercialized. There are too many establishments like hotels, restaurants, etc. Most of these establishments contributed to the pollution in the place since most of them do not filter their wastes. These wastes would go straight into the ocean, which affected the water over time. The ocean/water already has algae because of the bacterias but it was a good thing that they came up with a law to preserve the waters by filtering the wastes from the establishments. I think that it is very important that we preserve and care for these important destinations because through these, we are able to attract tourists and earn income especially for the locals. 

       Another topic that we discussed was business ethics and environmental values. An example of this would be the people/business vs spotted owls. A company in the America did logging for business, but after a while the spotted owls that resided in the area became endangered and this affected their business. Although there was a rule that you need to replace trees once you it down, this would not be effective. Trees would take years for the trees to grow and the spotted owls would only nest on old trees. This became a problem because some people would complain that the owls were given more priority than humans. The company would also loose some money since they will not be able to do business/get supplies. However, the owls were considered to be important since they are endangered and this would be a bigger loss if they become extinct. It was a good thing that there are people guarding/protecting the place so that we could still see the spotted owls. 

       Another example we had was McDonald's demand for supplies. The burger meat was outsourced from Brazil because of the huge demand. What they did was to cut down rainforest to produce grasslands for the cows so that they could reach their target/quota. This is a negative thing because there are many bad effects when rain forests are cut down. First, it changes weather patterns. Second, deforestation leaves poor soil for grass production. Third, carbon sequestration is reduced, the topsoil washes away, and less oxygen is produced. This increases carbon dioxide, which is a greenhouse gas. Theoretically, this increases the greenhouse effect, causing an increase in global temperature, resulting in global warming. I think that what the company could do is to outsource it from other countries to be able to meet their demand. If they would consider this, they do not need to cut down rainforest and leave a negative impact. 

     Saving resources. This is what the vegetarians and vegans want to do. But first, what is the difference between the two? Vegetarians do not eat meat, fish or poultry but they tend to consume dairy products and eggs. Vegetarians also do not eat products that contain gelatine or other meat-based products. While vegans eliminate all animal products from their diet, including dairy and eggs. While those following a vegan lifestyle generally do not wear leather and avoid products made from animals such as wool, silk and down. Vegans' tremendous compassion for animals is an abiding, overriding conviction in their lives. The vegan point of view is that animals are not here to be exploited by man, and that commercialization of animals necessarily involves a fundamental, inhumane component and lack of respect for basic life.

        We also discussed the Clean Air Act, which I think is very relevant for us because we need to comply with this so that we will be able to make our planet sustainable. We need to start with simple things like reducing our wastes or by recycling them. There is a project in DLSU called "No Impact Experiment" which is a one-week carbon cleanse program wherein people are encouraged to take small steps and perform small acts to reduce environmental impact, protect our plant and enhance the quality of our life. I really like their tagline that says: "Take the challenge. One step at a time. For Planet Earth."I think that this experiment/project would be effective since it shows us that we could help save the environment by starting with small steps with a big impact.