In this blog post I am going to be writing about the fruit industry and how the fruit industry has shaped agriculture and the environment. Specifically looking at monocultures, even more exactly, the banana, and how monocultures impact the environment in a negative way. Bananas have a very consistent look and taste. This consistency is because bananas are clones of one another. Farmers plant banana plants, which is a gigantic herb that visually resembles a tree (Britannica). The banana plant further needs to be grown in a tropical climate that allows for enough water to keep the plant alive but also a significant amount of sunlight. Because of the specific criteria that bananas need to grow, the southern hemisphere, specifically South America, is where a significant amount of banana production is seen. Not only does this mean that bananas are decreasing the biodiversity in these areas from their crops, but also the bananas are genetically the same, which makes large areas susceptible to diseases. The diseases then can take out and destroy entire farms and possibly extinct the crop entirely.

     The Panama disease was a fungal disease that led to a form of Fusarian wilt of the Gros Michel banana, a popular banana in the 1950s (Britannica). Further, pesticides that were being used to help and prevent the spread of the Panama disease are also harmful to the environment. A more environmentally friendly way to stop the spread of diseases such as the Panama disease is by planting bananas at high altitudes where the banana crop is still able to grow but the fungus is not able to survive. This type of farming is known as organic farming and although it has a lower environmental impact than the environmental impact of using pesticides to slow the growth of fungus, there are some drawbacks. One of the drawbacks is that there is not enough land at the high altitudes to meet the demand of the banana industry. Further, although these high altitudes do not allow for the Panama disease to grow, another disease could be able to grow in these high altitudes, which would then take banana growers back to square one.

     In contrast to the banana, apples are a crop that are very biodiverse. In the Oligies with Alie Ward podcast, the host, Alie Ward meets with Dr. Susan K. Brown. Dr. Brown is a professor at Cornell University and she teaches in the AgriTech divisions, specifically in the apple division. Pomology is the study of apples. Apples have a large variety. Throughout the podcast episode, Dr. Brown discusses the wide variety that apples come in. Further, pomologists cross-breed apples, creating more variations to apple and increasing their genetic diversity. Apples can be viewed as a complete opposite to bananas because of their biodiversity.     

     Fruit production as a whole can lead to negative impacts both on the environment and the fruit industry can raise ethical concerns. In both banana and apple production, along with many other fruits, the labor is often not ethically practiced, leading to exploitation and violence. In the reading discussed earlier in class, “We Are Field Workers” from the novel Fresh Fruit Broken Bodies, we learned more about these injustices that were occurring. Specifically learning about the violence towards migrant workers who often work in the fruit industry. There are different types violence that individuals experience. Symbolic violence, which is a concept that looks at the dynamics of social structures of inequalities and structures, and structural violence, which is the configurations of social inequalities (Holmes 43-44). To help make the fruit industry more sustainable, we as consumers need to be aware of how our fruits come to be along with the farming practices and treatment of those who get our fruit to our table.

https://www.britannica.com/plant/banana-plant
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2ovrV7IMSnl6hxYLrXECvB?si=zViiJb2dS-aEYIEe5r9KyA
Download Fresh Fruit Broken Bodies – Holmes (2023).pdf

The fashion industry creates a significant amount of pollution not only in the creation of fabric but also massive amounts of waste from the final product. Further, the fashion industry is also guilty of violating proper worker conditions for the individuals, primarily women, who create the garments.
The idea of sustainability needs to transgress only the environmental implications of creating a better world. As discussed in class, sustainability is a multifaceted term that incorporates creating a better world that sustains life. Although ensuring that companies participate in environmental changes to help increase their sustainability is important, companies also need to think about how the treatment of their workers adds to sustainability.
One way to look at fashion and the fashion industry is through the lens of a black box. A black box in science is described as a process where both inputs and outputs of the ‘box’ are known by audiences although the processes used to reach the outputs are often taken for granted. Although fashion is not necessarily a technology that can be dissected to determine how it exactly works, the processed used to create clothing and fashion as an industry can be viewed as a black box.
The fashion industry is a major polluter that is further seen through overconsumption and the rise in consumerism. Social media as also been a factor that has increased consumption of clothes by trends coming and going faster than ever seen before. Fashion trends have gone from being seasonal, a few months, to some trends only lasting a few weeks. Consumers need to be conscious of where they are attaining their clothes from and the rate that they purchase new items. Although recently there have been attempts made to discuss how clothing is made and the ethics of some clothing companies, fast fashion seems to still be misunderstood or ignored by some consumers.
Many fast fashion brands use very cheap labor to create their clothing items. Many garment workers are forced to work very long hours for very little pay. This unfair labor does result in cheap clothes for consumers but ethically major concerns are raised. With the working conditions for garment workers not being ethical, fast fashion is not sustainable for creating a better world.
The environmental impact of fast fashion is very severe. According to the United Nations Environmental Programme in 2022, consumers are generally buying 60% more clothing than previously while wearing these items for around half as long as in the past. Since the COVID 19 pandemic, there is an increase in consumerism, yet there also is an increase in education relating to the process of producing these clothes. This signals to me that the education on this topic is not being related in a way that resonates with consumers. By being very disconnected to the process of making clothes, it is easy for consumers to not associate the clothing they are buying with the labor and processes involved in making the clothes. Further, discarded clothing makes up a significant amount of waste in the landfill.
Overall, consumers need to be more aware and conscious of their choices when buying clothes. One way that consumers can be more aware of their buying habits is to look at how often they are buying new clothes. Further, checking labels and shopping with brands that are more environmentally conscious and/or use fair working practices is another way that consumers can help to combat fast fashion. Fashion is a big pollutant currently and to change to become more sustainable, a place for consumers to start is by looking into the black box that is the fashion industry.


Download Opening the Black Box of Climate Change Science – Besel (2011).pdf
https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/environmental-costs-fast-fashion

The concept that I am interested in talking more about is the Toulmin Model and using the Toulmin Model to argue topics. Throughout my time at Ohio State, I have used this model without realizing that I was using it. In some of the philosophy classes that I have taken, I have used a modified version of the Toulmin Model to make arguments and to support my claims. The claim is one of the most difficult aspects to create for me. Coming up with the central assertion, or the thesis, for the argument has been rather difficult to me because I often make claims that are either too narrow or too broad for my argument to be successful. The grounds of the Toulmin Model are often not much of an issue for me to determine because I spend a significant amount of time thinking of my claim that I have a justification for my claim rather easily. One of the most difficult struggles that I find with writing the grounds is effectively putting down the grounds on the paper. The warrant is rather like the grounds for me. Finding the connection between the grounds and the claim is not very difficult if the work is put in place when coming up with the claim. The backing of an argument are specific examples used to support the claims being made. I personally enjoy finding the backing for arguments because they help to further strengthen my arguments and I feel more accomplished with the more backing I find for my claim. In political science specifically, I use backing to help strengthen my arguments being made. The qualifier, like the backing of an argument, helps to further strengthen arguments and adds complexity to the argument. Finally, the rebuttal in the Toulmin model is different than rebuttals I have previously seen. As discussed in class, the rebuttal for the Toulmin Model acts as more of a call to action rather than a rebuttal. Although I have used rebuttals previously in my arguments in the way that the Toulmin Model presents, I had never before known that the name of this was the ‘rebuttal’.
The Toulmin Model is very useful in analyzing and more thoroughly understanding articles relating to sustainability. Specifically, I will be using the Toulmin Model to analyze and further understand the article posted by Vox titled “The Surprising Downsides to Planting Trillions of Trees”. The claim made in this article is that planting lots of trees is not the most efficient method to helping combat climate change. Further, Benji Jones justifies his claim by saying that at times large tree-planting initiatives have led to more deforestation rather than helping to decrease forestation. The warrant being made for this argument is that because deforestation sometimes occurs during large tree-planting initiatives, planting many trees is not the most efficient way to combat climate change. The backing that Jones uses is that 3 months after planting the tree saplings, up to 90% of the saplings had died for a multitude of reasons. Some of these reasons include that there was not enough rainfall, the trees were not planted at the right time, and/or the saplings were trampled if they were planted in areas where animals commonly graze. The qualifier used for this argument is used when talking about the push to plant trees. The article writes that company’s initiatives to plant trees has increased nearly threefold in the tropics alone. By adding this ‘nearly’ the article is adding complexity to the argument. Finally, the rebuttal of the article calls for more tree-growing initiatives rather than tree-planting initiatives. Further, the rebuttal calls for programs that monitor the trees for more than two-years to ensure that the trees being planted can grow and thrive.

https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/22679378/tree-planting-forest-restoration-climate-solutions

https://esl.uchicago.edu/2023/11/01/third-places-what-are-they-and-why-are-they-important-to-american-culture/
https://chicagomaroon.com/39711/grey-city/an-incidental-goodness-in-search-of-a-third-place-at-uchicago/#

The idea of third spaces and exploring the emergence and disappearances of third spaces is what I will be talking about today. There is an idea that humans have different spaces where they find community and connection. The first of these spaces is typically the home setting where humans can invite others into their space and find community or are able to be alone. The second spaces are often the workplace. In the workplace, although there is an obligation to be there, humans still can find a community and hopefully do not feel that they are in a hostile environment. The term ‘third space’ was coined by the American psychologist, Ray Oldenburg, and it basically is anyplace outside of home or the workplace where an individual can connect and converse with their community.
Some examples of third spaces are places such as malls, coffee shops, parks, roller rinks, bowling alleys, or anywhere else that people can go for relatively little money and spend time connecting with others. These spaces are very important for community building along with being a place that individuals can go outside of the home and feel safe. Third spaces are places where, if there are issues in the first or second spaces, the individual can still feel comfortable and that they have a community around them.
One of the most common third spaces is the coffee shop. In coffee shops, people are able to sit and plug into themselves or their work while also being surrounded by others who have a very similar goal. Further, coffee shops offer a space where patrons can go and get a beverage that they can enjoy. Unlike bars and taverns, coffee shops offer a less intoxicating escape for people to go and be around others. However, third spaces have been seeing a shift in recent years, especially with the COVID-19 epidemic.
During COVID-19, many third spaces had closed or now were working at a capacity lower than what previously had been. Further, it could be unsafe to go to these third spaces and risk either exposing yourself or others to COVID-19.
However, not all third spaces need to be places where people must leave their homes to find community. With the rise of social media platforms, many people are finding their communities and third spaces in the online realm. Online communities are an outlet for people to connect with others who have similar interests. Although online communities do not connect the individual to their direct community in the real world, online communities are great spaces where individuals with similar interests are able to connect and engage in conversations about their interests. Especially during COVID-19 but also with the rise of social media and the internet, online spaces created an escape for people to still be able to find community without the risk of getting sick.
Online communities do have some drawbacks though. An example of a drawback is that people often sensor themselves less in an online space and are more likely to be offensive because they are being protected by a screen. Further, online communities can create isolation of an individual from their real-life communities. This disconnect can lead to a space that was once a nice escape to becoming an isolating burden for individuals.
With the end of isolation restrictions from the pandemic, I hope to see the reemergence of third spaces in the real world, along with a possible ‘fourth’ space in the digital realm for people. I think that third spaces are very important places that need to be preserved not only for their usefulness in building community but also for creating a safe, comfortable environment for individuals.

Hello! I am Katie Koenig, a fourth year Political Science and Creative Writing major. Today I will be talking about the Toulmin Model and applying it to a Vox article about tree-planting initiatives.
The concept that I am interested in talking more about is the Toulmin Model and using the Toulmin Model to argue topics. Throughout my time at Ohio State, I have used this model without realizing that I was using it. In some of the philosophy classes that I have taken, I have used a modified version of the Toulmin Model to make arguments and to support my claims. The claim is one of the most difficult aspects to create for me. Coming up with the central assertion, or the thesis, for the argument has been rather difficult to me because I often make claims that are either too narrow or too broad for my argument to be successful. The grounds of the Toulmin Model are often not much of an issue for me to determine because I spend a significant amount of time thinking of my claim that I have a justification for my claim rather easily. One of the most difficult struggles that I find with writing the grounds is effectively putting down the grounds on the paper. The warrant is rather like the grounds for me. Finding the connection between the grounds and the claim is not very difficult if the work is put in place when coming up with the claim. The backing of an argument are specific examples used to support the claims being made. I personally enjoy finding the backing for arguments because they help to further strengthen my arguments and I feel more accomplished with the more backing I find for my claim. In political science specifically, I use backing to help strengthen my arguments being made. The qualifier, like the backing of an argument, helps to further strengthen arguments and adds complexity to the argument. Finally, the rebuttal in the Toulmin model is different than rebuttals I have previously seen. As discussed in class, the rebuttal for the Toulmin Model acts as more of a call to action rather than a rebuttal. Although I have used rebuttals previously in my arguments in the way that the Toulmin Model presents, I had never before known that the name of this was the ‘rebuttal’.
The Toulmin Model is very useful in analyzing and more thoroughly understanding articles relating to sustainability. Specifically, I will be using the Toulmin Model to analyze and further understand the article posted by Vox titled “the Surprising Downsides to planting Trillions of Trees”. The claim made in this article is that planting lots of trees is not the most efficient method to helping combat climate change. Further, Benji Jones justifies his claim by saying that at times large tree-planting initiatives have led to more deforestation rather than helping to decrease forestation. The warrant being made for this argument is that because deforestation sometimes occurs during large tree-planting initiatives, planting many trees is not the most efficient way to combat climate change. The backing that Jones uses is that 3 months after planting the tree saplings, up to 90% of the saplings had died for a multitude of reasons. Some of these reasons include that there was not enough rainfall, the trees were not planted at the right time, and/or the saplings were trampled if they were planted in areas where animals commonly graze. The qualifier used for this argument is used when talking about the push to plant trees. The article writes that company’s initiatives to plant trees has increased nearly threefold in the tropics alone. By adding this ‘nearly’ the article is adding complexity to the argument. Finally, the rebuttal of the article calls for more tree-growing initiatives rather than tree-planting initiatives. Further, the rebuttal calls for programs that monitor the trees for more than two-years to ensure that the trees being planted can grow and thrive.

https://www.vox.com/down-to-earth/22679378/tree-planting-forest-restoration-climate-solutions