Issue Exploration

The three issues that I chose to explore for this assignment were Wildlife, Mental Health, and Climate Change. Wildlife is an important issue for society because there needs to be a balance that is maintained for the world to keep its equilibrium. We have to make sure that as a society we protect the wildlife on this planet and try to prevent any further extinction of species, and rather take the initiative to try to remove species from the endangered list. Mental Health is important for society to acknowledge because in order for our world to function, people must recognize that we need to get rid of the stigma surrounding mental health disorders. And finally climate change is extremely important for society to acknowledge because if we do not recognize our impact on the world, and try to reduce our footprints, soon it will be past the point of being able to implement a solution.

For Wildlife, starting with the society (people) aspect of the 3 P’s, we see many nonprofit organizations like WWF and the Wildlife Conservation Society, these display how people interact with the wildlife in the world by donating or even volunteering. People also interact with the wildlife through things like Zoos, Aquariums, Safari tours, etc. where they pay to view animals that have been imprisoned/unnecessarily taken out of natural habitats. We also know that people endorse habitat destruction by wanting to expand housing developments and supporting fracking industries, like out own Wayne National Forest that recently succumbed to the pressure of the fracking industry. The second P (Planet) is a bit obvious as Wildlife can be disrupted through deforestation, overgrazing, various fishing practices, reintroduction of different species back into different environments. And finally the third P (Profit) can be explored through nonprofit organizations like those previously listed, through the oil, electric, car, etc industries that deface the environment to accommodate supply and demand.

For Mental Health, the people part of the 3 P’s is obvious, mental illness needs to be more widely acknowledged, since a large majority of the population actually suffers from one or more disease. Help for mental illnesses needs to become more available for those affected by a disease, society needs to start accepting mental illness as a normal disease, equivalent to any physical disorder a person may suffer. Mental Health connects to the planet through  production necessary to make plastic pill bottles to encapsulate any medication a patient may receive. It is also connected to the environment with all of the waste produced by doctors offices and institutions that, in order to achieve sanitation concerns, waste a lot of non-biodegradable or recyclable products. Economics comes in to play when discussing federal funds used to treat mental illnesses, or insurance companies accepting mental health issues as they do physical ailments.

Climate Change needs to become commonly accepted through society and supported by politicians and other people of power that have a say in national and global policies concerning global warming and other climate change issues. The world is running out of time to implement a policy that will help to reduce human impact on the environment and climate. The planet is sustaining changing climates that are resulting in melting polar ice caps, increasing the number of endangered and/or extinct species, and habitat destruction. We know that human impact on these events is causing catastrophic change, our emission of fossil fuels is depleting the ozone at a rate faster than ever in this planets history. With respect to economics, it is evident that those who deny human impact on climate change are simply afraid to lose their profits from factories and other manufacturing businesses. We also see that if the average person is going to ever be able to reduce their carbon footprint, we need to reduce the cost of more sustainable technology, food, transportation, etc.

The issue that I am planning to explore over the course of this semester is Climate Change, I’m choosing this topic over the others because I think that it incorporates so much injustice surrounding politics, environmental factors, and social aspects. I want to explore climate change and try to figure out what will be necessary from the average citizen to do to help change established systems that are feeding into negative impacts on the environment. I think that it may prove to be challenging to change my lifestyle to fit the mold of a justice oriented citizen, or even just move up from a personally responsible citizen for the issue of climate change. I also think that Donald Trump’s presidency may prove to be an interesting time to view political and social aspects of our nation surrounding global warming/climate change.

 

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