The End?

Well, I had originally started off this blog as a way to write down my assignments for class and to discuss various environmental problems. And although I don't enjoy using blogger much, I may still occasionally post here for everyone to read and enjoy. My class is coming to an end and I'm going to be discussing what I had learned over the semester and various things which I had enjoyed learning.

To start, I must say that there is no single environmental issue that is more important than another. Some may be more important than others, but there is not one that is most important. All do a great deal of effecting the environment and it's a combination of them which is damaging it. People hear things like green house gases and assume it's all coming from the fumes of our cars, but its a combination of that and many more things. So, as I had just stated, there is no issue that is more important than another.

The only real issue that I think is important (and one which I just learned about and really though about recently) was the idea of reduce reuse recycle. There is a reason it's said that way. Because we all know that as much as we try to recycle, things sometimes get left behind. By reducing what we buy, we create less trash by not having any to start with. I was just thinking about this the other day too, when I had seen a "buy one get the second on half off" on a drink. I thought to myself, this is a good deal, but I didn't need it, and it was just more trash. If I indeed had bought it, I could just imagine how many more people thought like I did and doubled their purchase, making twice as much trash from that specific product. Anyways, onto part number 2 of the idea of reducing reusing and recycling is to reuse. As many of you might know, recycling isn't always efficient. If I can reuse the same plastic bottle I was drinking from and fill it up again with water, that would be great! less trash right there. Finally, the last step is recycling, something we can all do. This is obvious just walking around anywhere where humans are present, I'm always seeing things that can easily be recycled which aren't, they're just thrown away, and not even in a trash can, on the floor. If we all followed these three easy steps, even just a little bit, it would make a great difference.

One of the interesting facts I learned about just recently was plastic, in the documentary bag it. It really is just wild how many things are made of plastic and how much of it we don't need. It definitely changed the way I think about things, especially since I walked into this class just because it interested me, I didn't really know what I would learn or how it would affect me. I also really enjoyed watching dive! and learning about dumpster diving and just how much food we throw away. It still amazes me just how much trash is tossed away and how we seem to just turn the other cheek or choose to be ignorant.

This class had me thinking that perhaps everyone should at one point take an environmental science class, just to see how they impact society. There are plenty of classes were required to take throughout our lives, what's one more? There are plenty of things I plan on changing and am currently changing about the way I do things. I already started eating less meat and started eating at lower trophic levels, using less, and being more concerned, as well as educating myself even more. Education and knowledge are the best things one can have, and everyday, I'm starting to learn that more and more.