EXPLORATION: Human Responses

1. Introduction

In the previous unit, you read about some of the environmental issues that have arisen from human modification of the atmosphere, biosphere, the hydrosphere and lithosphere. 

A little recap might be in order here. The atmosphere is the air and gases which surround our planet. Humans have changed the composition of this through emitting pollutants including greenhouse gases. The biosphere is the total of all living things which live on the earth. We have changed this by hunting, farming, fishing and logging, amongst other activities. The hydrosphere is all of the water on the planet, including the oceans, but also lakes, rivers, and ice caps at the poles. We have changed this through irrigation, dams, agricultural runoff and through building cities which alter natural water courses. The hydrosphere also includes clouds, fog and precipitation which have been altered through climate change. The lithosphere is the layer of rock of which the planet is composed. We have altered this through mining and through drilling for fossil fuels. 

In this section, we will look at how humans have been responding to these alterations which are having an impact on the health of ecosystems to function. We will also look at how people are responding now and how we should respond in the future to bring about balance so that the planet can function in such a way that all living things can thrive. 

A key term which comes up many times here is the notion of sustainability. You will need to have a good grasp of what this term means and what it means to you. The idea is that we need to live within the means of the planet to provide a healthy habitat to all things and all systems. You will need to come to terms with the fact that there is no agreement yet on what this means. We need to accept, however, that we cannot continue to live the way that we have been without serious consequences for the planet.

Look at the diagram below, which depicts three spheres of sustainability. Do you understand how these concepts all relate? Which terms might you place in the overlapping areas? Are there any terms that you would add?

In this section, you will be asked to consider the ethics of human actions in the past, in the present and to think about how our plans and actions today will affect the future. You will look at the future of cities and will be presented with a few ideas of what we can do to make them sustainable. You will also look at pipelines, which you just read about and will need to decide where you stand on the issue of protesting against pipelines. You will also read about dams and will need to weigh in on whether you consider them to be a net benefit to the world or if some, or all, need to be demolished. 

2. Creating Sustainable and Liveable Cities

In this lesson, you will be listening to a talk given at the TED conference in 2011. Consider why he thinks that cities are not a problem but an opportunity. 

Here is what TED says about Steffen:

Do you ever wonder whether we should be optimistic or pessimistic about the future? If you want more reasons to think things may still turn out for the better, Alex Steffen's your man. He doesn't downplay the scope and scale of the problems we face. Instead, he shows that we have the tools within our grasp for meeting those massive challenges, if we have the will to use them.

This isn't just hopeful thinking, either. Steffen uses real-world examples and big-picture research to show us that a brighter, greener future is ours to choose, and his work has earned him the ear of leading cities, corporations and philanthropic foundations. As the New York Times said a recent profile, "Alex Steffen lays out the blueprint for a successful century."

You can read the transcript of this talk below which is handy for review purposes. 

The Shareable Future of Cities

3. Five Sustainable Cities Making a Difference

Find out what these five cities are doing to fight the climate crisis and improve the lives of their citizens.
For centuries, cities have been at the heart of the arts and culture, thriving businesses, and innovative ideas. Over ninety percent of urban areas are coastal, which means that most cities on the planet are extremely vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis as sea levels rise, polar ice melts, and powerful storms sweep across these regions.

The sheer number of people who live in cities now and who are expected to move into them in the coming years is startling. Around two-thirds of the world’s population is predicted to live in an urban area by 2050, which means there are also major financial implications when extreme weather like unexpected storms and flooding cause disruptions in businesses and governments.

The good news is that while cities are particularly at risk from the climate crisis, they are also behind some of the most powerful solutions. That’s why we’re taking a look at five of our favorite sustainable cities in the world and the steps they’ve taken to become leaders in clean energy and climate solutions.

1. COPENHAGEN, DENMARK
Copenhagen is often ranked as one of the greenest cities on the planet. Why? For starters, in 2009 the city set a goal to become the world’s first carbon neutral capital by 2025 as part of its CPH 2025 Climate Plan. Copenhagen has focused on reducing energy consumption in a variety of ways, including using an energy-efficient district heating system that connects to nearly every household and innovative cooling systems that save around 70 percent of the energy compared to traditional air conditioning.

Copenhagen has also focused on reducing emissions and improving the health of its residents by improving mobility, integrating transport, and building what’s known as a super cycle highways, one of which you can see above. Super cycle highways and other bike lanes around the city have led to 45 percent of the city’s residents commuting by bike every day.

2. SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

It’s no secret that San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area are a serious tech-hub and home to some of the most innovative companies in the world, including Salesforce, Airbnb, Uber, and Twitter. Innovations in technologies to improve energy efficiency in buildings and enhance its transportation system have helped make San Francisco a leader in sustainability and clean energy. Just look at the city’s public transit system: it’s not uncommon to see hybrid-electric buses driving down the city’s streets and more than half of all MUNI buses and light rails are zero-emission.

Rooftop gardens in San Francisco below. The city passed legislation requiring new development to include rooftop gardens or solar panels atop all new buildings. 

The Bay Area has also cut its water consumption drastically in recent years. As California has battled serious droughts, San Franciscans have reduced their water consumption to around 49 gallons of water per day on average (the national average is 80-100 gallons per day). These conservation tactics and other advances in sustainable food, recycling, and composting are expected to help San Francisco reach its goal of becoming zero waste by 2020.

3. VANCOUVER, CANADA

Vancouver has been on the forefront of environmental activism for decades. In 1990, it became one of the first North American cities to outwardly address the climate crisis by releasing a report called “The Clouds of Change.” This was just the beginning of an environmental strategy that Vancouver released years later in 2012, the Greenest City Action Plan, which set 10 goals to achieve by 2020, including increasing green jobs, reducing community-based greenhouse gas emissions, and expanding green buildings around the city.

Below is a green, living wall in East Vancouver with the Skytrain in the background. 

Additionally, Vancouver has committed to getting 100 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2050. This goal is particularly bold given that it targets all forms of energy in the city—including heating, cooling, and transport—not just electricity. The city’s focus on clean energy and sustainability has led it to have the lowest greenhouse gas emissions per person of any major North American city. Between making sustainable improvements to neighborhoods’ energy consumption, striving for zero waste, and continuing to develop its successful Greenest City Action Plan, Vancouver has set the stage for businesses and residents to work together to be one of the greenest and most climate change resilient cities on Earth.

4. STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN

Stockholm is a growing city that seeks to be an attractive home for newcomers and do good for the planet at the same time. Awarded the first “European Green Capital” recognition by the European Commission in 2010, Stockholm aims to be fossil-fuel free by 2050.

How does the city plan to reach this goal? One component is Sweden’s shift from oil to “district” heating, which means the nation now uses heat from centralized sources (such as a power station) to more efficiently heat and cool its buildings. District heating alone accounts for over 80 percent of heating and hot water in apartments today, and is one of the key factors in how Sweden has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions in recent years.

Another reason for Stockholm’s success with sustainable living is its residents, who pride themselves on being “climate-smart.” Eight out of 10 residents feel the city should urge citizens to live more environmentally-friendly and believe being climate-smart should be a natural part of living in a city (we do too!).

5. SINGAPORE

With a population of more than five million people, Singapore is often recognized as one of the most forward-thinking green cities in Asia. The city-state has developed a Sustainable Development Blueprint, which outlines sustainability goals leading up to 2030. The targets include improving energy efficiency by 35 percent, ensuring 80 percent of its buildings are certified green, and having 80 percent of households be within a 10-minute walk to a train station.

Singapore has also improved its sustainability by making drastic changes in transportation. The city-state limits car ownership among its residents and has built effective public transportation systems, which has helped reduce pollution and crowding on streets and highways. Singapore’s public transit system helps residents navigate the city, along with biking and walking.

4. Dammed if you do...

Rivers Must Flow

Rivers act as the planet's circulatory system. Like our body's circulation system, the planetary one doesn't work very well when it's clogged. If a river's flow is its heartbeat, then we humans are the heart disease. We've blocked most major rivers with dams, bled them dry with water diversions, and given up all too many once-great rivers for dead once we've used them up.

More than 50,000 large dams now choke about two-thirds of the world's largest rivers. The consequences of this massive engineering programme have been devastating. Large dams have wiped out species; flooded huge areas of wetlands, forests and farmlands; displaced tens of millions of people, and affected close to half a billion people living downstream.

Large dams hold back not just water, but silt and nutrients that replenish farmlands and build protective wetlands and beaches. Dams change the very riverness of our waterways, in ways we can't always see, but that the earth can certainly feel.

Of all the complex and interconnected environmental disruptions that dams inflict on the landscape, the most obvious is the permanent inundation of forests, wetlands and wildlife. Reservoirs have flooded vast areas - at last count, the world's dams had flooded an area bigger than the United Kingdom.

Equally important is the quality of these lost lands: river and floodplain habitats are some of the world's most diverse ecosystems. Plants and animals that are closely adapted to valley habitats often cannot survive along the edge of a reservoir.

Dams also are usually built in remote areas that are the last refuge for species displaced by development elsewhere. In large measure due to dams, freshwater ecosystems are losing species and habitats faster than any other type of ecosystem.

Large dams also fragment the riverine ecosystem, isolating populations of species living up and downstream of the dam and cutting off migrations and other movements. Because almost all dams reduce normal flooding, they also fragment ecosystems by isolating the river from its floodplain. The elimination of the benefits provided by natural flooding may be the single most ecologically damaging impact of a dam.

Now, watch the video below, which explains why some Chileans are organizing to stop the construction of a dam in the Patagonia region of Chile. Listen as politicians make the case for building the dam. They argue that the dam is a source of clean energy which will help to wean Chile off of imported fossil fuels.