August 17th, 2020
Although I know what topic I want to research, I found myself struggling when deciding where to start. So, I decided to be basic and search what are the different human impacts on the environment.
I am able to name many of the impacts but having a basic list was refreshing, which was provided by a post on Dark Blue Journal--the first resource I found. The article listed what the author considered to be the top seven detrimental human impacts on the Earth: deforestation, use of fossil fuels, plastic pollution, overfishing, water pollution, overconsumption, and climate departure. I didn't even know what was the last impact. Climate departure means that at some point in the near future (like in next 20 years), the climate of a region will change completely to a state where temperatures that are considered very high now will become the norm. The article also showed how clearly these impacts were interconnected, like how fossil fuels are used to create the plastic we throw away. Overconsumption is also extremely dangerous since it's something everyone I know--including myself--is guilty of when they buy new clothes, phones, and get rid of their old ones in order to keep up with the times. The things we get rid of create so much of the waste that end up as pollution on the shores of India, Africa, and China.
The other article I read changed my thinking on when the ways of humans began to affect the Earth. I knew that carbon dioxide emissions began to rise notably during the second industrial revolution and skyrocketed around 1950--most likely due to the increased use of petroleum and carbon as new ways of transportation were being invented and countries like the U.S. became more developed. However, the article pointed out that humans have been using land (for hunting and gathering to farming) since 10,000 years ago and that about 3,000 years ago, an increase in farming and pastoralism (raising livestock) occurred. This increase in farming required the clearing of forests so that fields to plant in and let livestock feed on could be created. An important thing to note is that although modern human impacts are much more drastic and widespread, this shift in agriculture that occurred a long time ago could be viewed as the beginning of the Anthropoecene¹ since certain small actions can cause global change over time. Since deforestation is also occurring now in order to have more land available, it shows how humans have been acting in a pattern since 3,000 years ago.
Both articles were eye-opening and honestly made my brain hurt; specifically the second one. If humans have been acting basically the same way as 3,000 years ago, are we going to be able to change for the better? People, like politicians, economists, and rich people, are always focused on making more money and they don't care what happens to the poorer communities that deal with the aftermath of their actions. Maybe colonizing Mars is the answer. Then again, if every individual can contribute, rather than relying on the government or other people to do the work, it's possible.