The Ups and Downs

This was definitely not a walk in the park type of class that I thought it would be. This is a class that causes you to really think about the world and which direction we are heading in as a society. Before taking this class, I used to think that I could not do anything to change the world. So my lifestyle was just like any other ignorant person that does not believe that anything would change by changing themselves. After taking this class I knew that I was dead wrong.
It was not easy to get through to me at first because like I said, I did not WANT to be there. I felt that I was just there because the school was forcing me to be. The highpoint for me was when it all finally clicked and realized that there needs to be a change in the world or we are all doing to fall in our own demise. It was probably in the middle of my service learning that it hit me because I felt I was actually doing something to help the environment.
We all have to make a change. It starts with ourselves and then works its way to other people. I believe becoming green can be a good disease that could spread but it just takes the right person to get it started to have those follow. My plans are to become that leader to help others see the light that we need to change our ways.

How I have Been Impacted

The experience I had from this colloquium class is something that I will take with me for the rest of my life. I have learned of a few more issues that I was not aware of before taking the class. Before going into the class I was not thrilled to have to take it and just wanted to get it over with. After hearing the lessons and doing the reading assignments, I have learned that this is an issue that is causing problems all over the world and not just here in our back yards.
The best experience I had from this class was the hands on work we did by going on the field trips (to EHCO, Corckscrew, and Estero Island) and the service learning we had to do for the class. On the field trips, we learned about how they were trying to preserve these natural areas of our Florida Everglades for not just the environmnt and our health but also the animals that call those areas home. We have taken so much from the animals and have even killed off many species in the process of doing so. A lot of it has to do with the climate change that we have caused to worsen since the Industrial Revolution.
I intend to continue to improve the environment even after the class is over. I am going to carry it with my in my career too. Even though I am still unsure what I want to do the rest of my life I know it will be something in business. I intend to run a green business to help maintain a sustainable environment so that my chiildren can grow up and live a long and healthy life like I will. It takes just one person to start a movement, so why can't that be me?

Where is Modern Civilization Heading?

With a growing concern for climate change and the greenhouse gases being released into the atmosphere, businesses are under major scrutiny for changing their ways of operation. Over the last several years, the United States has started cracking down on natural gas fuels by putting a cap on how much can be used in a period of time and putting a tax on it. Even though we are making strides to change our ways a little bit, there are too many people that do not want to change their way of business compared to those that are willing to comply.
It is difficult to get everyone on board because we do not want to fall behind in the world economy. There are countries, like China, that do not have a cap on how much fossil fuels they are allowed to burn so they continue to be a world leader in production and exports. Being able to get many countries to transform to a  more sustainable working environment will take a major global change to finally get people aware of climate change and how it will eventually destroy us. Even here in the United States, where we have scientific leaders presenting us with evidence that climate change is real, we are still in denial that climate change is actually taking place.
There are still many countries that are on their way to operating in a sustainable way and are preparing now for the change that will one day have to take place. Germany has proposed a plan to move to more sustainable source of energy, and should be fully converted by 2020. To help heal our environment and sustain it to better living conditions, we need other countries like Germany to move to a better way of operating sustainably.
Hopefully it is not going to take the Polar Ice Caps or Greenland ice cap from melting before the world realises that we are destroying the place we all call home. In order to maintain the environment, it is going to take a lot of time, work, and money but it is something we need in the near future in order to help the survival of our race and planet.