Thursday, April 19, 2007
Last Wednesday at the University of Kansas, Robert F. Kennedy posed the following question about the environment: Why should we care? For students, this query begs immediate attention.
On a daily basis, we find food quickly; water flows in abundance from faucets in our homes. Gasoline is available with the swipe of a credit card. From our perspective, there is no pressing need to imagine particles of poison in our air or to visualize massive forests being toppled along with treasure troves of undiscovered species.
nutgraf
In a highly developed nation, we may be able to temporarily evade effects of environmental abuse. Ultimately, however, we cannot avoid the consequences, and the costs of our actions will be monumental.
Products of a capitalist economy, we have been guided in the world by a dream of fast profit. We encourage unsustainable and exploitative policies, explicitly or implicitly, because they make cheaper products. We stand idly as profiting industries discredit environmentalists as crazed tree-huggers and politicians evade looming ecological concerns. Often, we disregard environmental topics as mundane issues on a liberal agenda.
Yet the environment, far more than a source of political issues, is the infrastructure in which we are inextricably entangled. It is the water, air and land that sustain life, the materials used to build cities, the resources that enable transportation and invention. It is, as Kennedy poignantly stated, our sole connection to that which is spiritual.
For its vital role in our lives, we should care. We should care because, piece by piece, we have been destroying this infrastructure. The consequences of our carefree behaviors are grim.
Chemical pollutants in our air spur sometimes-deadly respiratory illnesses. Toxins in our water damage our reproductive systems and cause retardation in fetuses. A 2007 report by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change asserts that tens of millions will face food and water shortages by 2020 due to a lack of rainfall caused by global warming; the poorest will be hardest hit. The national security think-tank, the CNA Corporation, recently released a report authored by military admirals and generals that asserted that resource shortages caused by global warming are likely to spur “civil strife, genocide and the growth of terrorism.”
Meanwhile, ecosystems are crumbling. The World Resources Institute reports that over 80 percent of natural forests on the planet have already been destroyed. The World Conservation Union lists thousands of animals that are threatened with extinction and asserts that humans are 99 percent of the cause for species’ endangerment. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that, as a result of devastating fishing techniques, more than 70 percent of all fish species are dangerously exploited or depleted. Numerous other organizations spew sobering data on the deteriorating structure in which we live.
In a highly developed nation, we may be able to temporarily evade effects of environmental abuse. Ultimately, however, we cannot avoid the consequences, and the costs of our actions will be monumental. Our future generation will be particularly burdened, facing increased costs and risks and fewer opportunities to enjoy nature’s unspoiled beauty.
If not for us, then for them, we should care.
— Alison Kieler for the editorial board
Thompson: Where our world collides with the ...
Biodiversity Institute receives grant
The University of Kansas’ Biodiversity Institute accepted a $850,000 grant from Microsoft ...
Earles: Free Willy from sonar
Politicians should be held accountable for policies that harm animals, environment
Sandal: Cultural ‘need’ to consume destroying the ...
Same environmental issues persist, showing how little concern many have for the ...
Blog: Green my guy
Are you really getting what you paid for in the grocery store?
Fired up about coal
Lawrence’s coal-fired plant contributes to high asthma rates, river pollution.
Handshy: Plastic is bad for our environment ...
Documentary reveals new consequence for using plastic.
Kenny: Consumption causes harm, whether buying green ...
No matter how environmentally friendly our products are, this level of consumption ...
EPA administrator speaks about Hurricane Katrina, pollution ...
Lisa Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, shared with students various ...
Student studies abroad in small village
KU student Chelsea Cooley learns to appreciate the environment while studying in ...
Hydraulic fracturing a hot topic at energy ...
Energy-industry professionals and University students come together to discuss hydraulic fracturing, a ...
Waterworld
Water covers about 70 percent of the earth’s surface. That should keep ...
Westar pays for environmental violation
The Topeka-based power company agreed to pay $500 million for violating the ...
Handshy: America should measure progress differently
Success shouldn't be measured in dollars for a sustainable future.
Reduce, reuse, relocate
Potter Lake Unplugged entertains and educates in the Kansas Union instead of ...
Greening it
"The 11th Hour" review
Green it!: Earth-friendly dry cleaning
Eco-Logic Dry Cleaners opened in Lawrence last month
Greening it
Your guide to greener living
CO2 emissions may affect flowering plants
Professor of ecology and evolutionary biology Joy Ward and post doctoral researcher ...
It's easy being green
KU Hillel members created a documentary to observe other students' reactions to ...
Kennedy advocates environmentalism
Robert Kennedy Jr. said the environment is intertwined with everything in his ...
Aquifer numbers down in recent survey
The increase in corn crops in Kansas has lead to decreasing aquifers. ...
Environs host panel to raise awareness
Educating the public and land preservation were hot topics at Monday’s panel.
Environmentalist shares her passion with Lawrence
Simran Sethi has a long list of experiences: a host for MTV, ...
Title X funding up in the air
A proposed bill would cut $317 million in reproductive health care and ...
Guest: How Americans can find independence
Living the green life
Earth Day is just one day of 365 that this senior is ...
Faculty members get environmental task force positions
Faculty members Simran Sethi and Jeff Severin were chosen by Climate Protection ...
Saving the planet, one roll at a ...
Greenpeace rankings show students which toilet paper brands are environmentally friendly.
Presence of algae indicates larger problems
As reservoirs age, Lawrence residents may experience water issues.
Candidates include four newcomers
How much do you know about the candidates for today's city commission ...
Earth Day celebration draws Lawrence community together
Different university and community groups celebrate with parade and fair.
Candidates discuss positions on environmental issues
The Kansan spoke with local State Senate and State House candidates, asking ...
News Brief: March 30, 2007
The recreation center ran out of hot water for the second time ...
Editorial: Why students should vote for Obama
The Kansan editorial board's endorsement
KU student uses research to help Navajo ...
Nasbah Ben, Chinle, Ariz., graduate student, researches air quality in the Four ...
Tomato shortage in the U.S. has started ...
A staple complement to a good sandwich and burger has became less ...
The real cost of bottled water
An analysis of the economic and environmental costs of bottled water.
From left: Kimberlee Hinkle, Libby Johnson and Hannah ...
1 comment
Kansas Jayhawk fans hold aloft a reproduction of ...
2 comments
Erin Saupe, a Ph.D. student from St. Cloud, ...
1 comment
0 comments
Armed robbers continue to threaten.
3 comments
Lecture from Greg Mortenson, co-author of New York ...
0 comments
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID