Download Getting Started With Global Issues

Getting Started
With Global
Issues
Answer Key
5 Characteristics of a Global
Issue
• Persistent
• Widespread
• Affects large #’s
of people
• Is an underlying
cause of events
• Is connected to
other global
issues
Mobile as a metaphor for
relationship between global
issues
• As with a mobile, changes with
one part of the system affect other
issues and the entire system
Darfur, Sudan crisis &
interconnected issues
• Desertification, poverty, migration
& high fertility rates heightened
competition between Arab herders
and African farmers for the scarce
resources of wood, food, & water
Good Quality of Life Factors
•
•
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•
•
•
•
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Food
Water
Shelter
Health
Education
Family
Community
Political &
Religious
Freedom,
• Happiness
• Security
Developed vs. Developing
Countries
• Developed
countries
have higher
average per
capita income
than
developing
countries
Sustainability
• Ability to meet our
needs without
limiting the ability
of future
generations to
meet their needs
in the areas of
economy,
environment, &
society
Renewable Resources
• Can be restored
or replenished
at basically the
same rate they
are consumed
Ex: forests, fish,
wind, water,
tides, solar
energy
Non-renewable Resources
• Exist in fixed
amounts and
cannot be
readily restored
through human
or natural
processes
Ex: metal,
minerals, fossil
fuels
Carrying Capacity
• The maximum number of people
the Earth can support without
permanent ecological damage or
resource depletion
• Increased by the agricultural
revolution’s food production
technology
• Decreased by higher population,
pollution, & resource
consumption rates
GDP vs. GPI
• GDP calculates
economic growth as
the total amount of
goods & services
produced annualy in
a country; GPI also
adds desirable nonmaterial services
such as volunteerism
and childcare and
subtracts negative
factors such as crime
& pollution
Pg. 11 Graph comparing GDP &
GPI betweebn 1970 & mid
1990’s
• GDP up, GPI down
“No Exit” Cartoon
• “The grass is
always greener
on the other
side” - our
notion of
“happiness” is
sometimes
driven by what
other people
have
Personal vs. Structural
Solutions
• Personal solutions are
individual actions that can
contribute to sustainability,
but structural solutions
attempt to address underlying
causes and often involve
government decisions and
policies that encourage or
discourage certain behaviors
Tax Policies or Subsidies on
Fossil Fuel Use
• Governments can
reduce gas
consumption by
raising the gas tax
or subsidizing the
auto industry to
develop higher
mileage vehicles
System (living/non-living)
• Non-systems approach: a quick fix,
doesn’t consider the interrelations,
alternative, or mobile affect
• Systems approach: a sustainable
approach that considers causes &
multiple effects, now and in future
Worldview + influences
• A person’s basic
assumption &
beliefs about
how the world
works
• Influenced by
culture, history,
family, religion,
& education
Real World Event
(Iceberg Model)
• Events = tip of iceberg, what we
first hear or see in the
news
• Patterns = recurring events
• Structures = the underlying cause
of patterns & events
Multiple Perspectives & Critical
Thinking for Sustainability
• Multiple perspectives leads us
to appreciate & benefit from the
viewpoints of diverse peoples.
• Critical thinking demands that
we gather necessary
information and credible
evidence to reach wise
solutions.
End