Today's wastage is tomorrow's shortage
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Index: Environmental Literacy Ecosystems Sustainability The Water Health risks Air, Climate & Weather Energy Food Land Environment and Society Games
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Our MISSION is to illustrate the importance of the recourses on our planet earth. Wasting water, food, energy and so much more has become a part of our everyday lives. Fill yourself with enlightenment about how you can save your planet. Act today!
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Environmental Literacy: According to David Orr, an environmental educator, ethicist, and author, “Environmental literacy is the capability for a contextual and detailed understanding of an environmental problem in to order to enable “According the third As inanalysis, synthesis, evaluation, and ultimately sound and informed decision making at a citizen's level. This means that "environmentally literate" students will have the knowledge, tools, and sensitivity to properly address an environmental problem in their professional capacity, and to routinely include the environment as one of the considerations in their work and daily living.”
Facts: Question wording: In general, how much do you feel you know about environmental issues and problems? – would you say you know a lot, a fair amount, only a little, or practically nothing? About 80% of Americans are heavily influenced by incorrect or outdated environmental Myths. Just 12% of Americans can pass a basic quiz on awareness of energy topics. annual survey by the National Geographic Society and international polling firm Globe Scan. The 17-country survey looked at consumer behaviors that have an impact on the environment, including their transportation patterns, household energy …
For more information about Environmental Literacy please visit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z6dbWLmIw8
…2009, much of the increase in the overall 2010 Greendex scores was due to more sustainable behavior in the housing category, in which the Greendex measures the energy and resources consumed by people’s homes. Americans, Hungarians, British, and Australians saw marked increases in this area, as consumers made moves to improve the energy efficiency of their homes. In all other countries surveyed, fewer than a quarter say they are discouraged from taking action because they consider environmental problems are exaggerated, while 40 percent of Indians feel this way.” Terry Garcia, National Geographic’s executive vice president of Mission Programs, added, Consumers in emerging economies continue to round out the top tier of the Greendex ranking, while the bottom six countries are all industrialized countries.” and resource use, and consumption of food and everyday consumer goods, as well as what consumers were doing to minimize that impact. American consumers’ behavior still ranks as the least sustainable of consumers in all countries surveyed since the survey’s inception three years ago, followed by Canadian and French consumers, though improvement was seen.
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Ecosystems:
An ecosystem is generally defined as a community of organisms living in a particular environment and the physical components in that environment with which they interact. Ecosystems occur on many different scales; smaller systems can be implanted within larger systems. An ecosystem can be as small as a fallen log or as large as the ocean, depending on the scale that the researcher is examining. Ecosystems are defined based on the foremost plants, animals and climatic conditions found within a particular geographic area. There is a desert ecosystem which is characterized by bare vegetation, sandy soils, and very little yearly rainfall. While there are Wetland ecosystems that have low-lying areas that are frequently flooded with shallow waters and populated with plants. Ecosystems are deteriorating due to the severe impact of mankind. There are many human misuses that lead to the deterioration of Ecosystems.
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Such as: Human Impact in Ecosystems
Urbanization
• Clearing forests for homes and Businesses. • Road building. • Creating landfills. • Release of toxic chemicals from homes, businesses, and cars.
Hydrologic alteration
• Draining wetlands for other land uses. • Damming rivers for water storage and flood prevention. • Straightening stream channels.
Recreation
• Constructing roads and trails through natural areas • Stocking lakes and rivers with game fish. • Eliminating predators to enhance populations of game animals.
Agriculture
• Adding nutrients and pesticides to the soil. • Clearing forests to create pasture and rangeland. • Timber harvesting.
Mining
• Oil and gas drilling. • Surface mining for coal.
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Air, Climate & Weather
The earth’s environment is a layer of gases just about 350km bulky. It is a huge and multifaceted organization that cooperates with the Sun, the land, and the oceans in order to fabricate equally the Earth’s weather conditions and climate. The coat of atmosphere mainly far-away from the Earth is the thermosphere, which embarks on something like 80km in elevation. It is also the hottest coating "thermo" which means in Greek heat. The temperatures in the thermosphere ascend with height suitable to the fascination of severe solar energy by the inadequate quantity of lingering molecular oxygen. The supply of this heat is through bombardment of solar atoms passed on the solar wind that do not reach deeper into the idea. Dissimilarities in the activities of the weather over extended periods are referred to as climate change. Climate difference occurs as an answer to climate pressuring which can be a source either to a warming or a cooling of the atmosphere.
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Sustainability: This elusive term is a term that entails a prosperous life for all living things and specially humans. One way we could define sustainability is by saying that it is the use of the suitable amount or resources bearing in mind its effect on our planet Earth. Sustainability is measured on many scales, and in many contexts of environmental, social, and economic issues. This is a very serious issue that has a huge impact on the continuation of Earth’s life cycle. Here is when humans step in; Humans are the main reason behind the misuse of biophysical resources and their destruction. Among many reasons for that is the human lifestyle pattern that should be guided towards maintaining a more sustainable life. The ever-growing rate of new born infants, the misuse of recourses as well as technology; these are all key aspects that should be managed more seriously.
The Greendex measures the impact of the average consumer in each country surveyed; it does not measure the environmental impact of a total country.
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The Water
The most important building block for life on Earth is water, the most plenteous natural resource on the planet. Actually, water covers almost two-thirds of the Earth surface. However, 97 percent of the water is held in the oceans, while only the rest 3 percent is held as freshwater. Yet, this 3 percent of freshwater, only 1 percent is simply available as ground or surface water, the remaining 2 percent are stored in glaciers and icecaps. Moreover, freshwater is not evenly distributed across land surfaces. There are a lot of populated countries located in dry lands where fresh water is restricted. In creating a practical market for water, when the prices of water increase, people will effectively treat water as a limited and valuable resource so they will adapt and find creative ways to trade and conserve water. However, when prices do not reflect shortage, it can result in waste, inefficiency, and environmental degradation because people will not be able to consume water considerably. People, for example, will be using excessive water in showering and over watering the plants. This may cause severe issues in shortage of water.
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TIPS SAVING WATER
Adjust sprinklers so only your lawn is watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street When washing dishes by hand, don't let the water run while rinsing. Fill one sink with wash water and the other with rinse water. Turn off the water while brushing your teeth and save 25 gallons a month. Water only when necessary. More plants die from overwatering than from under-watering. Turn off the water while you shave and save up to 300 gallons a month.
Energy: All of modern day civilization developments depend on the advancement and availability of energy. We as a human civilization have observed a great progression all the way from steam and animal power to electricity generation, to the harnessing of energy from alternative sources. Due to our dependence on energy sources, it is crucial to understand how the use of this energy effects the environment. All aspects of energy ranging from how it is produced consumed and distributed. Affect global, regional and local environments through degradation, use of land, and the acidification of soils and water, air pollution and through global climate change from the emissions of green house gases. The majority of our energy comes from fossil fuels. The burning of these fuels souses emission of carbon dioxide. That adds to the green house effect. Examples of fossil fuels are coal, oil and natural gas. All three fuels are essential for maintaining the life style, that we have grown accustom to living. Oil is the world’s primary transportation fuel while coal produces electricity. Also natural gas is commonly used for heating. Natural gas produces less carbon dioxide than oil and coal hence it is considered cleaner.
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Health risks Environmental factors cause many disease burdens in developing countries such as sub Saharan Africa 35% of diseases and death are linked to environmental hazards. The list below shows some of the factors that lead to health issues:
Unsafe water, poor sanitation and hygiene kill an estimated 1.7 million people annually, particularly as a result of diarrhoeal disease.
Indoor smoke from solid fuels kills an estimated 1.6 million people annually due to respiratory diseases.
Malaria kills over 1.2 million people annually, mostly African children under the age of five. Poorly designed irrigation and water systems, inadequate housing, poor waste disposal and water storage, deforestation and loss of biodiversity, all may be contributing factors to the most common vector-borne diseases including malaria, dengue and leishmaniasis.
Urban air pollution generated by vehicles, industries and energy production kills approximately 800 000 people annually.
Unintentional acute poisonings kill 355 000 people globally each year. In developing countries, where two-thirds of these deaths occur, such poisonings are associated strongly with excessive exposure to, and inappropriate use of, toxic chemicals and pesticides present in occupational and/or domestic environments.
Climate change impacts including more extreme weather events, changed patterns of disease and effects on agricultural production, are estimated to cause over 150 000 deaths annually.
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Food: Human civilization has its roots in the early domestication of plants and animals nearly 10,000 years ago. Success in this attempt led to drastic changes in how and where human beings lived; agriculture led humans from a drifting existence to one based in permanent and semi-permanent settlements. Agriculture also changed how humans interacted with one another and how they interacted with the Earth. In the 20th century there was an extraordinary growth in global population that showed remarkable advances in agriculture, public health, and technology. The Green Revolution brought high-yield crops and advanced growing techniques to developing countries, improving nutrition and health in most parts of the world. Therefore, continued growth will likely require more land to plant and water for irrigation, increasing pressure on habitats and natural resources. The most important challenge is to find ways to increase food production at the same time minimizing environmental deprivation. Significant research in this topic has led to advanced methods to save soil and stop erosion, by cultivating and computer-controlled application of pesticides, fertilizers, and water. Technology and new Agricultural methods have made it easier to grow more food on fewer acres of land which makes way for some land to return to its natural state.
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Land:
The shell of the earth is formed by a group of physical processes; it includes earthquakes and volcanoes, rocks and flows of river and ice. Humans outline the land through growing populations, rural expansion, mineral and forest resource mining. Land cover is the physical and natural material found on the exterior of the land which has many and different characteristics. Land use demonstrates the numerous ways by which the human beings could be able to handle the land and to make the best out of its resources. From the lessons that we have learned, is that humans have had various interaction with land. Long ago, it was believed that land was not used for food gathering and shelter. When domestication was put into practice, there was a massive clearance of farming and settlement. The increasing populations constructed buildings and structures for protection, religious reasons and security, and misused the land cover and the routes of transportation, food and command.
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Environment and Society
From the ancient world up to now, humans have been both affected and affected by the natural world. A good deal of the natural world has been lost by human actions, but also much of it has been preserved and protected through human actions. While many doubts stay behind, there is a understanding that environmental tribulations are becoming more and more compound, particularly as issues happen on a more global level, like the global warming and the air pollution. The environment has developed into one of the most significant concerns of our era and will go on to be well into the future. The difference of opinion is to find approaches to environmental organization that grant people the value of life they request while defending the environmental systems that are as well the fundamentals of our well being. In order to face these challenges, students today will require more than on- the- surface knowledge or understanding of detached environmental issues. An approach to learn can build upon the strengths of a extensive collection of fields of study, offering a deeper accepting of the hi-tech, opinionated, and social options and policies for both learning and running the link between our society and the surroundings.
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Environmental Literacy M Y N F I R U I R W A B N E C S R C N F U T S N Y
A N T E R A L D R R A N T T A S G S N R R R E O Y
M B H H T R R I L L U I L W L W E H L A N R R E G
environment air ecosystem lakes sea
R D R A F G V V W A C I R A T O R N S A E H E A B
S H M O V E T T A M A E R A T E G U D S K L S T M
T E S E R S N T A E T T M H F O A N A R S E Y A M
R N A S E M A A W A R R A O T T N E C E E S S I R
O R V E F E E F W I I H O S R I S S I O L O E A T
L S E I S V A A E M N D S O A R T R U O H S I R D
A I E E N Y I N E V C D Y E U F O N N R I N R R S
O I A L N E C T S L S E S E O E O A A O R E R I M
O I E E E K S L I T W V N R A F T R F W L R E E R
S D O N F Y E M I L A E I D W U A O E W E N T T R
literacy climate nature rivers rain
T U F R S U A U O S R N A H R L E R K S V R M S S
W R O O F T S L U G R R A E I A R N E I T N A R I
S O C O E L T E Y O A L I T O S Y Y R H R S L S N
food weather organisms earth water
For more fun visit the video below‌ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXMOB2MilN8
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T E I T R F O L V R A N E N V T M O D E T S W I T
T B R F T N G L E A O R I E N E N S O C L A N A U
O F T W N H K I R A A A D N O M N Y I C E A E E K
S N S T T V E D A C Y A E I E L D R T N E T N W K
T S E R S N R S Y L E A N N W A E L I C A E L D A
A W A M A S I L M S L S T G T A T R R R L G S E S
land energy forests wind biofuels
R E E L I N S K V T A E I C A R R S C E G N R O W
A A C V I N E I R I E E A S A L R R N A U K R O E
D T A M A B L I R R O S E M G O Y E O A R T N N D
Main Components of Environmental Literacy: 1. E sensitivity 2. E knowledge 3. E Skills 4. E attitudes 5. E values 6. Responsibility and Active Involvement An environmental literate person: Evaluates impact and consequences of actions. Chooses environmentally friendly alternatives Advocates action
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Simple tips for a better tomorrow…
Don’t throw food and try to eat all organic all the time, recycle paper and glass Switch off light after leaving a room…use environmentally friendly light bulbs Reduce use of fossil fuels…use an environmentally friendly solution such as a hybrid car Does not waste water…use chemical free products
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References: 1- http://www.who.int/heli/risks/en/ 2- UNEP/Permdhal Vesm; UNEP; UNEP/Carmel Fatima 3- http://www.google.com.eg/imgres?imgurl=http://cdn.wn.com/pd/05/a8/eacc54a3cb7f9d24894bd7a 1b403 4- http://www.google.com.eg/imgres?imgurl=http://www.aidmo.org/beta/images/stories/energy_sources _lrg.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.tomorrowisgreener.com/low-cost-energy5- http://www.google.com.eg/imgres?imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ b4/Environment_Economy_Society.jpg/300pxEnvironment_Economy_Society.jpg&imgrefurl=http://windfarms. 6- http://www.google.com.eg/imgres?imgurl=http://www.smartgrowth.bc.ca/Portals/0/Images/agric.land scape.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.smartgrowth.bc.ca/LinkClick.aspx%3Flink%3D111%26tabid%3D130&u sg=__H7YrSANSRSS5nu3Bs7a1wl6XToA=&h=858&w=3515&sz=714&hl=en&start=40&zoom=1&tbnid=Nj nQ6wFEmQR_kM:&tbnh=50&tbnw=204&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dland%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa% 3DN%26rlz%3D1R2ADBS_enEG330%26biw%3D1259%26bih%3D823%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C1235&um=1
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