Saturday, February 29, 2020

Ecological Footprints Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ecological Footprints - Essay Example This paper will explore the concept of ecological footprint as applied in the universe today to monitor the relationship between humanity and nature. First and foremost, the paper will look into what is ecological footprints and then focus on the importance of this concept and lastly explore the strengths, benefits as well as the weaknesses of the concept. Ecological footprint is the metric tool that allows us to evaluate human pressure on the universe and it is defined as a measure of the load imposed on nature by a given population (Spellerberg 108). It can also be defined as the estimate of the land area or land equivalent necessary to sustain current levels of resource consumption and waste assimilation for a given population, where land is the area of the environment including the aquatic habitat (Spellerberg 108). It is for instance estimated that the earth today takes about one year and six months to regenerate the resources used up by humanity and to assimilate the waste prod uced (â€Å"Global Footprint Network†). ... this way, the concept provides a simple way for comparison between the demand for natural resources and the ability of nature to provide, bio capacity. When there is increased ecological footprint, there is increased demand for resources than the capacity of nature to provide and this creates a deficit/gap commonly referred to as overshoot. The world ecological footprint is described to have increased by 50% between the year 1970 and 1997, an increase of about 1.5% per year and the living planet index decreased by about 33% (Spellerberg 108). Overshoot is one of the most underestimated threats to the human population and it is maintained through the utilization of nature in a manner that is not sustainable (Smith 10). The concept of ecological footprint is very useful to the human race and the universe in general as it helps to monitor the use of ecological resources and foster advancements in sustainable development. By measuring the ecological footprint of a certain population be i t individuals, a state, a business or even humanity in general, we can be able to evaluate the pressure we are exerting on the planet and take caution. We will be able to utilize the available resources more wisely and also take individual and even collective initiatives to support and improve the ecological habitat of humanity. A UN projection study for instance shows that if the recent consumption model continues, by the year 2030, humanity will need the equivalent of two Earths to sustain itself (â€Å"Global Footprint Network†). The concept is very instrumental in helping the society deal with the problems that arise from overshoot whereby people are converting resources into waste faster than the waste can be put back into resource. The results of overshoot are devastating to humanity

Wednesday, February 12, 2020

Nullfication crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nullfication crisis - Essay Example discussion, but more specifically, it will concern the Southern and South-western States, most notably South Carolina, who felt that the Tariff of 1828 was unjust. It is interesting to question precisely how this crisis came about and how it affected these Southern states, exploring the events lending up to 1832, and reflecting upon the results of the compromising measures that attempted to solve the crisis. Moreover, my purpose in what follows is to explore how South Carolina was involved in the Nullification Crisis more than her sister Southern states. Nullification was first introduced in 1789 by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, in which both states defied the Alien and Sedition Act, claiming they should have the right to nullify the law. However, regarding the issues surrounding South Carolina, it was John Calhoun who again brought up idea of nullification in 1832, as an alternative to the state’s threat to secede. The reason for South Carolina to call a state convention to nullify certain laws was due to the issue of a protection tariff, and the fact that the federal government ignored their protest and continued to collect these tariff duties. As maintained by John G. Van Deusen; ‘in 1832, the tariff question was most prominent in the minds of South Carolinians,’ but they also ‘complained of sectional discrimination in federal appropriations.’1 To understand how the tariff bill came to be a leading problem in the Nullification Crisis, what accounted f or the gradual build of opposition between the North and the South, and how it involved the former Vice-President, Calhoun, the events leading up 1832 must be explored. The protective tariff was a tax on imports, a high duty that was advocated on all goods that could be produced in sufficient quantity in the United States. In the tariff bill of 1816, protection was admitted as an incidental feature only, and the raising of revenue made the predominant