TuttleJPExam

John Peter Tuttle Sustainability Problems Final Exam =1) Identify ways that corporations are a sustainability problem, referencing at least four examples from films you watched this semester.= Many of the problems with corporations being sustainability problems are pointed out in Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott's 2003 documentary entitled "The Corporation,” and many of those simply stem from the amount of power corporations have in modern society. Corporations have ended up with the legal rights of people; however, they can often either greatly influence laws, or simply do not have to suffer the consequences of their actions. Several good example of these sorts of issues exist with Monsanto. They have managed to get patents on particular seeds that are resistant to their own insecticides, and that are un-re-plantable. Besides the issues with patenting plants, the fact that their seeds are not replantable results in far more cost for farmers, and a large environmental impact from the need to ship more seeds. In other cases, Monsanto has used bovine growth hormone, which had been known to cause cancer in humans. They tried to cover up this issue when Fox News investigators wanted to do a story on it, insisting that they change the story to place less blame on Monsanto and make the issue seem far less serious than it actually is. This links into the issue of mass media being a sustainability problem – corporations can easily pay off media outlets to cover up stories about negative environmental problems they have been having, which can potentially have health problems with people living in affected communities. On a smaller scale, there are more local issues – paper mills in numerous communities that are polluting local areas. Another example of this sort of issue occurred in Blue Vinyl – companies manufacturing vinyl and PVC have had problems with their manufacturing plants polluting the surrounding area. Corporations can often get away with these sorts of things, without having to own up to the consequences. =2) Describe how science can be a sustainability problem, referencing at least four examples from films you watched this semester.=  Science has certainly solved some environmental problems; however, it is not entirely perfect. One of the main sustainability issues with science is that it promotes progress, but does not usually encourage those coming up with scientific solutions to make sure that their solutions are sustainable. This will often lead to great scientific advances that seem like a good idea at the time, but later end up being revealed as being horribly unsustainable; however, by the time, they are often well-integrated into society to the point that it would be rather difficult to simply stop using them.    One example of this is the internal combustion engine; Josh Tickell’s 2008 documentary film “Fuel” discusses how there were cars that could run on ordinary alcohol, but they fell out of favor, replaced by those that ran on gasoline. An entire industry and infrastructure has been created around an unsustainable technology, and we are only recently putting significant work into finding more sustainable alternatives.  Several of the other films we saw focused on sustainability issues with particular materials. Ian Connacher’s documentary “Addicted to Plastic” discusses a bit of the history of plastic, and how, while there are developments of more biodegradable plastic, in many cases, the best solution is simply not to use the material. “Blue Vinyl,” a documentary directed by Judith Helfand and Daniel B. Gold, discusses the health problems with vinyl and PVC that were not immediately apparent at the time. Finally, “Homo Toxicus” discusses how all sorts of toxics in modern products are harming our health. There are certainly good scientific reasons for using those materials, but no one at the time thought to investigate the sustainability and environmental consequences of using them.  In some cases, there are attempts to resolve these sorts of problems using scientific solutions; however, to avoid negative press coverage, these attempts are often covered up by the companies that use the environmentally-unfriendly materials, as they do not want to be forced to change their manufacturing processes. =3) Describe ways that mainstream media is a sustainability problem, referencing at least four examples from films you watched this semester.=  There are several issues with the mainstream media with regards to sustainability. One of the major problems with mainstream media is that it just does not give enough coverage to sustainability problems. This is partially due to the fact that these sorts of mass media companies need to make money, and will generally run stories that will net them more viewers, and unless these sorts of environmental problems are //really// affecting a local area, they likely will not get coverage.    A related issue is the fact that it is rather easy for corporations to pay off mass media. One example of this was documented in “The Corporation” – Monsanto was using bovine growth hormone, knowing it was known to cause cancer. A group of investigators for Fox News were going to do a story on the issue, but Fox received threatening letters from Monsanto, and higher-ups at Fox managed to kill the story (but not after making the investigators rewrite nearly the entire story, trying to get them to give up).  Another issue with mainstream media ties into advertising. As “The Persuaders” points out, advertising fuels a consumer culture that encourages throwaway, disposable products that are not built particularly well. From another angle, ads can be used by corporations to downplay the issues they have had – there are at least a couple of examples of these sorts of problems in “The Yes Men Fix The World” – the Bhopal disaster, for one; Dow Chemical made ads that downplayed the issue and tried to convince viewers that everything was fine, since they could not really bring it up after the prank the Yes Men pulled off.  One other major issue with the mainstream media is that they are subject to biases. Individual channels have their own biases, and if corporations have enough money, they can simply pay off the network to get them to cancel it, or at least change it.  One final potential issue with mainstream media is the nature of the programming they have. “Six Degrees Could Change The World” was originally a TV movie on National Geographic, and, while it works as an environmental film, it feels a bit too much like a disaster movie, and some viewers may not take it entirely seriously, lessening the film’s effectiveness, and making viewers less likely to care about environmental problems. =4) Describe how the advertising industry is a sustainability problem. Discuss the environmental implications of “communication for commerce,” the effort to create emotional connections between consumers, commodities and companies, and the cultivation of “loyalty beyond reason” (The Persuaders). Also discuss whether sustainability advocates should borrow techniques from the adverting industry to advance their message.=  One of the major problems with the advertising industry is that it fuels the consumer culture that permeates the modern American lifestyle. Advertisers convince us that we need all sorts of products that are not strictly necessary – they target exact demographics, preying on people’s weaknesses, advertising different features to different demographics. In a way, they create and control a large portion of American culture. They convince everyone that they always need the latest and greatest version of everything, when, in most cases, last year’s model works perfectly fine, or rather, it would if it were not built to only last a few years. These sorts of ads also fuel demand for products that, in many cases, are made using unsustainable materials and techniques.  Companies that make commodity products – toothpaste, laundry detergent, etc. – have a bit of a more difficult task, as they cannot really compete on product differences that much anymore. Instead, as we discovered in The Persuaders, companies will advertise their product as more of a //lifestyle//, showing viewers how their life will be enhanced by the product, but not directly – showing images they want viewers to associate with the product. They end up creating emotional connections that are far beyond what one would rationally expect given the products they are selling – they would make sense for something more personal, like a musical instrument, but for consumer electronics or household goods, they are rather absurd. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> Sustainability advocates should certainly borrow tactics from advertisers – convincing people to care about and teaching them about sustainability problems is a key part of solving environmental problems. Getting people to have an emotional connection to the environment and actually care about what is going on in their community is definitely a good thing, and sustainability advocates should use whatever methods they feel are appropriate (within reason) to convince people about these sorts of issues. =5) Discuss how Internet communication and other forms of new media are sustainability problems, as well as a means to sustainability solutions.= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">The Internet has been a huge revolution in communication that has revolutionized all parts of society; however, it is not entirely good. There are several issues with it.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">One major problem is the fact that the communications provided by the Internet encourage people to create new products that often end up in landfills. The high-speed nature of the Internet also encourage impulse buys, resulting in people buying products that they do not //really// need, and creates a demand for these sorts of products, encouraging more potentially-polluting manufacturing.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">Another major issue with the Internet is the amount of information it allows access to. This is certainly a great advantage for all parts of society; however, a lot of this information ends up getting printed out for easy reading, and subsequently discarded. This results in a decent amount of paper waste. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">There are also problems with the physical hardware the Internet runs on. Server farms that major websites are run on tend to use rather excessive amounts of power, both to power the systems themselves and simply to cool the hardware. Most of this power likely comes from fossil fuels and other rather environmentally un-friendly sources of energy. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">However, the Internet is not //entirely// bad; it does have several positive uses with respect to sustainability. The Internet can be used to spread awareness and messages about sustainability problems. Websites can host competitions or contests to encourage people to be more environmentally friendly. Some organizations – the Yes Men and Greenpeace, among others – use games as a way to spread awareness about sustainability problems. Another excellent use of the Internet is for creating hoaxes or stunts like those the Yes Men pull off. The main method the group had for getting invited to conferences was simply to make a fake website for a particular organization and simply wait for someone to invite them, which worked surprisingly well. =6) Identify key characteristics of the best environmental media (recognizing that few films or other media are likely to have more than a few of these characteristics). Reference examples from films we’ve seen this semester.= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> One key characteristic of the best environmental media is that of humor. It is not //directly// related to how well the media educates people about environmental issues; however, it results in more people watching a particular film, as it is more appealing to a wider audience. One of the films we saw that really used this to good effect was The Yes Men Fix The World. The stunts the Yes Men pull off are funny for a couple of reasons – the stunts //themselves// are funny, but what is more funny – and potentially disturbing – is how the people involved with them //don’t get// that they are joking.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> Another key characteristic of good environmental media is that of //emotional appeal//. This aspect ensures viewers can relate to the issues the film is presenting, showing them how it can potentially affect them or others. Several of the films we saw used emotional appeal – Burning in the Sun showed the advantages of green power (in that case, solar power), showing how it has the power to change people’s lives, which in some cases can be quite emotional. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> Good use of statistics and environmental science are also crucial. While they may not be entirely necessary to get people to watch the films in the first place, like humor and emotional appeal tend to be, they give the arguments the films are making validity, and allow people to understand exactly what is going on. Most, if not all of the films we have seen use scientific information on one level or another, simply to explain how environmental problems have changed over time. Another related characteristic is the use of infographics, or animations and graphics that are used to show information. Most of the films we saw this semester used them, and they make the scientific information the films present easier for laypeople to understand. =9). Many Americans are skeptical about climate change, and climate science. What do you think explains the skepticism? What do you think scientists should do to further enroll the public in concern about climate change? The articles listed below will provide material for your argument. Reference both articles in your answer.= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> People’s perception of global warming, both with respect to whether or not they believe it is true, and whether they support efforts to try to reduce it, depend on how personal they consider the issue. If they do not think an issue will realistically affect them, they certainly will not support it, and will have even less reason to believe in it.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> According to a November 2010 article in USA Today, readers want to have more than just facts – they respond best to articles that have emotional appeal. This fits in with key characteristics of good environmental media that we have seen this semester; the articles need to actually engage the reader, and not just giving them plain scientific facts. Articles need to help people understand what is going on, and how it is going to affect them. Since many of these problems are not going to affect people in the near future, most people tend to not really worry about them, figuring someone else will fix them; however, as we learned in most of the movies in this class, that sort of thinking will not work for much longer. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> An article in Environmental Health Perspectives shows that the same sort of logic applies to cities – cities that are most at risk for problems from global warming, even if they do not put out that much by way of greenhouse gases, are more likely to try to reduce their emissions. Cities that are at less risk, however, will //not// try to reduce their emissions, even if they are pollution much more than other cities. The article suggests that ideal solutions to environmental problems will have three properties: “[t]he information must be accessible and must come from a source deemed trustworthy; the activity required to reduce emissions must be relatively easy to undertake; and the activity also should provide a fairly quick financial payback so the individual is expeditiously rewarded.” =10) Explain, from your point of view, what the US government should do to advance environmental sustainability. What should the US government not do? Together, your lists should include at least six items. Include concrete example to illustrate your points.= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> There are several things the United States government can do to advance environmental sustainability. One thing that they really need to do is have stricter regulations for corporations with respect to sustainability problems. Partly because of corporate personhood, corporations can get away with all sorts of practices that damage the environment.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> The government should also provide some sort of incentives for people or companies that use greener technology or that try to reduce their environmental footprint. This could potentially come in the form of tax breaks, or perhaps discounts of some form. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> The U.S. government should also invest more in greener energy sources. They should fund companies that are working on more environmentally sustainable products, and provide incentives for startups that are developing new technologies. These could be tied into universities that are doing research on these sorts of topics. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> The U.S. government should also be setting a good example – they should be using sustainable energy sources for government buildings, vehicles, etc, and trying to reduce excessive use of paper and other wasteful materials. This would show that they are actually serious about these sorts of issues, and that they are willing to invest money to show that these technologies actually work. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> The government could also change standards for emissions for cars to encourage car manufacturers to make more sustainable cars (hybrid, electrics, etc.), and to convince people to buy these sorts of cars. Some sort of incentive would help, as it would help convince people who would not ordinarily consider these sorts of vehicles. Advertisements would work, but in many cases, people may simply end up buying what’s cheapest (even if, in some cases, it isn’t good for the environment). <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> One thing the government //shouldn’t// do is allow corporate personhood. It has caused all sorts of problems in the past that allow corporations to get away with unsustainable practices, without any consequences for the people actually in charge at the companies. =11). Describe the key message of Six Degrees Could Change The World, providing illustrative examples from the film, then evaluate its strategy and effectiveness as environmental media.= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> The key message of Six Degrees Could Change The World is that there could be disastrous consequences for the planet if we do not do something to reduce global warming. It discusses the ecological, cultural, and social problems with global warming. It tends to give a more general overview than most of the films we have seen; then again, these sorts of issues tend to be related, so even if a film focuses on one particular problem, it will likely end up covering related issues anyway.   <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> Overall, Six Degrees Could Change The World works relatively well as environmental media. It goes through each of the degrees (one through six) above the current average temperature of the planet, explaining the potential repercussions of the climate changing. While it does not use humor like some of the other films we have seen, it does seem to tap into the style and feel of the sort of disaster movies that were popular a few years ago; this would likely help expand the audience of the film, and make it more attractive to potential viewers who would not ordinarily watch a scientific film. However, it does seem a bit repetitive or over the top at times, though that likely would not be noticed by the target market – it //was// a TV movie, after all. It makes good use of scientific information when appropriate, citing amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, for example, and uses animation to show the potential effect of global warming. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';">The main suggestions the film made to solve the problems were related to culture – reducing use of power-wasting appliances, using greener energy sources, etc. The film could have suggested a wider variety of solutions, though that would have likely involve the film having to explain more issues, straying from the central issue of global warming that it is focusing on. =15) Assess how each of these videos about problems with our food system would likely impact viewers. What message is delivered by each film? What does each accomplish, and not? Which audiences would be most responsive?= <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> “Transport: Food Miles” focuses on the matrix issue of food distribution is a sustainability problem. It discusses how fossil fuels are used to transport food, and how the industrial food system is unsustainable – it is actually //less// efficient than older methods of growing and producing food. The video uses the term “food miles” to compare how far food has travelled, pointing out that food that travels further is worse for the environment. It discusses some of the newer trends of organic foods and local foods, using interviews with farmers, restaurant owners, etc. The video seems to be directed at older viewers (at least compared to something like The Meatrix). Like the other videos, it does bring up the issue of treatment of animals, though it is more a side effect of talking to organic farmers. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> “The Pig Picture” focuses on the history of pig farming. It delivers a similar message to The Meatrix – that is, that pigs are often raised on factory farms, in horrible conditions. I would say that it would have the most impact on someone who did not already know about these sorts of conditions, but that the people who would be most interested would probably already know about them. It could use a bit more background information about related issues, though. <span style="font-family: 'Liberation Serif','serif';"> “The Meatrix” focuses on how animals are mistreated in the food industry, and provides a good overview of the issue. As one would imagine from the name, the video is a parody of the Matrix series of films. As a result, it would likely work rather well for younger viewers; that being said, other audiences would still be responsive to it. Given the target audience, I’m not sure how much they would realistically be impacted by it, but it certainly does a good job of conveying the message in a fun manner.