A Brief History of Environmental Science

1. A Brief History of Environmental Science

2. The photographs that literally changed the way we look at our world • Consider this - prior to 1967, no one had ever seen a photograph of the whole Earth ….because no such photograph existed! • 1967 – the first photographs of the whole Earth (Apollo 4, automated camera from an unmanned spacecraft) • However - only showed a crescent Earth

4. 1972 – Apollo 17 (last manned landing on the moon) • Put astronauts in a position to photograph the entire illuminated Earth • This image came to be known as the Blue Marble Image • Emotional impact on society • Possibly the most widely used picture ever. • Some would argue that this kick-started the modern environmental movement

5. Quickly republished showing the Earth “right way up”….though there is no such thing! This is how it was originally published. - caused a lot of confusion!

6. What thoughts and feelings do you think this photograph generated in people the first time they saw it? (Remember – a picture like this had never existed before.) • Beautiful • Isolated • Vulnerable • Fragile • Limited • Very Watery!

7. However – these photographs could not show just how complex our environment is. • They show many of the abiotic components (water, land, clouds) • But they do not show the biotic components (animals, plants, forests, soils, people)

8. NASA released this new image Jan 2012 Composite photo - 6 passes by the satellite

9. What is the “Environment”? • 40 years ago, people equated the term “environment” with wilderness or nature • The great leap in thinking over the past few decades is that humans (as one species) are part of the natural world. We are connected to the natural world • We as a species however can, and have altered the environment (our surroundings) more than any other species. • Sometimes for our great benefit (e.g. longer life spans, better health, more leisure time…..) • Benefits, however, usually have costs associated with them!

10. What is “Environmental Science” • Not easily defined because it includes other disciplines: biology, chemistry, physics, geography, geology, sociology, political science, economics and philosophy • Environmental science: the study of the interaction of the living and non-living components of the environment with special emphasis on the impact of humans on these components. • Also includes the development of solutions to environmental problems

11. Environmental issues are difficult to solve because often the solutions require sacrifice • It is difficult to convince people to trade in quality of life and convenience and money for the greater environmental good • Example: North America’s obsession with big cars, SUVs and Trucks • Example: Solar power is expensive to install.

12. Different from Environmentalism • Environmentalism is a broad social movementdedicated to protecting the Earth’s life support systems for us and other species. • Includes people who, for many reasons want to protect the environment • Ethical, moral, religious, spiritual, artistic….. • There is sometimes a blending of both science and these other reasons in individuals and groups(e.g. Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund…..) • There is currently an increasing emphasis on aboriginal wisdom (traditional knowledge).

13. Environmentalism Timeline Pre-Environmental Movement Conservation Movement (1830s – 1960) Environmental Movement (1960-1980) Sustainability Movement (1980 – now)

14. A. Pre-environmental Movement • 1798 - Thomas Malthus (British) wrote an influential book “Doctrine of Population Growth and Resource Scarcity” - "The power of population is indefinitely greater than the power in the earth to produce subsistence for man“- in other words human population growth is faster than growth of the food supply - Result? misery, illness, increased death rate Fun guy! We’ll come back to him later!

15. John Stuart Mill (1848 – British philosopher)- Population growth and increasing wealth cannot continue forever- at some point population and consumption of resources must stabilize….our planet can only support so many people!

16. Henry David Thoreau (1854 – U.S.)- author- lived for a year alone in the woods near Boston- simplicity of lifestyle - enjoyment of nature- distinction between urban / rural lifestyle

17. B. Conservation Movement • 1832 – 1960 • vanishing wilderness due to agricultural expansion; this began to alarm some people • organization of “clubs” – e.g. Audubon Society, Sierra Club - preservationof wilderness and wildlifewas their goal • formation of first national wilderness parks (e.g. Algonquin National Park established 1893) • Not motivated by science….but by people’s sense that the beauty of wild places was to be experienced and valued

19. C. Environmental Movement (1960s-1970s) • Several environmental disasters in the 1950s/60s- severe smog events in London (1952)- oil spills (California, England) - birth defects due to chemical exposure (some were due to prescribed medicines)

20. C. Environmental Movement (1960s-1970s) • 1962 – Rachel Carson publishes her book called “Silent Spring” exposing dangers of the use of pesticides • 1960s – emerging science of ecology– the study of how living organisms interact with their environment including other species.

21. C. Modern Environmental Movement (1960s-1980s) • “Tragedy of the Commons” idea was developed • 1970 – first “Earth Day” (April 22 every year) • Environmental laws passed in the early ‘70s. • 1972 – the “Blue Marble” image • New organizations were formed that brought issues to public attention and pressured governments to respond: Greenpeace, WWF …..

24. D. Sustainability Movement • 1980s to present • Promotion of sustainability– can we keep doing what we’re doing forever? • 3 Rs are introduced and now commonplace (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) • Incorporation of environmental design into production of products (companies think through the environmental impacts of what they produce……also good marketing)

25. Hard to believe …..but in your parents lifetime this was NOT being done!

26. Most large companies incorporate at least some environmental thinking into the way their products are made.

27. There is pressure on companies to “go green”

31. None of this was being done 30 years ago either!