This Changes Everything (Media Review)

My love for Naomi Klein knows no limits. When I think of someone that could be the next Rachel Carson, someone that has opened the eyes of individuals to the truths of our society in regards to the environment and its current state of decline because of capitalist ideology and intervention, I think of Naomi Klein. This film struggled, in my opinion, as all climate change documentaries do, but where it shines is reminding people of the opportunities that we as a society have in creating change; to actually pay attention to what is happening in different parts of North America and around the world as a result of these capitalist ventures which tell us that "this is for us, and our advancement" but that really are adding to our own detriment.

While the book (with the same name) takes an investigative approach to the fact that man as a species feels that they have "mastered" nature in their ability to manipulate the elements in order to improve economic growth and living conditions for the privileged (even the poor), the film provides glimpses into the lives of individuals and communities who have been affected by these capitalist ventures. The term "environmental sacrifice" is used to describe areas where these individuals are located, areas that were taken over in order to fulfill the promise of creating more growth and human advancement. These areas are not only homes to individuals, but entire ecosystems which for millions of years had been self-sustaining, but that now are depleted of any ability to self-promote and provide benefit to its neighbors.

The film, as the book, looks at growth, primarily economic growth which has for years been continuing without limits. Economic growth, and its impact on the environment needs to change and while there has been efforts to put restrictions on production in order to spare the environment there is little that is actually being done because those restrictions would actually stall a lot of the precious conveniences of modern society. This is a challenge! What happens when there is no more growth? When there is more unemployment and there is not enough to eat? What is suggested through the film is that there needs to be a change in the growth model. A change to one that acknowledges where we are in terms of our environmental decline and that will promote structured improvement of not just social functioning, but also climate.

Growing Pains... YOLO (Review)

YOLO Economics: Growth on a Burning Planet
Foreign Policy in Focus: John Feffer
9-14-2016

"I'm not taking about the individuals who declare that "you only live once" (YOLO) before they splurge on the latest Harley-Davidson. I'm thinking more of the environmentalist take on YOLO, interpreting the "you" collectively: we, the human race, also online live once, and therefore this generation should take care to pass on the planet to the next generation in better shape than we received it. "

In the closing of his argument, Feffer brings to the readers attention the need for a new economic model that promotes growth and innovation. Considering the economic climate that we're in at this moment, in that that there has been no economic growth since 2010, and the climate of the planet and the new limitations on production Feffer states that new innovations must consider the environmental ability because of its current state of decline. What does this mean to the inventors and future innovators? What it could mean is that we are in a time of incredible opportunity. We are in a time when Earth's health is not well, as well the majority of the global economies; new innovations that could promote economic growth will have the ability to improve the health of the planet.

We as a species only have one opportunity to improve our own livelihood, and while the trend has been to only improve ones ability to do things easier, as opposed to more productively, in order to make time for other distractions (Feffer uses Facebook and Angry Birds), there is a chance that the trend could shift towards one that promotes productivity while also promoting environmental improvement.

Link to Article: LINK

Getting Environmental in the 94110

General Area: San Francisco’s Mission District

1. Who and what are the top polluters in your zip code?

• SF Drydock Inc.; releasing 28,942 pounds
• Chevron; releasing 13,311 pounds
• PG&E; releasing 29lbs 

2. What percent of the homes in your zipcode have lead-based paint? 

• 7% of the homes have lead-based paint. Many of the homes in the Mission have not had improvements since they were built. Some of the homes only receive improvements when they sell or when tenants move, or when they building is lost after a fire. 

3. Are there Superfund sites in your zip? 

• What is a Superfund site? A Superfund site is an incredibly polluted area which requires long-term cleaning up of hazardous materials that have been pushed into the area. 
• In your area? The Treasure Island Naval station in Hunter’s Point

4.  What can you tell us about the Superfund sites that are near where you live?

• The Naval station, which has not been used in decades continues to be targeted for clean-up efforts in order to make the area available for improvements and expansion. The area started operating in 1940, and was named “redundant” in 1994. As the area has been cleaned, parcels have been sold for development but activists still claim that the area is contaminated considering the amount of time that the shipyard was operating. The goal post clean-up is to develop the area in order to build more housing. A large project for area improvement and development has allowed for individuals and families to begin moving in, with the first group inhabiting the area in 2015. Individuals and families have lived around the area even before it was being used as a shipyard. Historically, those living in the area of Hunter’s Point have been the poorest in the city of San Francisco, where a large percentage is underserved in regards to their health and wellness. 

5.  What did you learn about the air quality in your zip code?

• San Francisco does not meet attainment status because the county fails to meet the national ambient air quality standard for the following criteria air pollutants: Ozone. The air quality is not great. Only 88% of the of days in San Francisco are considered “good air quality” days, and 12% is considered “moderate.” Thankfully non of the days in San Francisco are considered  “unsafe” for sensitive populations. San Francisco started Spare the Air days back in 1991 as a City-wide Quality Improvement project. During summer months buses and other forms of public transportation were free in order to help residents and people commuting into the city refrain from driving in order to minimize ozone pollution (smog). Residents were also asked to refrain from doing other pollution causing activities (using aerosol spray, for example).

6.  How about the water quality?

• While I always believed that the water in San Francisco was good, it’s not. San Francisco County’s water ranking was actually placed among the worst in the country moving past national averages and settling in the “dirtiest/worst counties” area of the Clean Water Act ranking. This is primarily based on the fact that the county is surrounded by salt water, and because the water source is actually outside of the county and it has to travel through a pipe system that runs 175 miles. The leading pollutants in the water surface is pesticides (76%), Sediments (24%), and pathogens (12%)- this is probably based on the total travel distance of the water, and that the pipes that run to private residences have not been updated since they were placed decades ago. That being said, San Francisco has excellent drinking water, in my opinion. 

7.  How did your zipcode fair on a social justice / environmental justice basis?

• San Francisco does well, but it’s not great. Overall people from underserved communities; communities that have been historically marginalized and have experienced disenfranchisement experience the worst in regards to the negative effects from the environment. Hunter’s Point, which is primarily an African-American and Asian American community, is the location of the closed shipyard which for years has continued to ruin the waterfront in the area-not allowing residents to enjoy the Bay the same way that residents in other areas of the Bay do (or example, Marin). The incidence of health conditions like diabetes, asthma, and other respiratory issues is very high in this community. In San Francisco’s Mission District, which was historically a Latino dominant area, the residences have not experienced any improvements which means that many of the homes still have lead paint, and rusty pipes. Acknowledging this, San Francisco is making attempts to change its resident’s future. With projects like Spare the Air, and Friends of the Urban Forest, and other programs that are being developed by the Public Utilities Commission there is opportunity for San Francisco to change its ranking-which is not bad- and provide opportunity to be a model for other cities in California and the US. 

Link to Source: LINK

Care or Get Out (Review)

Drop The Oxybenzone, Or Stop Swimming In Hawaiian Waters

Chad Blair

Civil Beat- 9/3/2016

I often struggle with "the cycle" and how in trying to prevent something for myself, I am actually causing harm to something else. I guess that there will always be taking to my giving; in giving myself the opportunity to protect my skin, I am in fact taking time away from the ocean. Everyday I am reminded of all the things that are "bad for me" or that can "cause me harm" or my personal favorite, that I'll "pay later for," and yet I am not reminded of all the things that I'm doing that is causing harm to the environment. Why is that? 

To think that something as basic as sunscreen, something that since infancy I have been using as a method of protection is something that I now have to think twice about. It is not major of course, just buy sunscreen that is coral safe- that is all I need to do! We are currently in a stage in our existence where we question and review everything and oh how beautiful it is, exhausting yes, but oh so beautiful when considering what we are trying to protect- our planet.

Oxybenzone, while not the sole cause for the increase in coral bleaching, plays a role  and what Chad Blair's article does beautifully is remind us that it's the little things that can cause great shifts in our future. The same way that we take preventative measures on ourselves (for example running, or thinking about running) in order to promote stronger health outcomes later on, the same that we should work to promote the well-being of our oceans and their future.

Link to Article: Link

Non-Caring Tides (Review)

The Oceans Can't Protect Us Anymore- Here's Why
Christine Dell'Amore
National Geographic- 9/5/2016

"Our waters have borne the brunt of global warming for decades, but dying corals, extreme weather, and plummeting fish stocks are signs that it can handle no more." 

The article describes the situation perfectly. What do you do with a sick patient when they present and are in fact, sick. What is the solution to a fever? A cold? Someone who is just beyond physically exhausted because for the last couple of hundred years it has taken on an immense burden brought on by a foreign species? One word, one syllable- REST. 

As of now the ocean is exhausted and while it has the ability to work and provide incredible benefits to the human race, and really all living organisms on this planet, it can only do so much, especially when it lacks the opportunity to relax. What are our options? Promote conservation efforts! What are the repercussions should we not? Well we are already experiencing them. A rise in temperature in the ocean, while great for swimmers, just plain sucks for the ocean in general. For example, hurricanes. Where there was hardly ever any before, there are now double. Hurricanes love warm water and do you know what else loves warm water? Bacteria. Warmer waters increase chances of bacteria, spreading pathogens that can lead to serious damage. 

Think of it as a horror movie. We are currently in that stage where there has been an acknowledgement of A killer and we can either leave the house, continue in the house (which is never a good plan), or leave and strategize. Considering we are surrounded by water, and considering all the harm that we are doing, it might be wise to "tap out" for a while in order to allow time for strategizing next steps, thereby giving the ocean the much needed rest it so deserves. 

Something important to think 
Link to Article: LINK

The Violence of Othering in a Warming World (Media Review)

"Once the 'the other' has been firmly established, the ground is softened for any transgression; violent expulsion, land theft, and occupation. The whole point is that 'the other' doesn't have the same rights or humanity." Naomi Klein, 2016


My only thought on this wonderful presentation by someone that I would probably walk through fire for is that there has to be an understanding that the lack of acknowledgement in our current racial war, is the same behavior that is going to lead to the drowning of our coastal cities. There is so much that is already known about the the current state of our planet and injustices faced by many communities, and while leaders of our communities have acknowledged these truths there is nothing being done to actively change the motion that the society-at-large is moving in. 

Link to Video: LINK

Chemical Connections: Troubling New Science (Media Review)

 Jane Houlihan's Chemical Connections: Troubling New Science allowed me to begin thinking about the long-term effects of the personal products that I use on a daily basis.

I thought about when she said "you want to look good, and you want to feel good," a statement that has so much truth when you're at the store and thinking about the perfect item to either make you feel "cleaner" or more "sporty," or even "sexy."

I looked back on all of those times that I had breakouts, or that my hair suddenly became dry, or even when I needed a quick remedy for dry skin. There are always those moments when the phrasing on the packaging is the only piece of the pie that I take into consideration before throwing down money on a lotion that is just going to save my life. Just breaking down that phrase "save my life" is causing me to shake my head just thinking about how little that product is actually doing in regards to saving, as opposed to damaging. While I now try to take active steps in researching that which is either going to go into my body or on it, I will admit that there were many times, and sometimes even now where the most effort I put into a product before buying is calculating the sales tax.

Thinking about all the new chemicals that enter the market everyday, and the growing long-term effects that are associated with exposure to these chemicals, it is insane to think about just how well I will be able to keep up with all of the new possible threats to my life (or after viewing this presentation, my sperm count).