Environmental Sciences Sustainability

Define sustainability:

• meeting the needs of the present with compromising the ability of future generations

• meeting the needs of the past without compromising the ability of future generations

• meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations

Define market forces

• economic pressures that set the price/availability of goods

• A market is a place where you can buy food.

• A market is a place where you can find a job.

Society includes:

• biodiversity, chemical cycling, solar energy

• human diversity, equity, quality of life, institutional structures, political structures

• employment, technological growth, financial investment

Environment includes:

• human diversity, equity, quality of life, institutional structures, political structures

• employment, technological growth, financial investment

• biodiversity, chemical cycling, solar energy

Economy includes:

• biodiversity, chemical cycling, solar energy

• human diversity, equity, quality of life, institutional structures, political structures

• employment, technological growth, financial investment

Biodiversity includes:

• large variety of species

• chemicals

• food

Define keystone species:

• A species of beetle that is new to the area and is causing a lot of damage.

• a species which has a disproportionately large effect on an ecosystem

• A species of plant that is new to the area and is causing a lot of damage.

How long has there been life on Earth?

• 5.3 billion years

• 35 million years

• 3.5 billion years

How many mass extinction events has earth survived?

• 15

• 5

• 7

Major causes of environmental problems:

• decreasing growth, inclusion of biodiversity, chemical cycling, solar energy

• using not a lot of water, driving electric cars

• population growth, wasteful unsustainable resource growth, exclusion of biodiversity, chemical cycling, solar energy