1 / 20

Environmental History

Environmental History. What has been the human relationship with nature?. Major Human Cultural Changes. Agricultural revolution (began 10,000 to 12,000 years ago) Industrial revolution (1800’s) Information/Globalization revolution (1950’s to present).

kern
Télécharger la présentation

Environmental History

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Environmental History What has been the human relationship with nature?

  2. Major Human Cultural Changes • Agricultural revolution (began 10,000 to 12,000 years ago) • Industrial revolution (1800’s) • Information/Globalization revolution (1950’s to present)

  3. Cultural Changes and the Environment: Hunter-Gatherer Culture • Nomadic and seasonal movement • Limited environmental impact • Generally work with natural processes • Varied plant/animal diet-many species

  4. Easter Island (Rapa Nui) • Early example of unsustainable resource use by humans • Inhabited about 300-400 A.D. • Polynesian island in Pacific Ocean • Inhabitants cleared all the palm trees leading to erosion of land.

  5. Cultural Changes and the Environment: The Agricultural Revolution • Domestication/selective breeding of animals • Cultivation of wild plants • Slash and burn/shifting cultivation • Essentially sustainable resource use • Increased environmental impact

  6. Consequences of Agricultural revolution • Increased production of food • Cutting down of forests to provide fuel wood and material for building • Irrigation systems • Urbanization • Increased production of material goods

  7. Cultural Changes and the Environment: The Industrial Revolution • Began in England (mid-1700’s) • United States in the 1800’s • Represented shift from renewable resource (wood) to non renewable resource (coal) • Iron production

  8. Consequences of Industrial revolution • Migration to cities • Health issues due to coal industry • Increased per acre crop yields • Increase in human population • Factory made material goods

  9. Cultural Changes and the Environment: The Information Revolution/Globalization • New technologies • Increasingly rapid access to information on a global scale • Automated databases • I= P x A x T !!

  10. Consequences of Globalization • Less cultural diversity • Overload of information • Respond to environmental problems more rapidly • Rapid exchange of scientific data • Increased environmental degradation ( “e-waste”… electronic waste)

  11. Environmental History of the United States • Tribal Era • Frontier Era • Early Conservation Era • Environmental Era

  12. Tribal Era in the U.S. • 5-10 million tribal people for 10,000 years prior to 1600’s • Simple technology, low environmental impact • Respect for land and animals

  13. Frontier Era 1607-1890 • European settlers arrived • Lewis and Clark expedition expanded growth to the West • Viewed land as a vast continent with inexhaustable resources • Wilderness was “dangerous” with hostile natives and fierce animals…something to be “conquered” • Forests cut and cleared for agriculture

  14. Case Study: Near extinction of American Bison • In 1500, 30-60 million bison in U.S. • Between 1870-1875 at least 2.5 million bison killed per year. By 1892 only 85 left. In 1893 given refuge in Yellowstone National Park • Killed to supply railroad crews with meat; U.S. Army killed bison as campaign to subdue plains tribes; Farmers killed them to protect crops; and killed for sport from railroad train windows…leaving carcasses to rot.

  15. The Early Conservation Era • Period: 1832-1960 • Concern over resource use • Preservation of public lands • Public health initiatives • Environmental restoration projects

  16. Aldo Leopold ( 1887-1948) A Sand County Almanac • “We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.”

  17. Aldo Leopold and His Land Ethic • Individuals are interdependent • Ethics: respect for land • Shift from conqueror to member • Problems arise when land viewed as a commodity • Preservation of the integrity, stability, and beauty of land is right

  18. Theodore Roosevelt ( 1858-1919) • 26th President of U.S. • Established first federal wildlife refuge • Designated Grand Canyon as National park • Antiquities Act • Avid explorer, naturalist, hunter, bird watcher • “Golden Age of Conservation”

  19. The Environmental Era • Period: 1960-2000 • The environmental movement • The sciences of ecology and environmental science emerge • 1980’s: anti-environmental movement • 1990’s: environmental awareness

  20. The Green Movement • Alternative energy sources research • “Reduce, reuse, recycle” • Growing concern over human population growth • Energy efficient products and services • Fair trade policies

More Related