Essay Globalization Consumerism And Sustainable Development Environmental Sciences Essay

Essay Globalization Consumerism And Sustainable Development Environmental Sciences Essay Sustainable development has been a globally paradigm in different areas. Citizens lifestyle has an important relationship with the sustainability of a city. In living environment area, world-wide experts have adopted the Agenda 21 and tried to find the appropriate way to achieve a sustainable living lifestyle. According to Agenda 21, the major cause of the continued deterioration of the global environment is the unsustainable pattern of consumption and production, particularly in industrialized countries, which is a matter of grave concern, aggravating poverty and imbalances. However, as the global population increasing, how to balance the relationship between resources supply and demand is still a research question. For communities and individuals, special attention should be paid to the demand for natural resources generated by unsustainable consumption and to the efficient use of those resources consistent with the goal of minimizing depletion and reducing pollution. In other word s, the communities and individuals should look for an appropriate living style towards achieving sustainable goal. Although government has been put much efforts to encourage people to do some reduction of pollution, reduction of energy consumption, and waste recycling, actually there is still a long distance to reach the goal of sustainability, and there should be a series of fundamentally changes for individuals to adopt to pursue a green, sustainable society. Globalization Globalization means quite different things to different people. In general, globalization is a process that promotes world-wide exchanges of national and cultural resources. It includes economic globalization, social cultural globalization, and environmental globalization. In recent decades, the world markets have become increasingly integrated. As Lindert and Williamson 2011 pointed out, world market integration is not a new phenomenon, but it has steadily increased since the 1820s if we exclude the period between the two World Wars. A long-term correlation between the globalization of international markets and environmental degradation is quite obviously. The globalization of markets also brought about the globalization of environmental problems. Global climate change, ozone layer, reduction of biodiversity, over consumption of natural resources, desertification are all global environmental degradation brought after the economic globalization. The industrial revolution use large am ount of natural resources as materials in the process, as well as the deterioration of their quality as a consequence of pollution. The acceleration of economic growth led to the increasing of world population that promoted the deterioration of environment. Lifestyle and sustainability Concept of sustainable development The concept of sustainability means that something is maintained for a period of long time. The concept of sustainable development came out of the United Nations Conference on Human Environment in 1972.() Since the publication of the UN Brundtland Commission report  Our Common Future  in 1987, the concept of sustainability has become associated with the integration of economic, social, and environmental development to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The conference was held to let all nations agree to act to reduce pollution together to share the resources equally. Since 1972, it has become clear that what we do has an impact on the environment, from the climate change, desertification, and the destruction of forests to the disappearance of species. By introducing the word sustainable, the discussion on environmental development got a social and economic dimension, especially by the inclusion of the Nort h- South dialogue and discussion of the rights of future generations. This finally led to the world community holding the United Nations Convention on Education and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992 where the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Framework on Climate Change, the Rio Declaration and 38 of the 40 chapters of Agenda 21 were agreed. The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was set up to review progress in the implementation of Agenda 21 and other UNCED documents. The Commission meets every year and more than 1,000 N.G.Os are accredited to participate in the Commissions work. Concept of lifestyle The concept of lifestyle comes from social science and refers to a bundle of practices or ways of behaving that are meaningful for individual as well for the community. Lifestyle includes different ways of socializing with others and different types of consumption of everything, from houses to clothes, food, and leisure time activities. Lifestyle could reflect individuals attitude and values and at the same time signals these to others through visible, or conspicuous, consumption. Sustainable lifestyle can thus be defined as bundles of practices that are tied together by attitudes related to sustainable development, or as ways of living that in practice lead to sustainable development. In 1992 at the UN Conference in Rio de Janeiro, there was an international agreement on promoting sustainable development and thus also promoting sustainable lifestyle. Following the line of the Brundtland report, the conference reached consensus on the so-called Agenda 21 programme, which contains detailed guidelines and objectives, in a nonlegally binding language, and advice on how NGOs, citizens, and other actors can be involved in the process. The slogan was act local -think global and during the 1990s Local Agenda activities were initiated in many countries by both authorities and NGOs. In 2007-08 such initiatives received renewed interest, with global climate being high on the political agenda. Local Agenda 21 was no longer a catchword, though the concept of sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles was then used together with climate discussions. The processes of Local Agenda 21 build on the idea that changes must come from below, from changes in the everyday life of ordinary consumers. Current lifestyle When talking about living lifestyle, tobacco use, poor nutrition, obesity, elevated stress, and suboptimal sleep will come into ones mind, these are major contributors to the pandemic of lifestyle-related conditions, morbidity, and premature death (E dean) Preventable lifestyle-related conditions such as ischemic heart disease, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema (largely smoking related), hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and some cancers, are not only leading causes of disability and premature death in high-income countries, but increasingly in middle- and low-income countries.  (stop) Compared to the impact of environment brought from lifestyle, the bad lifestyle seems to have much effect on individuals health. However, from long-term sight, bad lifestyle will bring waste of resources, pollution of environment and at last hinder the development of society. When talking about the lifestyle related to consumerism, green consumerism should be advocated. What is green consumerism? In short, who and why buy. current global levels of domestic energy consumption and waste production have been acknowledges as important contribution to detrimental environmental change (United Nations 1998) Political and academic interest in this component of sustainable development implementation has stimulated debates in post-industrial nations concerning the social practices of contemporary consumerism (Macnaghten and Urry 1998) and how we will live in the future (De Young 1993) n response there has been a call for the development of national policies and strategies to encourage changes in consumption patterns (UNCED 1992:64). One approach has been the promotion of environmentally-friendly lifestyles which often take the form of media or community campaigns (for further analysis see Hobson 2001). These campaigns encourage individuals not only to decrease the amount consumed, but also to alter the nature of goods consumed (lUCN/UNEP/WWF 1991; Librova 1999). Changing Lifestyles Towards Sustainability From a policy perspective, it is relevant to discuss how to promote more sustainable lifestyles. Changes can be initiated from the bottom-up, where people experiment with changing lifestyles, or from the top-down, where authorities make initiatives to promote changing lifestyles. Authorities can promote changes by political initiatives such as economic incentives or green taxes and through information and labeling of green products and campaigns focusing on changing attitudes. Furthermore, authorities can focus on establishing the physical infrastructure which supports sustainable lifestyles: public transportation, renewable energy production, recycling waste system, and so on. What follows describes, first, the people who have made radical changes to their lifestyles and, second, evaluations on initiatives to get ordinary people to change their lifestyle in a more sustainable direction. In the last couple of decades, some citizens have chosen more radical lifestyle changes and have joined so-called eco-villages. Some of the catchwords of this approach are closed cycles and self-sufficiency: water and waste should be recycled, energy locally produced from renewable resources, and the technologies organised in neighborhoods to strengthen and revitalize local social life. The ecological vision is followed by the social vision of a holistic everyday life a life that is not split between work, family, and home. In this sense, the eco-villages follow in the footsteps of the collectivist movement of the 1960s and 1970s and are a reaction against the lifestyle in detached suburban houses. Furthermore, in some of the eco-villages there is a spiritual relation with nature and an ethical concern for future generations. The people deciding to build and live in these eco-villages thus establish other physical, social, and cultural structures around their everyday life as part o f living a sustainable lifestyle. In the environmental debate, it has been questioned to what extent this type of experiment is part of a broader solution to sustainable development or whether these structures are only isolated pockets. Some of the alternative technological solutions, such as solar heating or wind power, had their hesitant first beginnings in these alternative environments. However, some of the eco-villages and other grassroots experiments had such alternative visual expressions that might have frightened the not-so-dedicated others from choosing sustainable lifestyles. This raises the question of whether sustainable lifestyles are only for those who want to live an alternative life or whether they should be mainstreamed and made available for a broader audience. In the twenty-first century, however, this debate might seem less topical, as grassroots approaches and more mainstream approaches to sustainable lifestyles appear to converge Many public initiatives have tried to persuade citizens to live a more sustainable life, and there are also examples of studies following the extent to which these types of efforts have an effect. In general, social science approaches dealing with these issues can be divided into psychological and sociological approaches. As an example of the psychological approach, a study performed by Abrahamse and others in the Netherlands followed the effects of an Internet-based tool that used a combination of tailored information, goal setting, and feedback on households direct and indirect energy consumption. An evaluation after 5 months showed that households gained a significant direct energy saving of 5%, whereas there was no measurable effect on indirect energy consumption. It is thus possible to document a small but significant relation between knowledge and action. From a sociological approach, the UK campaign Action at home, which is part of the Global Action Plan that originally developed in the United States during the late 1980s, has been evaluated by Hobson, and this evaluation questions the simple relation between knowledge and change of behavior. The Action at home campaign was a 6-month voluntary programme where households were provided with information, support, and feedback in a local setting enabling local support and networking between participants. An evaluation based on qualitative interviews suggests rethinking the ideas on information, barriers, and behavioural change. Information should be seen as a much more constructivist approach, where people use and develop arguments through conversations with others, rather than by receiving objective knowledge. The focus should be on the whole array of social structures sustaining specific behaviors, rather than on only barriers to action, and finally the understanding of behavioral chan ge should rather focus on how debate can bring unnoticed routines that are never consciously thought of. Though there are disagreements in the understanding of behavior and the role of information between the social and the psychological approach, it is possible to draw some general recommendations on how to best persuade people to change to a more sustainable lifestyle: Communication should be as specific and personalized as possible, and information should be as adjusted to the lifestyle of the citizens as possible, thereby making the advice meaningful and useful for the citizens attitudes and practices. With climate change high on the political agenda, especially before the climate summit conference in Copenhagen in 2009, sustainable lifestyles have gained renewed interest among the public, politicians, and academics. Will this interest be a short bobble followed by resignation? Will it be the start of mainstreaming sustainable lifestyles so they spread and become the norm? Or, will there continue to be a development fuelled by the tension between initiatives by different actors? Sustainability is a contested concept, and developments in the structures and practices of everyday life continue to change and thus provide new challenges for what a sustainable lifestyle is or should be. In the future, there is also a need to continue experimenting, debating, and developing new approaches to sustainable lifestyles Linking lifestyle and climate change literature The concept of lifestyle in the behavioural sciences has been studied in connection with social class [31,81,64 -66,86,87,47 ], culture-specific consumption patterns [ 22,30,52,79 ] as well as individual choice [25,7,6 ]. Social theorists have described how the disappearance of norms and economic limitations, mass consumption and the market have gradually removed restrictions and made the individual lifestyle a more appropriate way to describe differences in action, world views and consump-tion. Research suggests that the consumption behavior of individuals constitute a more or less coherent con-sumption pattern because individual tastes and prefer-ences conform to socially determined structures [13,19]. The fact that conspicuous consumption [17,77] is seen as a status symbol of wealthy people makes the less afflu-ent aspire to emulate this lifestyle [ 5 ]. Individuals use consumer goods to preserve their position in the social hierarchy [ 12]. A convergence of lifestyles has been accelerated by homogenisation in the human system over time and space due to the globalisation of the built environment, occupations, industry, trade and advertis-ing. Lifestyle is also described in an operational sense through the correlation between the level and pattern of consumption and socio-economic and demographic parameters such as age, family size, occupation, income, gender, education and ethnicity. Consequent energy and emission outcomes vary widely ( Table 1) calling for more inclusive action strategy to avoid leakages. The focus of change needs to be on the hotspots and patterns of energy consumption. Attempts to change energy consumption pattern are likely to lead to a change in energy consump-tion behaviour that make up the complete pattern. In the energy literature in the late 1980s, the energy researchers introduced the lifestyle concept into the study of energy consumption and established a positive correlation be-tween better lifestyle and high-energy consumption for both households and individuals. Kaya identity [34] has been used to show how both the individual and aggregate consumption pattern are an important driver of emission level along with the technology choice. Recent literature Suggestion

Alcohol Misuse Among Minors In The UK :: essays research papers

The law in this country states that it is illegal for anyone under 18 years to consume alcohol or to work in licensed premises; to buy alcohol or to have it bought for them anywhere. Those over 16 may drink a small amount with a meal in a specially allocated area, but beyond that they face arrest and prosecution.In spite of this the law is frequently broken. Following the example of adults, for whom alcohol is the most used drug, several surveys show that children try alcohol. 68% of boys and 54% of girls (in the UK) appear to have tried it by the age of thirteen. The majority may not drink to excess but many have already experimented with the effects of intoxication. The young do not seem to know the dangers and public houses frequently hold discos which attract them in. Stewards find it difficult to assess who is below the age limit. The increase in consumption expected when the price of alcohol falls is bound to include youngsters. the serious implications of this must be faced, not least because drug abuse is closely linked to alcohol abuse.Clearly the law has a role to play. The police must be encouraged to enforce age limits, and, if necessary, licensing hours should be restricted. Unfortunately, this may inconvenience legitimate drinkers and deprive landlords of potential legal business. Having extra police and stewards may be useless since 16 year olds are not easy to pick out anymore. One solution offered by the Portman Group is the identification card system whereby only 18 year old will carry age identification cards. This should help, but even one of the director involved admits it is only a contribution.The alternative lies in education. Adults can help by example and by de-glamorising alcohol. Children can be taught about the risks to health and to performance, about the chances of being involved in violence or serious accidents and the dependency which lands many in hospital wards.

Compare and Contrast the Social Responsibility Theory

COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE AUTHORITARIAN THEORY WITH THE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY THEORY OF THE PRESS. The press also known as the fourth estate plays a very critical role in educating, informing, entertaining and bridging the gap between the mass community and the executive, judicial and legislative. Hence what is more essential is its stance on policy and choice of theory, which is a system of law like propositions and set of ideas that guide action or predict a consequence.The purpose of this research is to compare, that is to put side by side and to contrast, and that is state the difference between the Authoritarian theory with the social responsibility theory of the press. There is not much of a hint of comparison between the Authoritarian theory and the social responsibility theory, in that the heart beat of the authoritarian theory is designed to protect the status quo and existing social order mainly biased towards the ruling elite and those that are in authority.The authoritaria n press is under state control and heaps more thrust with the public media while the social responsibility of the press thrives on democracy and principles of public service media which seek to cater for minorities, the so called mass community and ordinary people. Unlike the authoritarian theory of the press, the social responsibility avenue directly gets its funding from the public through licensing and this is true mainly for the electronic media.The authoritarian on one hand regards the role of the press to be that of nation building and propaganda and as a mouth piece for the ones in authority, hence the main source of funding is the ruling elite and the government. Both the authoritarian and social responsibility theory seek to communicate to an audience, communication is absolutely essential to effective leadership and press. The leader must be able to share knowledge and ideas to transmit a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to others. If a leader can’t get a message acr oss clearly and motivate others to act on it, then having a message doesn’t even matter.This is the true hummer and nail of the authoritarian set by political leaders due to the reality that repetition is the rule of long and deep lasting impressions. This is a propagandist mode of communication to drive home a particular message. The state sets up censorship boards and agents to regulate and monitor the operations of the media in the authoritarian theory, issues of censorship and punishment for diversion from rules that are set by political leaders and authorities are central in this theory.It thrives on censorship and repression of freedom of expression as exemplified by the enactment of the draconian laws such as Public Order and Security Act chapter 11:7 (POSA), the Access To Information and Protection of Privacy Act Chapter 10:27 (AIPPA), The Broadcasting Services Act Chapter 12:06 and the Criminal Law (Codification and reform) Act in the nation of Zimbabwe. Basically th ere is no diversity on coverage, which is catering for all tastes and interests. The social responsibility theory of the press however is not rigid and allows for freedom of expression and thus catering for all tastes and interests.The socially responsible press takes something complicated and makes it simple to understand to layman, compared to the authoritarian which propagandises all information and feeds the masses with what the ruling elite desires to propagate that is government policy. I would like to believe that the authoritarian believes audiences are passive partakers of information whereas the social responsibility adheres to the reality that people are active consumers and do have a choice of what media to consume.This is seen with the geographical universality of provision and reception, thus encouraging competition in programs and freedom to broadcasters, more over there is room for feedback and diversity; while the authoritarian to a lesser degree diversifies to push government policy and agenda. The major criticism against the authoritarian theory is that it does not create a viable atmosphere and environment for free expression and diversity which are essential elements for any democratic and free society; hence the principles for the social responsibility theory may differ from country to country.What is important to understand is that the public service concept is opposed to the authoritarian, propagandist mode. Radio dialogue and other community radio initiatives are using legitimate means of giving people a real taste of media diversity and thus getting them involved; They bring members of the community together, record their discussions and distribute this material on CD’s. When people hear themselves they get excited about media issues. Authoritarian control tended to be exercised in arbitrary, erratic ways.Sometimes, considerable freedom might exist to publicize minority viewpoints and culture as long as authorities don't percei ve a direct threat to their power. Unlike social responsibility theory, authoritarian theory doesn't prioritize cultivation of a homogeneous, national culture. It only requires acquiescence (compliance) to governing elite. This perspective also held that ruthless elites could use media as a means of gaining personal political power. These demagogues could manipulate media to transmit propaganda to fuel hatred and fear among a majority, unite them against minorities, e. g. s Hitler used the media to arouse hatred against the Jews. The Social Responsibility Theory of the Press, emphasize the need for an independent press that scrutinizes other social institutions and provides objective, accurate news reports. The most innovative feature of Social Responsibility theory was its call for media to be responsible for fostering productive and creative â€Å"Great Communities†. It said that media should do this by prioritizing cultural pluralism- by becoming the voice of all the peopl e- not just elite groups or groups that had dominated national, regional or local culture in the past.Dennis McQuail in 1987 summarized the basic principles of social responsibility theory as the following: 1. Media should accept and fulfil certain obligations to society. 2. These obligations are mainly to be met by setting high or professional standards of in formativeness, truth, accuracy, objectivity and balance. 3. in accepting and applying these obligations, media should be self-regulating within the framework of law and established institutions. 4. the media should avoid whatever might lead to crime, violence or civil disorder or give offense to minority groups. . the media as a whole should be pluralist and reflect the diversity of their society, giving access to various points of view and to rights of reply. 6. Society and the public have a right to expect high standards of performance and intervention can be justified to secure the public good. 7. Journalists and media prof essionals should be accountable to society as well as to employers and the market. Social Responsibility theory has proved quite durable. Most journalists take seriously the central values of social Responsibility theory such as luralism and cultural diversity; However the state of affairs is not so with the authoritarian theory of the press. Unlike the Authoritarian theory, the social responsibility theory of the press takes hid and pays cognisance to people’s right to true information- the right of people to express themselves freely through the media of communication and the journalistic dedication to objective reality; – this aims to provide public with adequate material to facilitate the formation of an accurate and comprehensive picture of the world.The journalist’s social responsibility is also of the essence, this emphasizes the fact that journalistic information is social good not just a commodity. When it comes to the Journalist’s professional i ntegrity; dealing especially with rights not to work against personal conviction and other matters of personal ethics. The social responsibility theory of the press has respect for such, while the Authoritarian theory has no regard for such values and ethics. Ethics is a practise of moral behaviour by individuals, governments and social institutions.Ethics is more to do with principles concerning the rights and wrong of conduct, principles which have some reason theoretical basis which therefore apply objectively and impartially. Besley & Chadwich 1992 The Social responsibility theory of the press in contrast to the Authoritarian theory has respect for, Public access and participation, this includes the right of rectification and reply, respect for privacy and Human Dignity, respect for the Public interest.This relates to respect for the national community, in democratic institutions and public morals, respect of Universal Values and diversity of cultures. This calls for respect for human rights, social progress, national liberation, peace, democracy, elimination of War and other great evils confronting humanity. This calls for abstention from justifying aggression, arms proliferation, violence, hatred, discrimination, promotion of a New World information and communication order. This is directed especially at the need for decolonization and democratization of information and communication.After all said and done my conviction is that the Authoritarian theory in contrast with Social Responsibility theory does not encourage media practitioners to see themselves as front-line participants in the battle to preserve democracy in a world drifting relentlessly toward tyranny. This gives rise and room to fear amongst media operators and infringes on the right of freedom of expression, the list of people who have been arrested for exercising their right to freedom of expression is long.In December 2008, for example, Jestina Mukoko, Director of the Zimbabwe Peace Proje ct, was abducted and tortured. Members of Woman of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) are harassed, intimidated, assaulted and arrested on a regular basis. Okay Machisa, the Executive Director of Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZIMRIGHTS) was arrested in March 2010 for organising reflections – an exhibition of pictures of victims of the 2008 political violence. Geoff Nyarota was arrested for exposing some foul play at the Mazda industry formerly Ford motors.

The Bloody Root Of Titus Andronicus - 1057 Words

The Bloody Root of Titus Andronicus: An Argument of Intent and Origin There are have been many arguments throughout the history of Shakespearean academia regarding the validity of Shakespeare’s authorship to Titus Andronicus, and the critics have not been shy to express their discontent of its seemingly endless violent montage. As Michael Fentiman and Harold Fuller point out of what Dr. Samuel Johnson spoke to in 1765, â€Å"all the editors and critics agree in supposing this play spurious†¦for the colour of style is wholly different from that of the other plays, the barbarity of the spectacles and the general massacre which are here exhibited can scarcely be tolerable†¦That Shakespeare wrote any part†¦I see no reason in believing† (Fentiman).†¦show more content†¦Virtually, all the central characters killed each other off in a downward spiral of luscious revenge (Shakespeare). It is striking in its contrast to the likes of Romeo and Juliet or Hamlet or Macbeth to where Shakespeare dove deep into the emotions and psyche of human life (RedEyesTakeWarning). Violence and death were not foreign concepts to the people of the Elizabethan era, as medieval life was chocked full of war, famine, and plague. In the case of entertainment, violence and death were no strangers as people would flock to see bear baiting, including Queen Elizabeth. (Mabillard). Allistair Brown claims that we take entertainment out of simulated violence because it is cathartic (Brown). Brown also argues that, â€Å"Violence becomes comic because laughter, denying the reality or seriousness of whatever threatens, is a way of dealing with trauma† (Brown). With the world being consumed with death at every doorstep, what is so far-fetched at the notion that Titus Andronicus is an extremely dark comedy to help a broken soul cope with the grim reality of medieval life? As there is almost nothing else for society to take away as a benefit from the play (RedEyesTakeWarning), what else could it be? There are already plenty of examples in literature that deliver morals and lessons learned from seeking revenge. Why