Thursday, April 1, 2010

PHI 2010 Honors, MWF, 10am

Posted by atRifF at 8:23 AM

23 comments:

  1. Overpopulation is one of the more serious problems are world faces today. The direct consequences of this include overutilization of resources, and most importantly, starving hordes of humans. The large population explosion in these areas is caused by uncontrolled birth rate, caused by lack of contraceptive methods. The solution, therefore is to educate the public in sex education and birth control.
    In regards to food production, it seems that the large amounts of animal products being consumed throughout the world are overburdening the Earth’s natural resources. Therefore, perhaps consuming less meat and transferring to a more vegetarian diet would help in this respect.

    I toss out these solutions as if nothing, but I recognize that they are easier said than done.

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  2. We all recognize that the population will continue to increase as more years go by and the land masses won’t. We are slowly consuming the plant’s resources and degrading the environment. As stated in the article, agriculture is the main contributor to most ecological problems and is responsible for a high quantity of gas emissions. Agricultural runoffs harm the environment and waterways. There must be a way to feed the growing population and not harm the environment. Sadly, there are at least one billion humans that are malnourished or starving while other populations are over nourished and obese. Education is the only way to fix this problem. At a young age all children should be taught about healthy eating and maintaining a balanced diet. Sustainability is a good practice that requires a lot of commitment if we want to help preserve the planet for future generations.

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  3. It makes me sad to see that the population of the world is increasing while supply seems to be decreasing. It's not fair to see that I here in America can eat all that I want. A lot of people are also guilty of gluttony while there are people out there starving. There is a solution to all this but in order for the solution to work everyone must come together to make it happen. My idea? Number one people must be informed of what is going on. Education on Sustainability should be implemented in people. The more that people become aware, the more that people can act on this issue. Through sustainability, instead of products going into waste things can be be reused and recycled. Donations MUST be made from countries all over the world who are more developed than others to help those countries in need. The human race is not a lonely race and those who think that they can make it on their own in this world are fools. For one thing there wouldn't even be people existing if it wasn't for this lovely planet Earth in which we call our home. I believe that what is going on right now with overpopulation is sad. But enough said. Who wouldn't agree? The problem is WORKING on it. First a plan must be made and then comes the action. It just takes one voice to begin to spread the word and like a domino effect the word would be spread. Is everyone ready?

    -Melissa C. Baron

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  4. Developing countries leave many issues that are essential for life on Earth to the side after convenient agreements have been met. The amount of food a person living in a third world country eats throughout his entire lifetime is equivalent to the food a person in a first world country throws away during his lifetime. The balance that is seen in nature does not reflect the balance seen in mankind. Instead, we have become so materialized that the rule of survival greatly depends on how much of the material (money) one can attain. Societies in developed countries rather spend money on projects, such as building taller buildings, not for the sake of humanity, or life on Earth in general, but for the need to become more powerful. The countries that have developed materially are those that care the least for third world countries. Indeed, some countries portray this image of giving, but really no one can tell you "we have eliminated poverty in such country." I believe the world should unite by letting go of all greed and material attachments for the sake of life on Earth. Life would be so much better, even if we have to give away some of our material values. War, poverty, diseases and differences among people would be greatly eliminated, thus we could enjoy a better life. By uniting the world, many issues that are destroying our planet could be stopped. For example, how many brilliant minds must the world have out there but due to economical limitations, they never have the opportunity to demonstrate their intellectual capabilities. Many more people would be able to provide ideas and take action into creating a better world. One or two dominating countries (i.e. US and Japan) cannot fix the world unless we all become one.
    -Angel G. Leiva

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  5. I believe that global hunger is a problem bigger than we choose to understand and it all falls to the overpopulation we are facing. I think that instead of giving third world counties food we should give them a type of birth control that is both universal and reversible. It is a blessing to be able to have kids but it is a curse on humanity for someone to have more than they can humanely support. If we “solve” the problem by giving them grain it is just going to create bigger problems. For example India, when we send grain to them the food is not evenly distribute because of corruption; grain by itself is not a sufficient form of nutrition because it lacks a lot of necessary nutrients and it is causing an outbreak of obesity and diabetes; lastly, the grain is cooked by burning dry cow dung which adds to the pollution problem. In conclusion, I think that there are three possible solutions for the problem: first, send them a nutritious source of food with a clean source of fuel to cook it with; second, we need to enforce some sort of universal and reversible form of birth control; lastly, we could leave them, alone and not get involve until there isn’t an overpopulation problem anymore.

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  6. Every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes; one child every five seconds. Despite how shocking this number is, it is hard to realize that. Let's suppose it takes 1 minute to complete this post, in this time, 12 children have died.
    As some of my classmates have said, it is easy to find causes for hunger and poverty, the hard part is to find solutions. I agree with the need for education as a way to solve the problem. In many places, people are not aware of not only contraceptive methods but what is more important, they are not aware of the nutrients needed to survive. Because of this, they are not well nourished and opt to buy cheaper unhealthier items rather than those which would improve their health. So people who generally have no access to basic staples, as soon as they receive food they buy a cheaper item in larger quantity rather than something that will help them get the nutrition required.
    Furthermore, global cooperation is required in order to solve this issue. Currently, many world powers are concerned with the financial crisis that has affected them in the past years and have focused their attention to that instead of treating other issues that should take precedence. While some countries have the economic means to produce food and crops, other countries have the natural resources, if more partnerships were established within these countries a solution could be obtained in which both countries would benefit.
    Also, by making sure programs such as the UN MDGs are actually accomplished this issue can be solved. The MDGs contain among them to "end poverty and hunger" and "universal education". By only achieving these two goals, the issue of hunger will be solved and people will be educated to not fall back into that state in the future.
    It is also important to teach people about sustainable practices for farming and growing crops. In several parts of the world, such as Nepal, the fields are destroyed due to activities related with growing food and though these processes provide short term solutions, in the long run the damage is too intense and hunger ends up catching up with them.
    As Melissa said, it is easy to sit on the other side of this computer and talk about how bad the conditions are now and how sad this is. The hard thing is to take action to solve this issue. As college students we have the power to fight for what we believe in and I think that if we all fight towards this common cause we can make a difference.

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  7. Overpopulation, Global Hunger, and Sustainability.

    The solutions are simple, however not easily accessible, affordable, or open to universal acceptance.
    First- Put a limit on the amount of children a couple can conceive. Provide worldwide birth control for races who have higher birth rates.
    Negative isses that can arise- an increase of STD's which can cause a decrease in populations.

    Second- To solve global hunger, a global effort is needed to aid countries which cannot properly grow enough food to sustain the population. In addition, people who are blessed with the opportunity of excess food, should not be wasteful. Donate food to local organizations which aid your neighboring communities. Most importantly there should be a continual awareness to global hunger (raising ads, campaigns,and seminars).

    Third- Sacrifices and Global unity is needed. Money, Time, and Effort- are only a few of the key ingredients needed to fully solve these global crisis.

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  8. Over population is a serious problem we face today and in our future. The more people we have the less food we have and the less water we have. Over population in my opinion brings poverty, hunger, “evil” competition, and war. It’s scary to say that today we see the dangers of overpopulation such as the production of genetically enhanced food. Our world population right now as we speak is 6,813,572,908. We are surviving on food that is genetically manipulated. I don’t know exactly how to solve our problems with over population without being radical about it like the Chinese and their one child policy. The first solution is education. I truly believe that education the masses not only the U.S about why overpopulation is bad will surely captivate some people. However, I believe that the government has to take a big role on this issue because most developing countries people have a lot of children because the more children they have the more helping hands they have. If the government found a way to support these poor individuals by education and facilitating their labor, I believe people will stop reproducing so much.
    Claudia Meijides

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  9. It's such a shame we have so many issues like this. Overpopulation like everyone has already said has a lot to do with lack of birthcontrol. We should go over there and provide free birthcontrol for these people, but instead people don't want to and just promote abstaining from sex.

    But don't people realize there are so many cases of rape over there as well? I remember I saw a documentary on AIDS and HIV in Africa and they mentioned how there is a myth: that if you are a man with AIDS or HIV that if you have sex with young girls or virgins that this virus will go away. How stupid does this sound? But it doesn't matter if it sounds stupid or not, the fact of the matter is that these people are either uneducated or desperate enough that they believe it and do it! Young girls end up getting pregnant because they were raped.

    People argue that constant birth control is expensive, but if we were to provide women with those birth controls that last for years at a time when they get their period if could bring down the birth rate. And another benefit of these birth controls are they can be removed when they want to get pregnant and they can go ahead and have kids if they truly want them.

    It seems hard to help these people without people actually going over there though. People send money but with such a corrupt government what do they really use this money for? I've heard people also say that we should send food, but what kind of food? If we send unhealthy crap, they will still be malnurished and can still die.

    I also wonder if problems like this (too many people, too little food) are what people use to try and promote mass production of food with hormones and things like that. Do they argue that this has to happen in order to get as much food as we can for people?

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  10. "Close your eyes, take a deep breath and feel the fullness in your stomach…now be thankful that you had a meal tonight and pray for those who feel emptiness," these are the words of Professor Miglaccio's brother who spoke at a Salzburg orientation. That quote (can't remember if he said it like that word for word) came to mind as I read Triff's post; It seems that no matter what we do there is always a constant issue with overpopulation, food production as well as sustainability. What is the solution? To be honest, I highly doubt there is only one answer to this question. While many people believe we should let nature take its course, others feel that we can all come together and make a difference. I for one feel that a way in which we could help underdeveloped countries is by providing them with as much information as possible on contraceptives. I understand, that rape and prostitution are always a problem, but if books on sex education and contraceptives were more accessible to people then they would perhaps reconsider making bad choices. Another solution would be for people to adopt a vegetarian diet; I myself am not a vegetarian, but I read in an article that when just one person adopts a vegetarian diet, that action frees up land to feed as many as 19 people. "If just 10 percent of American meat-eaters adopted a vegetarian diet, there would be 12 million more tons of grain to feed humans, enough to support the 60 million people who starve to death each year." I believe this is something that we should all keep in mind.

    To read more: http://www.downtoearth.org/health/general-health/steps-to-end-world-hunger

    - Yalila Perez

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  11. Overpopulation should be a worldwide concern seeing as how humans do not know how to maximize the benefit of the things we produce. For example, if an individual, for a week, collects all the food he/ or she discards they will see that it equals to about one full plate of food or more. If we look at it on a large scale view the United States produces three times more than what it consumes, thus using up more resources than what is actually necessary in hopes to maximize profit and feed the consumers thirst. Yet while one side of the world has too much of everything another has a lot of poverty and hunger. Therefore I believe we should all try to live as one and help each other overcome these issues. If we allow some people to die of poverty, hunger, disease, and starvation what does that say about us as specie and about our mindset. Why is it that people realize that something must be done yet very little is done to change the situation at hand? Is it that we have become so preoccupied with our lives? Or is it that as long as these issues don’t affect us we don’t see the reason to move a finger? It is my understanding that we must first change the way we use our resources here at home, then do what we can to help others in need. If the whole world gets involved and does their part I believe we can all experience a better life and a better world.
    Francis Rodriguez

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  13. The simplest solution to the overwhelming world population is education. People in the sub-Saharan Africa have large families, however, they do not have the means by which to support them, such as, providing adequate meals or living in better conditions. Yet, they keep reproducing and contributing to the world population. Not only do the people of this region need to be educated but resources have to be distributed more adequately around the globe.
    -Sasha Pacheco

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  14. Every night there are people all around the world who can say that they have gone to sleep on an empty stomach. This is something that is truly devastating considering the amounts of food countries like the U.S. have access to and how much of this we leave to waste on a daily basis. It seems like the solution to many of the problems concerning this issue is simple, yet it is easier said than done. Therefore, before solving such worldwide problems it is necessary that people develop consciousness and begin to receive the education needed to raise awareness. Many of us tend to think that third world countries are the main causes of the planet’s underdevelopment since by definition they are usually the ones that experience the most poverty, lack of education, infrastructure, and public health. “However, when we compare lifestyles of the rich countries vs. the poor countries, the rich countries are a much greater problem. Just as much as the population size, we need to consider the resources consumed by each person, and the damage done by technologies used to supply them.” We need to find an effective way to sustain ourselves without using up as many resources. A limit to the amount of offspring a person can have is an important step that would add to making this an easier task. Things like these may cause commotion or result extremely expensive, but why not put one last effort in order to save humankind? Or do we really want to see ourselves in the image found in the link bellow?

    Image link/Sources: http://www.cosmosmith.com/human_population_crisis.htm

    Leidy Santos

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  15. The idea of population growing at a faster and more abundant rate than food supply is not something new to me. Although we are aware of its effect on us and the environment we live in, most of the time we fail to put them together and realize that they are interconnected, one thing will lead to the next until our planet is done.

    I like to see the planet as human and put myself in its shoes: Earth can only take so much until it starts reacting and responding to the things that are done to it. With that said, overpopulation will always bring consequences. From poverty to the lack of infrastructure, the overpricing of products and the amount of food we eat combined with the demand from all of the planet's inhabitants is overwhelming. The solution to this is not a political one, I think. It isn't about enforcing laws or restrictions about how many children you are allowed to have per family, as is the case in China. It is more about educating new members of the world or future generations about what is currently happening to our environment, how agriculture is contributing greatly to the idea of global warming and how overpopulation will ultimately result in chaos unless people stop being selfish and take care of the world itself too. Underdeveloped countries especially need all the help they can get from developed countries to provide education and avoid further complications and problems to themselves and to the world as a whole. Being unable and a lot less privileged than other countries, underdeveloped ones need sources and help to improve their conditions and cease to negatively affect economic, social and environmental aspects to such a great degree.

    Cinthia Moran

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  17. This is definitely a tricky topic to discuss. Overpopulation, lack of resources, and worst of all is the end result of those two put together; malnutrition and the death of millions of lives. I find it hard to give a "solution" becuase quite frankly, I don't know that I have one that hasn't already been brought up or discussed. I believe that we have start finding ways to control reproduction in under-developed nations, but its so very difficult to achieve that without a strong infrastructure or a system of education that most of the population can receive.

    I think we as citizens of such a wealthy and powerful nation need to do more to help educate those in less-developed nations less on how to think and act as we do, rather more on how to protect their resources, and reproduce only at amounts they can sustain. We can't sit around waiting for someone to take action; we have to do it ourselves. We need more initiatives and non-profit groups to not only come about, but to also take the risk in putting this into effect.

    I might not be one to talk because I have never achieved such a thing, but I can surely say that I admire those who do, and would hope to see more people engaged in these roles.

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  18. As a capitalist nation, America's economy is fueled by consumption. While I love the free market, and the innovations that have come from it, this system does encourage excesses. I’m glad that our economy is such that the majority of the population does not starve. However, eating nine times as much sub-Saharan Africans is just overkill. The solution to this problem, as is with most social issues, begins with education. Better nutrition education is needed so people can know exactly how much they have to eat to function and not overeat. Education is also likely to make people less susceptible to advertising, which lures consumers into eating for reasons beyond nourishment. Also, more people need to become aware that the earth’s resources are not limitless, contrary to what our stocked up grocery-stores may convey.

    -Cassandra Corrales

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  19. Over population is a serious issue that will probably be the downfall of mankind. Most of the world(especially in america) believes that are resources are unlimited, and that humans are the only ones who are worthy of these resources. This is not a cool way of thinking , not cool at all, there are species who have lived here millions of years before us, and are now dying out slowly because of our ignorace.
    However, the problem with human overpoulation is that we cannot control it without providing radical methods of control, such as the chinese with one children per family rule (although i believe that their view that one male child is optimal for the family is a bit crazy). Although the constant wars and darwinism helps diminish a bit of the human race, it does not really "control" overpopulation. A less cynical but still crazy method of controlling overpopulation would be "moving out", as in space travel. Would it not be cool to fly to the moon or even mars to live their as pioneers of the human race? However, we are not technologically advanced enough to provide adequate living resources in space, so although it is causally possible, it is not available at the moment. We will just have to wait and see in a couple of years to see how humans will turn out...

    Emmanuel Fernandez

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  20. Overpopulation is an issue that has always been thought of, even before it became a problem. However, we haven’t found a solution to this problem. If nothing is done soon, the only way this problem will be fixed is by the population decreasing due to lack of food.
    I believe that the most important tool we own is our knowledge, it is the only thing that can never be taken away, and unfortunately many of us only use it to benefit from it, making us selfish in a way. I say we share our knowledge and educate others on the matter, teach them about safe sex, and also teach them agriculture. By education people on the importance of safe sex not only will we prevent pregnancy but also the spread of STDs. Agriculture would allow others to provide food for their people and also jobs to those who are in need.
    I understand, that these ideas have probably been thought of before; however, this is an issue that will take time to solve, so a lot of patience and people are needed to make it happen. It is possible to make a difference if everyone helps in some way so advertisement and encouragement should be part of this in order to receive more help.

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  21. Although we don’t believe we are becoming an overpopulated world, because we are not experiencing what the people in sub-Saharan Africa are, still some individuals are trying to open our eyes and make us realize that just because right now overpopulation is not affecting us it doesn’t mean it’s not affecting others or that it doesn’t exist at all. In order to try to solve this issue as already mentioned by some classmates, the key point is to educate individuals about sex and many other factors that are potential contributors to overpopulation, when one is no educated enough. More reasonable distribution of resources around the world would also help a lot. As we ignore the problem we are also ignoring some solutions to overpopulation held nowadays and those are: abortion, birth control and delayed child bearing.
    -Jennyfer Munoz

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  22. I believe overpopulation and world hunger are two of the biggest issues we are facing in today's world. There are many concerns from many individuals about world hunger and overpopulation, but very few seem to do something about it. I believe we should start coming together as individuals and work together to fight this tremendous problem. We have to appreciate the food we have and also be thankful for how blessed we are by having food everday. We should also start doing something by not throwing away any food and by trying to help others who are less fortunate. As students, we should think of ways to help countries who are less developed and face excessive hunger. We should encourage donations and ways to get food in order to improve the way of life of people who face continuous hunger. In addition, I believe we should take care of our resourses more wisely and protect other species who sustain us.

    Maria Vargas

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  23. We all know that right now there is enough food to satisfy the necessities of Earth’s population. However, the nearly 500 million people who suffer from malnutrition are the consequence of the terrible food distribution that exists. Malnutrition, poverty, and crime are the effects of overpopulation. According to The 2003 Revision “Almost all population growth expected for the world in the next thirty years will be concentrated in the urban areas. The smaller urban settlements (with fewer than 500,000 inhabitants) of the less developed regions will be absorbing most of this growth.” This will decrease the accessibility of food in those areas because farmers will move to the city, there will be more food demand and since the city will expand it’ll become more difficult for the food to get to the city’s inhabitants.

    In many countries, the government has acknowledged the necessity of investing in markets and agriculture. In Honduras, for example, the government wants to impose a law regulating hygiene. However, many of those countries, Honduras included, do not have the financial support to solve its problems.

    The only solution that I think can help during these times is education. Consuelo, a woman who “was found almost dead from trying to self-abort a 14th pregnancy,” is a clear example of the lack of education that exists in the world. She explains that the reason she and hundreds of people from her village moved to the city was because they thought that their “children will get an education and wear shoes. Life will be better for them.” These are the people the government has to help. They have to be educated about birth control and of ways their lives can improve.

    Consuelo has 13 children, 3 of whom have tuberculosis and she is living in adobe houses, with no water, and only onions in their kitchen. The government has to invest in agriculture and educate EVERYONE; from the people who don’t have anything to eat to the people who are blessed to have something to eat.

    -Mario Hernandez.


    world urbanization prospects- http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/wup2003/WUP2003Report.pdf

    Consuelo's story- http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC16/Mische.htm

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