Throughout the research process of writing my paper, I was overwhelmed with the amount of problems and lack of solutions that the people of Ecuador have in terms of water contamination. Ecuador has been involved in a resource curse, specifically around the mighty oil market. Their natural resources have been exploited by national corporations such as Chevron/Texaco since the 1980’s… Read more »
We are protected, but not by much. Surrounding the earth’s atmosphere is a thin blue layer that protects use from harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun and from the various threats from outer space. The health of our ozone is dependent upon our decisions that we make down on the surface of our planet. We have seen the responses from… Read more »
Our environment and the natural resources within it have quickly become a topic of scarcity and political power. One of the most valuable natural resources has developed an new competitive market across the world. By the time we enter the year 2100, experts predict that over half the world’s population will experience water scarcity. Like drilling for oil, the most… Read more »
During the past few weeks, we have learned a lot of important concepts about where our food comes from and what we sacrifice in order to keep food on our tables. I found it very interesting and a bit daunting to learn about the amount of petroleum that it takes to make our mass production of food possible. Petroleum is… Read more »
While reviewing Peter Menzel’s photographic essay “Hungry Planet”, I was struck by the dramatic differences in food culture between developing and affluent countries. For my paper, I wanted to find two countries that unparalleled each other. One of the countries I chose for my paper was Chad, a country that is extremely under developed and is facing a food crisis… Read more »
The contemplative practice that I found to be the most interesting was the lesson on the production of chocolate. Chocolate is one of the most well known commodities in our culture. It’s heavily sought after by consumers during significant holidays, it’s the perfect gift for a loved one, and we add it to various foods such as cakes and ice… Read more »
What is the real cost of our food? After reading Michael Carolan’s The Real Cost of Cheap Food, I realized there are many hidden costs to the food choices that we make. In Carolan’s book, he outlines the complex commodity chains that our food products undergo on their way to our kitchen tables. At first, we may see this commodity… Read more »
When starting this course, I had a rough understanding of the food culture and how it has been changing over the years. After reading Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food, I quickly realized that we are in the midst of a change that is leaving population of the world more unhealthy and with less nutritional options to choose from. When… Read more »