Blog 1

My definition of sustainability is preserving the Earth’s natural resources to protect the environment. My definition has since grown due to now understanding that it is a intergenerational responsibility, meaning every generation is responsible for taking care of the environment as they pass it on by generation. What you do today to take action to protect the environment will affect each generation after us. A wicked problem is problem that we need new ideas for and a fresh mind to solve it. To solve it we must analyze and find personal connections to the problem itself. Having that personal connection to the problem allows you to dive deeper into the problem to find a better solution due to the emotional drive behind the problem solving. A tame problem is sequential and very common like medical vaccines. The 11th hour was very eye opening based on the facts they provided. The movie states “only half a billion people can survive in the lifestyle we are living” which to me poses the question, how much longer until none of our society can survive in the lifestyle we are living? The six characteristics of wicked problems are vague problem definitions, variable solutions, solutions have no end point, solutions pose irreversible effects, solutions require unique approaches, and urgent. The first characteristic, vague problem definitions, means that the problem is difficult to describe and pinpoint. The second, variable solutions, means that there are many different outcomes that could come from solving the problem that may work for some people, but not for others. The third, solutions have no end point, means that the problem will always need to be worked on because there should be no end point. The fourth, solutions pose irreversible effects, means that the changes that cannot be undone and could pose real consequences. The fifth, solutions require a unique approach, means that every problem is unique and needs a unique approach to solve it because there are many possibilities. The final characteristic, urgency, means that if we fail to act on solving these problems there will be serious consequences. Activity 1, where we read the problem posed and checked the boxes of the wicked characteristics each problem had helped me better understand the wicked problem itself. The Easter Island reading was eye opening due to the many parallels that I could see with that society that I can see in today’s society. The competition between the clans ultimately was one of the reasons to the crash of the society. In today’s society many people are in competition with each other about what they own. Are world today has more waste due to people buying for than what they need causing our resources to deplete even quicker. Reading about Easter Island makes me wonder, why don’t we learn from our past mistakes to protect our future?


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