Why Bother Lying?

In today’s world, sustainability or being sustainable is a concept that most people have heard of. Some companies incorporate sustainability into their policies, such as Velvet; promise that for every tree they use, they will plant three more. (http://www.velvettissue.com/velvet/plantthree.aspx)

Also, one of the factors that helped London to win the bid for the 2012 Games was its promise of sustainability and to make these Olympic Games the greenest games ever.

But how many of us actually do care? Most people will turn around and say they are ‘doing their bit for the environment’, I mean after all we are recycling our plastics and tins and glass. But is this actually making a difference? Given the choice between using a car to get to work, and getting the bus, which would you pick? If I am being honest, I would pick my car. There is a reason I bought my car. It is more convenient for me to use as a mode of transport, I don’t need to worry about having enough change for a ticket, and I don’t have to leave the house 20 minutes early to get to my car like you have to with a bus.

If presented with the option between a Ford car, and an Audi, I would pick the Audi. I have a Ford KA at the moment, and it’s a great little car, but in today’s society it’s acceptable to have a nicer car, and is almost a sign of wealth and affluence. I have also previously thought about where I would like to live. I would love to have a large house in the countryside, with a relatively large plot of land to perhaps be able to keep some chickens. I have always thought I would prefer the peace of the countryside as opposed to city living, and if you’re going to have country living, there is no point in doing it by half’s.

http://www.countrycottagesdevonengland.co.uk/countrycottagesdevonengland.htm

As far as holidays are concerned, I have had quite a few holidays around the UK, or some years not been away at all, but I will admit that my family have not chosen to do this out of concern for our carbon footprint, but more from a economic point. We have had some holidays abroad, and I can speak for my whole family when I say that if money were no object, we would be travelling abroad more often, and to somewhere more exotic than the previously visited France or Menorca. From an individual perspective, I would love to see the world, I would love to travel. I understand that this is probably an unrealistic wish. These desires have probably stemmed from being so interested in the world, which has been fed by geography all the way through school to the present day, and also from Travel and Tourism A-Levels. I do however appreciate the fact that as a geographer, I should be thinking more about the impact that this would have.

I admit I am one of those people that wants the latest phone, or IPod, and if my monetary fund’s permitted it, I would also have an Ipad. There is no question that I wouldn't swap my phone, for a Tesco handset. Clothes shopping I could possibly go without. I have never been one to follow the latest fashions or trends, and don’t go clothes shopping that often, so at a push I could possibly give up clothes shopping for a year. Handbags however, are a different story!

Fruit is a little bit more difficult to say whether I would stop eating out of season fruits. I do like some fruits, but I’m quite picky. I love Grapes, Strawberries and Bananas. I don’t really like oranges that much, so that wouldn’t worry me. But I can’t say that I would want to give up other fruits.

After writing this report, I have shocked myself at how little I am willing to change to help protect the environment. Unfortunately, the younger generation had been brought up in a world full of consumerism and technology, which is promoted by the media. I do recycle, as it makes me feel better about the fact I’m doing something to help, when in fact, I’m really not. When it comes to having a flashy car, or the latest phone, I think image has a large part to play in people wanting the best. It would be great to think that wind farms or solar energy is simply the answer to all the world’s problems, but I am unsure, I think we may have passed the point in which these methods are of help. If we are to change our ways, we need to target younger generations than ourselves, who aren’t yet old enough to have been taken in by consumerism, and are still young enough to learn new ways. The rest of us I think need shock tactics, but not just facts, figures and pictures. I think people will start to change if they start to actually experience the problems that we are faced with.



http://thisthatwhatever.wordpress.com/2008/11/16/guava-guava/

http://www.aca-demy.co.uk/browse-results.php?browseby=tags&drilldown=2012

'An Inconvenient Truth'

“I’ve been trying to tell this story for a long time, and I feel as if I’ve failed to get the message across” (Al Gore, 2006)

In 2006, a documentary film called ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ was released. The film is about Former United States President Al Gore’s battle to educate people about global warming.

Source: http://www.gobeyondoil.com/media/press-releases/gore-climate-film-goes-national-greens-urge-public-to-act

Gore starts with a joke, saying “I am Al Gore; I used to be the next president of the United States.’ I feel that this is perhaps used as an ice breaker, making the audience feel at ease and more comfortable with their speaker. He then goes on to talk about the issues the world faces in terms of global warming. Throughout the film, Gore uses a presentation that he has presented around the world.

Throughout the film, Gore incorporates his own stories, thoughts and feelings. In doing this, he submits himself to his audience, making himself vulnerable and open to criticism. I think that this brings him on to the same level as the audience, making him seem an equal, rather than someone who is ‘above’ the average citizen in his position as a politician. Gore’s story about an old classmate’s idea that South America and Africa might have fitted together in the past is quite symbolic of the whole issue of climate change that is happening today. His teacher’s dismissal of the fact that Pangaea existed is representative of all the sceptics, and the classmate being the ‘believers’ of global warming.

Another symbolic idea comes from him quoting Sir Winston Churchill from 1936:

“The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a ‘period of consequences’.” (Sir Winston Churchill, 1936)

Churchill spoke these words to the House of Commons, in the aftermath of the violation of the Treaty of Versailles, when Nazi Germany’s reoccupied the Rhineland. Just as the world then was going through a major time, you can ‘re-use’ the quote to represent what is happening today.

http://nickbaines.wordpress.com/2009/04/

The overall message of the film is pretty clear nearly the whole way through, that global warming is not a problem to be ignored. He keeps the message simple, using technical terms when completely necessary, but other than he uses terms and ideas that people are going to understand. He does also address scepticism amongst other politicians, particularly when he explained why graphs fluctuate or ‘go up and down’ once each year. This he explains that this is to do with the annual season change and that the Carbon dioxide levels change in the different seasons. This depicted as the earth ‘breathing in and out’ was simple and effective in explaining this theory, and I found it particularly interesting, as this is something I have never been told.

“Climate change is really not a political issue, so much as a moral one.” (Al Gore, 2006)

I feel that the film is a very effective way to inform people of the severity of the situation, particularly by using real life examples, such as Hurricane Katrina, and images of retreating glaciers. I think that these images were successful in providing a ‘shock factor’ that this is really happening all over the world. 66% of people who say they have seen ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ said that the film “changed their minds” about global warming, and 89% said it made them more aware of the issue. Amazingly, 74% of viewers said that they changed some of their day to day habits as a result of the film, which is a great result.  (http://nz.nielsen.com/news/GlobalWarming_Jul07.shtml )

“I look around and look for really meaningful signs that we are about to really change...I don’t see it right now...” (Al Gore, 2006)