Environmental Problems and Solutions

Science is the process of observing and testing concepts so as to better understand them. The basis for most of science is to gain an understanding of how things work. Ecology is the study of life and how that life interacts with each other. Environmental Science is the study of the living and non-living things around us and how we impact it and how it impacts us. These three are similar in that they are studies of how things are. They look into the details of why life is the way it is and what we can do to improve it. Environmental Science seems to incorporate both Ecology and Science. It incorporates the study of living organisms and the observing that comes with Science. It is different from Ecology because it also includes things that are created such as technology and other man-made objects. It is also different from Science since Science studies a wide range of topics while Environmental Science sticks to studying our environment.

Some of the most important environmental problems facing the world right now are population growth, climate change, hunger, clean water, energy resources, and biodiversity loss. These problems have complex issues surrounding them but luckily there are improvements being made by actions done by humans and by Science.

According to Cunningham and Cunningham (2011), “there are about 7 billion people on earth and we are adding about 80 million more each year” (p. 4) which will cause the population to be around “8 and 10 billion by 2050” (p. 4). This many people make all of the following environmental problems even worse. Luckily, the population growth has slowed. Cunningham and Cunningham reported that “over the past 25 years, the average number of children born per woman worldwide has decreased from 6.1 to 2.6” (p. 6). This population stabilization has occurred thanks to the actions of countries that have practiced democracy and have incorporated social security policies (p. 6).

According to a 2004 article in the Boston Globe called “Population progress”:

Education and improved health for women are central, but access to contraception is still a vital part of the quest for a more sustainable world. Smaller families are healthier families with more resources to improve the prospects of each generation. Whether it is hunger, illiteracy, or the AIDS epidemic, available contraception is crucial (Para. 4).

This is where Science comes into play. Science can help build a sustainable world by providing safe and affordable contraception. This will help women plan their families and improve the quality of life of their family and their children’s families.

In 2004, CNN reported in their article “Official: Global warming bigger threat than terrorism” that Canadian Environment Minister David Anderson compared climate change to terrorism and said that climate change was actually a bigger threat. "Terrorism will come and go,