I found this week’s class lecture and trip to the art museum fascinating. It was astonishing to see how much damaging we are causing our planet just by living our normal day-to-day lives. Going into this week, I was unaware of all the numerous ways we destroy the Earth and the life that grows on it throughout the world. Especially in America, the harm we are doing is extremely dangerous and often irreversible. This week has reminded me I need to live more for sustainability than convenience. There is always something we can do as individuals even if it does not seem like one person has much impact on the planet.

As I entered class this week, I thought of sustainability as something that
stays the same overtime and can continue to thrive at a continuous rate. However, this definition has changed into something we as humans must be aware of in order to save our world. Sustainability means to maintain our envirnment and continue to be in a state of balance. It means we must be mindful of our daily decisions to ensure our planet is sustainable for future generations.

A wicked problem is usually a social or environmental issue that cannot be
solved easily. It requires taking an in-depth look at the problem and coming up with a difficult or nearly impossible solution. There is no traditional way of solving it making it extremely complex. A main issue when solving a wicked problem is all the contradictory opinions that surround it. Millions of people have different views about every subject and it is hard to set our own beliefs aside and do what is actually needed for the planet. This is something I will continue to try to do for the best overall outcome. Wicked problems are different from tame problems due to their solvibility. A tame problem tends to have a common interest of the people involved and a solution such as a medical vaccination or treatment. This allows it to be much easier in solving. This week has really opened my eyes in seeing how many wicked problems there are in sustainability and what will happen to our planet if we do not take small steps to stop or slow its depletion.

Watching “The 11th Hour” really put visuals to everything we fear
we are doing to our planet. It showed the destruction we cause by emitting such toxic pollutants into the air and how much the climate continues to change and cause the melting of ice and other issues that can never be reversed. It causes you to stop and ask yourself: How far will this go? What needs to happen before we finally realize how negatively our current lifestyles impact the Earth? What can we do to stop it? There is no easy solution. The environment did not get this way overnight, so change will not occur overnight. It takes small steps by everyone working collectively to make a positive impact worldwide.

There are six characteristics that cause wicked problems to be so complex and difficult to
solve. There is often a vague understanding of the issues and the solutions may
not cause complete resolution of the problem. Often these issues become so out
of hand that they become urgent and we are not able to solve them the way they
should be. We are running out of time to change the world without destroying it
first, and we must act fast to try to find a way without causing irreversible effects.
Unique approaches are required to solve these growing issues.

The trip to the art museum was a very interesting way to explore the effects of the damage we cause to the Earth. It was very eye-opening to see all the pictures and objects
found washed up at a beach. When I go to the beach, I often do not think twice
about a toy shovel left in the sand or a lost shoe on the shoreline, but they
cause so much damage to our environment. Due to plastic’s inability to break
down, it just stays there until sea life mistakes it for food or it gets pushed
into the ocean. We are slowly killing the wildlife in the ocean due to all the
trash, pollutants, and plastic that ends up in the ocean each year. The museum showed
exactly what happens to all the trash we do not recycle and how much litter
occurs each year. The rate is only growing and more exhibits should be opened
to raise awareness about this wicked problem. If these issues continue to be discussed, I believe we can work our way up to a sustainable envirnment that does not cause damage to so many living organisms.