Summary of Michael Marker's Article

In the article Indigenous Resistance and Racist Schooling on the Borders of Empires: Coast Salish Cultural Survival, Michael Marker talks about the Coast Salish people. They live on the border of America and Canada in Washington State and British Columbia. Since the villages are spread out, they are required to travel across the border frequently to be with their people. The colonizing of this area led to racism against the Coast Salish people. The main way that people discriminated against the Coast Salish tribes were through the education system. The schools were designed to erase their memory of their culture and make them more "civilized." To counteract these efforts to assimilate Coast Salish people, they have reclaimed government boarding schools to get away from public schools who were trying to wipe out their culture. 

Appalachian Food and Sustainability

When it comes to food and sustainability, the Appalachian Mountains are a great place to live. There are several family farms all across this region. The is an organization called the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, which helps people to know what foods are locally grown so that residents can support the local farmers and keep the farms going. In 2005, North Carolina had the highest rate of losing agricultural land, so the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project has been working hard to keep farmland in the Appalachian Mountains. 

Environmental Ethics Artifact

This article is an in-depth analysis of environmental ethics:

http://lamar.colostate.edu/~rolston/ee-blackwell-comp.pdf

Also, here is a funny clip that relates very well if you replace business ethics with environmental ethics. All to often big business is so concerned with profit that they have no regard for what is ethical.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba2VaalmijM

Discussion of “Feds Link Water Contamination to Fracking for the First Time”

The article titled “Feds Link Water Contamination to Fracking for the First Time” by Abraham Lustgarten and Nicholas Kusnetz was very informative. Before this piece, I had no idea what fracking was, or the dangers associated with it. The fact that EnCana is denying that fracking is the cause of pollution in the wells the EPA has tested is not surprising, and not totally unjustified. The EPA has found one chemical associated with fracking in wells in Pavillion, but they only found it once. Sure, the company could be being very careful, but the fact that even one source of drinking water was contaminated is unacceptable. Although, since it was only found once it could have not even been EnCana’s fault, which is basically what they are claiming. If this is the case though, then why would they not give a full list of the chemicals used to the EPA so they could be sure? I personally believe that fracking is not only the cause of the pollution, but I think that EnCana knows it, and that’s why they’re being so reluctant to give over the information that the EPA has been requesting. If EnCana was really innocent then they would just tell the EPA what they use and have their name cleared, but they won’t so it’s not too hard to believe that they know they’re polluting the water.

Bill McKibben: Actions speak louder than words

“Bill McKibben: Actions speak louder than words” is an interview between Bill McKibben and the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. Bill McKibben is an author, educator, and environmentalist. McKibben wrote the first book about climate change that was intended for the average person titled The End of Nature in 1989. Other books by McKibben include Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet and Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future. McKibben also used to be a writer for The New Yorker, where he was referred to as “the world’s best green journalist.” McKibben is also the founder of 350.org, an international grassroots climate campaign. 350.org has coordinated about 20,000 events in every country in the world except North Korea since being founded by McKibben. Needless to say, Bill McKibben has earned his place as one leaders of the environmental movement.

            The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists goes on to ask McKibben several questions about his work as an environmental journalist. The central idea behind 350.org is that the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere needs to be reduced to below 350 ppm (parts per million) in order for the environment to survive. McKibben is also asked about his book The End of Nature, and about how he says that the planet is running out of time to fix things. If we start burning the oil from the Canadian tar sands, the amount of carbon dioxide could go from 390 ppm, the current level, to about 540 ppm. If this were to happen, it could result in the end of the world.