For this section of the module we were taught about
sustainable development and global citizenship, and how these concepts will
help improve our quality of life today, and our quality of life in the future.
There are three major problems this planet is facing in the
21st century; the environment and its conservation, inequality
between people and their human rights, and peace between nations. These are
problems that have existed for years however due to recent events they have
been brought into the public’s consciousness more than ever.
Just recently in the town of Ferguson, Missouri, a teenage
African-American boy named Michael Brown was shot in the head, TWICE, by a law
enforcement official, even though he was unarmed at the time. This incident
sparked a major backlash as the people of Ferguson protested against racism and
police brutality. Even before this shooting however, racial questions were
raised about the police force of Ferguson. Ferguson police force has 53
members, of which only 3 are African-American (Berman, Leonnig & Lowery, 2014). This incident is an example of
the inequalities that African-Americans face every day, and is one of the major
issues we must address in schools at an early age if we are going to live in a
more peaceful and integrated society.
There
are currently over 7 billion people living on this planet and a large
proportion of that number seem hell-bent on destroying the very ground that
they walk upon. From nations to individuals, we are creating a ridiculous amount
economic and ecological issues that are making this world a more difficult and unruly
place to live in. Global climate change, economic inequality and instability, and
social disharmony are three of the major talking points when discussing the
future of this planet. The only way we can improve this planet is by taking all
of these different factors and discussing ways in which we can eradicate these
problems leaving us with a more inclusion and equal global society.
The ESDGC (Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship) is a policy that aims to challenge students to come up with ideas that could benefit the lives of others. It is being implemented in every education sector across the Wales and covers a wide variety of subjects. It aims to tackle; the natural environment, consumption and waste, climate change, wealth and poverty, identity and culture, choices and decisions, and health.
To learn
more about sustainable development we were set a tsk by out lecturer to design,
construct and budget for a new, sustainable and energy efficient bridge to be erected
in Swansea. The first aspect of the challenge we pondered was, how we were
going to make the bridge sustainable and energy efficient? So we chose to build
a draw bridge out of materials that were durable, yet flexible and which
require little to no upkeep. The bridge was to be built over a large river so
we came up with the idea of placing turbines in the river so that the rivers
constant flow would be able to generate enough energy to raise and lower the
draw bridge. We they build a small scale model of our bridge using a number of
different materials that we found in class. Upon completing our draw bridge we
then had to calculate how much it would cost to manufacture the bridge and how
much profit we would eventually make. By doing this exercise we have learned
more about sustainable development and how best to keep our planet running for
the younger generations.
Reference List
Berman, M.;
Leonnig, C.; Lowery, W. (August 13, 2014). "Even
before Michael Brown’s slaying in Ferguson, racial questions hung over
police". The Washington Post
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