Sustainable Living

Le-Anne Goliath
16688627

Assignment 1

A. Resources and the exploitation of nature

i) These dimensions are the social, biophysical, political and the economic
environment.

Political

Social Economic

Biophysical

ii) Leonard explains how humans are exhausting non-renewable resources, these
resources are included in nature. She goes on to say that, humans are acting outside
of their natural environment through producing products, not fitting to the worlds
ecology. It is almost important to note that humans in this video often refers to
Americans and not individuals from under developed countries.
iii) The view of the video describes the big corporations as having the ultimate power.
Corporations have grown bigger than the government, by being the driving force of
most economies. As a result, the government is more interested in satisfying the
needs of these corporations, which are profits and keeping production costs down,
and not as focused on the implications of the environment. This is shown through
pollution and the poor free trade regulations.
iv) The linear- finite system shows where things come from, are made, where they end
up and are consumed. This system follows ‘stuff’ from extraction to production to
 Sustainable Living
Le-Anne Goliath
16688627

distribution to consumption and lastly disposal. It is also referred to as materials

economy. Therefore, it is impossible to continue to use a linear system on a finite
planet, finite resources, indefinitely.

B. Production- using resources

a. Production is the process where natural resources are manipulated or used to
produce good for consumption, an example of this would be a factory. The
process is global as natural resources are sourced in developing countries, such
as Africa or South America and then produced in Asia and perhaps assembled
and consumed in America. Production is mainly kept in under developed
countries to keep the production costs low. Resource use and production is no
longer localized.
b. Many view rapid population growth, poverty, exclusion of environmental costs
in products, unsustainable resource use and the idea that humans can manage
and simplify nature without understanding, as the causes for environmental
problems. Although this reign true, in reflecting on the video, the trashing of
resources and the fact that corporations are in charge of the government are the
root causes. This means we are governed in accordance to the needs of
corporations rather than the needs of people. The needs of corporations are that
of profit and low productions costs, causing environmental problems such as
pollution and a weak regulation of these problems.