ENR 2500 Final Exam Study Guide
Difference between weak and strong sustainability - ANSWER Weak: substitution of
human capital for natural capital
Strong: natural capital and human capital are complementary but not interchangeable
What are we trying to sustain, for whom, and for how long? - ANSWER Quality of
life/resources for future generations. As long as possible
Arguments for and against a single, all-encompassing definition of sustainability -
ANSWER Arguments for:
-If people can redefine and reapply their own definitions to fit individual/organizational
needs, it becomes pointless
-multiple definitions also leads to exploitation and greenwashing
-Engleman: need a single definition so that we know how to achieve it
Arguments against:
-power and creativity arise from the ambiguity of what sustainable development is
-remains an open, dynamic, and ever evolving idea
-ability to redefine and reapply make it a cross-sectional approach. Sustainable
development can be applied to all situations over all different parts of the world
Six key components of sustainability-- what are they, how are they defined, and how
have they been important throughout the semester? GO LOOK AT YOUR NOTES!! -
ANSWER Time: intergenerational and intragenerational. Busy lifestyles = need for
convenience ; how your actions impact the future; be mindful of present
Tradeoffs: (Organic Agriculture- Organic farming is less productive and will end up
using more land. But a counter claim states that Industrial farming may only marginally
increase yields compared to alternatives.) There are environmental impacts for
agriculture but we choose higher productivity over those environmental impacts which
is what our cost is. -- Often there is an economic tradeoff to be more sustainable, for
example if we use an alternative chemical in processing, but it costs more we are taking
a monetary loss in order to keep along with the goal to become more sustainable. Or if
you start working less then you will make less money which will cause (force even) you
to consume less.
Systems thinking- Studying the pieces of a whole separately. Each piece has an affect
on the overall system. Pest management, Biofuels.
,Collective action/ social dilemmas-
Tragedy of the Commons= "if no one else is doing it,why should I?"
Collective action problem= we all want beneficial outcomes but it requires collective
efforts and there is no incentive for any one individual to bear the cost
Social dilemma=what is best for the individual is not what it best for the group. Ex: I
drive a prius while others still drive hummers. So, I get better fuel economy but they get
cleaner air
Efficiency vs reduction- Hybrid cars or absolute reduction of all cars (more walking,
bikes, or public transportation)
Individual vs structural change- Do individuals actually make "choices" about all their
behaviors or is the structure in which individuals are embedded where individual
structures are made. If an individual begins to walk or bike more often than drive than
they might influence other
Different ways of thinking about and defining devlopment, poverty, and community, and
different components of each and how and why these are important for sustainability -
ANSWER Development- not only structural development, buildings (not only materials
used, but also the location), efficiency, progress, now it's a way of thinking, gdp ,
literacy rate, health, quality of life.
Paradigm of the developed vs. developing world
increased freedoms, enhanced well being,longer life expectancy, improved education (
from 1st test)
Poverty- good life in one area/bad in another. poverty can inhibit improvement of
sustainability. relative vs. absolute. Erode trust and social capital, destabilize political
system. Big problem that we are facing today!
Community- common likeness interests/goals/place. brings people together- comfort,
productivity. helps solve problems- division of labor, louder voice, more ideas. *needs
for various capitals to develop
3 components (from readings): 1. territory or place 2. social organizations or institutions
that provide regular interactions 3. social interactions on matters concerning common
interests
Economic values are anthropocentric-- what does that mean? - ANSWER humankind as
the most important/central element of existence. -Very strongly tied to weak
sustainability. Markets will organize themselves to maximize individual and social
welfare.
Externalities - ANSWER Externalities are the cost or benefit that affects a party who did
not choose to incur that cost or benefit. The graph shows unpriced output of pollution.
, Environmental, economic, and social pros of consumption and consumerism - ANSWER
Environmental: people are wanting products to be more and more sustainable
Economic: flow of capital, jobs
Social: look good/fit in/show social class. Immediate happiness.
Environmental, economic, and social cons of consumption and consumerism - ANSWER
Environmental: escalating human pressure on ecosystems, consumption leads to
environmental degradation, lack of natural medicines and food diversity
Social: sadness b/c of need to keep consuming ( lower self-esteem)
Economic: some people being displaced from their homes because of resources on
their land, consumption can lead to a lack of money in areas of need ex. food or
recreational activities
Theories about consumerism - ANSWER Economic/individual- consumption as a need
driven behavior- assumes consumption always increases utility, satisfies short term
satisfaction. convenience
Cultural- Is symbolic- expresses meaning and identity, communicate with each other,
manipulated by advertisements, to "look good"
Social- signals group membership, buy expensive things to show authority or power
conspicuous consumption- letting people know you have money. -"keeping up with the
Jones' "
Evolutionary (costly signaling)- peacocks have huge colorful plumage (makes them
more attractive to predators, but if they survive it shows they can survive even with that
disadvantage→ attracts mates). If we buy flashy car then we have been successful
enough to provide for ourselves.
wasteful displays of over consumption, purchase of environmentally green products
(have to be expensive)
can someone elaborate more on this one? still v. unclear Altruistic acts. Often expensive
and can lead to rebound effects
Work-spend cycle- we work to buy things that the media tells us we need then we don't
have money for our needs so we have to work more to buy our next needs.
READ WILK PAPER (consumerism) - ANSWER Direct consumerism = quantifiable.
Indirect = hard to measure.
Social, Cultural, and Individual Choice consumerism theories
Indicators of progress, moving beyond GDP, and development approaches (e.g. Bhutan)
- ANSWER they were judging progress by happiness, could also use decreasing birth
rates and decreasing mortality, increasing life expectancy and health, education
Difference between weak and strong sustainability - ANSWER Weak: substitution of
human capital for natural capital
Strong: natural capital and human capital are complementary but not interchangeable
What are we trying to sustain, for whom, and for how long? - ANSWER Quality of
life/resources for future generations. As long as possible
Arguments for and against a single, all-encompassing definition of sustainability -
ANSWER Arguments for:
-If people can redefine and reapply their own definitions to fit individual/organizational
needs, it becomes pointless
-multiple definitions also leads to exploitation and greenwashing
-Engleman: need a single definition so that we know how to achieve it
Arguments against:
-power and creativity arise from the ambiguity of what sustainable development is
-remains an open, dynamic, and ever evolving idea
-ability to redefine and reapply make it a cross-sectional approach. Sustainable
development can be applied to all situations over all different parts of the world
Six key components of sustainability-- what are they, how are they defined, and how
have they been important throughout the semester? GO LOOK AT YOUR NOTES!! -
ANSWER Time: intergenerational and intragenerational. Busy lifestyles = need for
convenience ; how your actions impact the future; be mindful of present
Tradeoffs: (Organic Agriculture- Organic farming is less productive and will end up
using more land. But a counter claim states that Industrial farming may only marginally
increase yields compared to alternatives.) There are environmental impacts for
agriculture but we choose higher productivity over those environmental impacts which
is what our cost is. -- Often there is an economic tradeoff to be more sustainable, for
example if we use an alternative chemical in processing, but it costs more we are taking
a monetary loss in order to keep along with the goal to become more sustainable. Or if
you start working less then you will make less money which will cause (force even) you
to consume less.
Systems thinking- Studying the pieces of a whole separately. Each piece has an affect
on the overall system. Pest management, Biofuels.
,Collective action/ social dilemmas-
Tragedy of the Commons= "if no one else is doing it,why should I?"
Collective action problem= we all want beneficial outcomes but it requires collective
efforts and there is no incentive for any one individual to bear the cost
Social dilemma=what is best for the individual is not what it best for the group. Ex: I
drive a prius while others still drive hummers. So, I get better fuel economy but they get
cleaner air
Efficiency vs reduction- Hybrid cars or absolute reduction of all cars (more walking,
bikes, or public transportation)
Individual vs structural change- Do individuals actually make "choices" about all their
behaviors or is the structure in which individuals are embedded where individual
structures are made. If an individual begins to walk or bike more often than drive than
they might influence other
Different ways of thinking about and defining devlopment, poverty, and community, and
different components of each and how and why these are important for sustainability -
ANSWER Development- not only structural development, buildings (not only materials
used, but also the location), efficiency, progress, now it's a way of thinking, gdp ,
literacy rate, health, quality of life.
Paradigm of the developed vs. developing world
increased freedoms, enhanced well being,longer life expectancy, improved education (
from 1st test)
Poverty- good life in one area/bad in another. poverty can inhibit improvement of
sustainability. relative vs. absolute. Erode trust and social capital, destabilize political
system. Big problem that we are facing today!
Community- common likeness interests/goals/place. brings people together- comfort,
productivity. helps solve problems- division of labor, louder voice, more ideas. *needs
for various capitals to develop
3 components (from readings): 1. territory or place 2. social organizations or institutions
that provide regular interactions 3. social interactions on matters concerning common
interests
Economic values are anthropocentric-- what does that mean? - ANSWER humankind as
the most important/central element of existence. -Very strongly tied to weak
sustainability. Markets will organize themselves to maximize individual and social
welfare.
Externalities - ANSWER Externalities are the cost or benefit that affects a party who did
not choose to incur that cost or benefit. The graph shows unpriced output of pollution.
, Environmental, economic, and social pros of consumption and consumerism - ANSWER
Environmental: people are wanting products to be more and more sustainable
Economic: flow of capital, jobs
Social: look good/fit in/show social class. Immediate happiness.
Environmental, economic, and social cons of consumption and consumerism - ANSWER
Environmental: escalating human pressure on ecosystems, consumption leads to
environmental degradation, lack of natural medicines and food diversity
Social: sadness b/c of need to keep consuming ( lower self-esteem)
Economic: some people being displaced from their homes because of resources on
their land, consumption can lead to a lack of money in areas of need ex. food or
recreational activities
Theories about consumerism - ANSWER Economic/individual- consumption as a need
driven behavior- assumes consumption always increases utility, satisfies short term
satisfaction. convenience
Cultural- Is symbolic- expresses meaning and identity, communicate with each other,
manipulated by advertisements, to "look good"
Social- signals group membership, buy expensive things to show authority or power
conspicuous consumption- letting people know you have money. -"keeping up with the
Jones' "
Evolutionary (costly signaling)- peacocks have huge colorful plumage (makes them
more attractive to predators, but if they survive it shows they can survive even with that
disadvantage→ attracts mates). If we buy flashy car then we have been successful
enough to provide for ourselves.
wasteful displays of over consumption, purchase of environmentally green products
(have to be expensive)
can someone elaborate more on this one? still v. unclear Altruistic acts. Often expensive
and can lead to rebound effects
Work-spend cycle- we work to buy things that the media tells us we need then we don't
have money for our needs so we have to work more to buy our next needs.
READ WILK PAPER (consumerism) - ANSWER Direct consumerism = quantifiable.
Indirect = hard to measure.
Social, Cultural, and Individual Choice consumerism theories
Indicators of progress, moving beyond GDP, and development approaches (e.g. Bhutan)
- ANSWER they were judging progress by happiness, could also use decreasing birth
rates and decreasing mortality, increasing life expectancy and health, education
