Assignment 4: Eco identities

Ted Talk #1 John Francis: Gave up riding and driving in motorized vehicles
after witnessing two oil tankers collide. Began to go extended periods
without speaking and realized that he now started listening more to what
others had to stay. Eventually took a vow of silence for 17 years and walked
across the U.S. while achieving a bachelors and masters degree. We need
to listen to each other. Joined coast guard and became a U.N. goodwill
ambassador. We are the environment, and how we treat each other, is how
were are going to treat the environment.
#2 Birke Baehr: believes corporations are convincing people to buy products
that are harmful to both people and the environment. Linked GMOs to
diseases such as kidney failure and cancer. Pesticides and other chemicals
used in farming cause a large amount of environmental damage. Wants to
become an organic farmer. Supports buying food from organic and local
farmers. Choose organic, think local, choose your farmer and choose your
food.
#3 Halla Tomasdottir: Founded Audur capital a financial service firm with
feminism values. Values include that risk awareness, you should always
understand the risks of your investment, straight talking, emotional capital,
emotional diligence as well as financial diligence. Not about women being
better than men, but about women approaching the situation different than
men. There is an incredible urge to rebuild the things that failed us.
Believes we should mix philanthropy with business.
#4 Ron Finley: Lives in south central Los Angeles or as he describes it, a
food desert. Food is the problem and the solution. Is part of a group known
as L.A. green force and they began planting food gardens on curb lawns.
Growing your own food is like printing your own money. To change the
community you have to change the composition of the soil. If kids are not
exposed to healthy food habits they will blindly eat whatever is put in front of
them.
PART ONE: One of the key relations that Matsuba and Pratt found in there
study was the relation between and environmentally conscious person and
time spent in the environment, the outdoors. According to Horwitz, a
developing sense of self as being intimately connected to the environment
was part of the process in the formation of an environmental ethic. This can
be related to the experiences of Henry David Thorough. This sort of relation
they found began in the early years for adolescents for many people
possessing a strong environmental identity. Pratt and matsuba then
conducted a study to determine how people with eco identities and early
childhood experiences compared with people in their age group that did not.

We found that environmental activists scored higher on measures of general

identity maturity and, most notably, of specific environmental identity. Pratt
and Matsuba concluded from their research that sustained involvement with
nature and in environmental organizations was reported to have shaped how
activists perceived themselves and the identities to which they committed
themselves as they emerged into adulthood.
It seems from the research that eco identity is based, to an extreme extent,
on circumstance. If at a young age you are never exposed to any sort of
open nature landscape or environment and are simply stuck in a rural area
unable to go out and explore, you will have fewer things shown to you. The
less someone is exposed to something the less they will care. Take for
example my living situation. I live in an apartment with four other males,
none of which know how to properly recycle anything. I was fortunate to the
fact that my mother is for conscious about recycling and I was exposed to
that ideology. However I dont believe any of my roommates were. I cant
blame them for being in that situation, no one showed them, and they were
not exposed. This is just one of a thousand examples that can be discovered
in everyday interaction with other people. Eco identity is grown out of
circumstance, out of experience. The more awareness that can be raised,
the more people with strong eco identities will emerge.
PART TWO: John Francis has a huge amount of devotion to his beliefs about
the environment. It takes a huge amount of will power to take a vow of
silence for 17 years, all while attaining a Bachelors and Masters degree and
teaching university level classes. From Matsuba and Pratts studies it can be
found that Johns experience that sparked is eco ideology was when he
witnessed two oil tankers colliding in the S.F. bay. He said it deeply
disturbed him and from there on decided the logical thing to do was to no
longer use motorized vehicles for transport. That led to an adventure of
walking across the United States all while remaining silent. John explains
that what he learned from his endeavors is that people will treat each other
how they will treat the environment. The source of the solution is human
interaction and if that will grow in a positive way we will also see in a growth
in sustainability towards the environment.
Birke is a subject that can be drawn directly out of Matsuba and Pratts study
section of Environmental self-study at a young age. Considering that burke
is so young he was obviously influenced from outside sources to promote his
organic farming ideals. Not saying that is a bad thing but the key idea to
keep in mind is that he was exposed to something. He was exposed at a
young age and now that ideology is becoming a driving force in his
arguments. The fact that Birke has an understanding, a strong one at that,
of the issues of RFOs and GMOs at a young age will cause his eco identity to

become even higher level as he learns more and decides to take action. The
source of his identity was from his childhood, the fact that he was exposed to
it.
I believe I am more environmentally more conscious than the average
college student. I owe a large part to my mother who has always
exemplified the importance of recycling and conservation of water. She once
even called round table pizza demanding they put covers beneath the pizza
in the pizza boxes so the grease wouldnt spill into it thus making it
unrecyclable. Another influence I have is my grandfather, who at his core
would be classified as an environmentalist. Both those influences have
made me extremely conscious to a lot of things like properly recycling, not
leaving lights on thus not as much energy needs to be generated. As I
mentioned before none of my roommates know how to properly recycle, I am
trying my best to show them. I believe I do have a degree of Eco Identity,
and after listening to the ted talks it has inspired me to research back yard
farming.