Ecology is the study of the interactions between living things and environment.

As such actions
of living things mainly human is interconnected and will affect the environment both in a small
scale and at a global scale. Recent development in technology and health science has given birth
to a high quality living standard where most human are able to lead a comfortable life compared
to the olden days. Although this looks positive, this development has brought upon many
environmental issue which is now faced by the world community. As such, many sub-field of
ecology can be used to solve or better prevent these problems from further deterioration. These
global environmental issues are to be handled wisely before it consumes us and lead to the
extinction of human race in the very end.
Firstly, population ecology can be applied wisely to handle the main environmental issue
which is global warming. Population ecology is the study of the dynamics of a population, its
interaction with the environment and how certain factors can affect the population size. Global
warming is the increasing of temperature of the earth due to the layer of carbon dioxide trapping
the heat in the atmosphere. This phenomenon is mainly known as greenhouse effect. The reason
why there is excess carbon dioxide in the air is because of the lack of trees or specifically its
process of photosynthesis which also produces oxygen, the vital gas of our life. There are 2
populations which are mainly concerned here. Firstly, the human population should be controlled
or at least be handled properly as exponential population growth of humans demands more
natural resources. The increase on human population increases food demand and as such more
trees are cut down for agriculture and resource to make more facilities. Second, the population of
tress are to be studied so that the factors which promote tree population growth may be
artificially generated. When these two factors are taken care of, theoretically the population of
trees would increase and through photosynthesis less carbon dioxide will be in the air. Thus the
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would decrease and heat would not be trapped as much
anymore slowly decreasing and finally eliminating the threat of global warming.
The next sub-field of ecology which we may discuss is paleoecology which can help
restore loss of biodiversity and landscapes which are facing destruction like the ice blocks at the
poles which are melting rapidly increasing the water level continuously. Firstly, paleoecology is
basically the study of the ecology of the past from both geological and biological fossils
excavated from the Earth. As the rapid global development brings about much harm to the world,
changes are needed so that the environment from the past can be restored and balance may be
maintained to ensure survival of all organisms. Thus the study of the past shows which
phenomenon causes an environment to form as it is now. For an example, we may research on
which type of climate preserves the continental ice at the poles to stay as it is for millions of
years and which change brought upon its melting. This study would help us recognise, analyse
and possibly produce artificial climate control to revert the climate back to its original state. The
technology for artificial weather modification exists now and the most known modification is
cloud seeding. Thus restoration of previous environment may help the surviving population of
animals or specifically species to get back to its normal life cycle and recuperate back from near
extinction. Thus, side effects or environmental issues such as increase of water level may also be
reversed as the water at the poles starts to freeze up again due to ideal conditions provided by
advanced technology. Thus even the human race can be saved from extinction and the destroyed
biodiversity may recover and go back to how it was. Although it is far-fetched and requires lots
of time and financial support this may be the way to realistically reverse time as the world
would go back to how it was before loss of biodiversity emerge as a major issue concerning the
attention of the world population.
Physiological ecology is the study of the adaptation of a certain organism towards
changes in its environment. Physiological ecology could help handle one of the major problem of
the global population which is famine or simply the lack of food due to the exponential increase
in human population. There are many types of climate around the world and recently increased
carbon dioxide has brought upon a variety of climate change hampering the development of
agriculture are natural disasters usually destroy crops in its way. Nearly 50% of crop from few
countries are destroyed due to climate change and natural disasters. Thus the study of plant
physiology could help us to selectively breed crop which are able to withstand recurring disasters
such as flood. This can be done by studying physiology of different plants which are exposed to
extremes of nature such as cactus which can withstand high temperature and try to artificially
breed it with the crops to include this trait in crops. Thus the study of much physiology of plants
may help us collect traits and combine it with the crop with advanced technology so that the crop
may retain its usual form and taste but are able to withstand forces of nature such as flood and
drought. This could also help yield in more crop which are quicker to grow and may even
withstand pest attack thus reducing the use of pesticides and decreasing water pollution on the
go. Although this requires the knowledge of genetic engineering without the knowledge of plant
physiology the best selective trait may not be found. Thus we can also handle overpopulation and
decrease famine from this world as both the destruction of natural disasters and climate change
can be decreased of optimally negated by the crops to sustain continuous food supply.
REFERENCES
1. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alon-tal/overpopulation-is-still-t_b_3990646.html
2. http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1677-04202006000400001
3. http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/09-1641.1
4. http://www.archive.india.gov.in/citizen/agriculture/index.php?id=29
5.