GE ELEC 02:
People and the Earth’s Ecosystem
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION TO ECOLOGY, BIODIVERSITY, ECOSYSTEM,
CLIMATE, AND POPULATION GROWTH
A. Ecology

Is the study of interrelationship of different
organisms with each other and with their
environment.

The word Ecology came from the word Oikos
which means house, habitat, or place of living
and the word Logos means to study (Ernst
Haeckel, 1869)
Objectives of Ecology:
1.
It is important for humanity to understand its environment
because we have the ability to modify it through the use of
technology and through overexploitation of natural resources
as a result of greed or sheer pressure of numbers.
2.
Therefore, Ecology is more than just the understanding of the
interrelationships between organisms and their environment; it
also has social, political, economic, and technological
dimensions.
3.
It also is a study of evolutionary development of organisms,
the biological productivity, and energy flow in the natural
system.
4.
To develop mathematical models to relate interaction of
parameters and to predict the effects.
B. Biodiversity

It is the variety of life on earth and the essential
interdependence of all living things.

Scientist have identified more than 1.4 million species.
Ten of millions still remain unknown.
Three components of biodiversity:
1.
Diversity of Genes

It is the total number of genetic characteristics in the
genetic makeup of a species. It is distinguished from
genetic variability, which describes the tendency of
genetic characteristics to vary.
2. Diversity of number of species

monkeys, dragonflies, and meadow beauties are all
different species.
3. Variety of ecosystems

lakes, ponds, and rivers are all freshwater ecosystems.
Rocky coast, sand dune, estuary, salt marsh, coral reef
are all marine ecosystems
C. Ecosystem

is the system resulting from the interaction of all the living
and nonliving factors of the environment.
D. Climate

is an area’s long-term pattern of weather.
E. Population

Is all the individuals of a species that live in an area.

Three key features of population:
1.
Size - number of individuals in an area. This is
determined by the growth rate, which is how many
individuals are born versus how many die
2.
Density – measurement of population per unit area
or unit volume. Population density is the number of
individuals per unit of space.
3.
Dispersion – the spatial pattern of individuals in a
population relative to one another.
Chapter 2
THE ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES WE FACE
A. Large and growing human
population

The world population may stabilize toward the
end of the 21st century, given the family
planning efforts that are currently under way.
The fertility rate varies, from 1.7 in highly
developed countries to 4.5 in some of the less
developed countries.

Poverty is a condition in which people are unable to
meet their basic needs for food, clothing, shelter,
education or health. A family of five needed at least
Php 6,365 every month to meet the basic food
needs. Poverty is associated with a short life
expectancy, illiteracy, and inadequate access to
health services, safe water, and balanced nutrition.

Consumption – the human use of material and
energy.

Economic growth – the expansion in output of a
nation’s goods and services.
B. Gap Between Rich and Poor Countries
1.
2.
3.
Highly developed countries – with complex
industrialized bases, low rates of population growth,
and high per person incomes (18% of the world’s
population): United States of America, Canada, Most of
Europe, and Japan
Moderately developed countries – fewer opportunities
for income, education, and health care: Turkey, South
Africa, Thailand, and Mexico
Less developed countries – cheap, unskilled labor is
abundant, but capital investment is scarce: Haiti,
Bangladesh, Rwanda, and Laos

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Highly developed countries account for the lion’s share
of total resources consumed:
86% of aluminum used
76% of timber harvested
68% of energy produced
61% of meat eaten
42% of the fresh water consumed
These nations also generate 75% of the world’s pollution
and waste.
C. Types of Resources

Nonrenewable resources – natural resources that are
present in limited supplies and are depleted as they are
used.

Renewable resources – resources that are replaced by
natural processes and that can be used forever, provided
that they are not overexploited in the short term: trees,
fishes, fertile agricultural soil, and fresh water.
D. Sustainability and the Environment

Sustainability – achieved when the environment can function
indefinitely without going into a decline from the stresses that
human society imposes on natural system.
E. Environmental Science

This deals with the study of our environment, either globally
or locally, and its living and non- living components.
1.
Natural sciences – Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science,
Physics, and Medicine
2.
Social sciences – Economics, Political Science, Sociology,
History, Philosophy, and Ethics
3.
Other sciences – Mathematics, Statistics, Technology,
Business and Management, Law, Religion, Morality, and
Aesthetics

Goals of Environmental Science
1.
To develop a sustainable world – a world in which the
supply of food, water, building materials, clean air,
and other resources can sustain human population to
continue to exist indefinitely with a high standard of
living and health.
2.
To study environmental problems and issues; priorities
regarding acceptable environmental preservation of
natural species and habitats; freedom of nations to
do as they please, within their own potential
boundaries and issues on the quality of life, fairness,
and ethics.
Chapter 3
SUSTAINABILITY AND HUMAN VALUES
A. Sustainable Development

It is the economic growth that meet the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their needs.

Pollution and degradation of the environment are
exacerbated as individuals in a population consume
large amounts of resources.

Lifestyle - Include all goods and services bought for food,
clothing, housing, travel, recreation, and entertainment.
In evaluating consumption, all aspects of the product,
use, and disposal of these goods and services are taken
into account, including environmental costs.
B. Sustainable Consumption

It is the use of goods and services that satisfy basic human
needs and improve the quality of life but also minimize
resource use. At the global level, sustainable consumption
requires the eradication of poverty.

Voluntary simplicity – individual happiness and quality of
life are not necessarily linked to the accumulation of
material goods
C. Ethics

It is a branch of philosophy that is derived through the
logical application of human values.

Environmental ethics is a field of applied ethics that
considers the moral basis of environmental responsibility.

Environmental ethicists consider such issues as what role we
should play in determining the fate of Earth’s resources.
D. Environmental Worldviews
1.
Western worldview (expansionist worldview) - based on
human superiority over nature, the unrestricted use of natural
resources, and economic growth to manage an expanding
industrial base.
Anthropocentric
– emphasizes on the importance of
humans as the overriding concern in the grand scheme of
things. Earth could not support its more than 7 billion
humans if each consumed high level of goods and
services sanctioned by the Western worldview.
Frontier
attitude – desire to conquer and exploit nature as
quickly as possible.

Deep ecology overview - based on harmony with nature, a spiritual respect for life, and
the belief that humans and all other species have an equal worth.
 Biocentric
– views humans as one species among others. The world could support
only a fraction of the existing human population.
 Both human and nonhuman life have intrinsic value.
 Richness and diversity of life forms contribute to the flourishing of human and
nonhuman life on Earth.
 Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity except to satisfy vital
needs.
 Present human interference with the nonhuman world is excessive, and the situation
is rapidly worsening.
 The flourishing of human life and cultures is compatible with a substantial decrease in
the human population.
 Improving human well-being requires economic, technological, and ideological
changes.
 The ideological change is mainly that high quality of life need not be synonymous
with high levels of consumption.
 Those who subscribe to the foregoing points have an obligation to participate in the
attempt to implement the necessary changes.
E. Environmental Justice

This is the right of every citizen to adequate
protection from environmental hazards.

Eco-justice encompasses environmental
inequalities faced by low-income minority
communities.
F. Overall Plan for Sustainable Living
1.
Eliminate poverty and stabilize the human
population
2.
Protect and restore Earth’s resources
3.
Provide adequate food for all people
4.
Mitigate climate change
5.
Design sustainable cities