THE DEAN'S MUSINGS
As I read more about issues relating to our environment--energy use, climate change, water, etc.--I am torn between being inspired to work harder to conserve and protect and being overwhelmed by the scope of the problem. After all, most of the data point to 2050 as the general period when things could get terribly worse. If I live to be 100-years-old, I may see the beginnings of the dire consequences of the planet's energy-consuming, water-wasting ways, but I will miss the collapse of civilization as we know it. Of course, were I to give up on conservation and preservation because I would not experience the worst of the effects, that would be a horribly selfish attitude, leaving future generations to "stew in the juices" that I helped to create.
It seems inevitable that over the next several decades we will face serious environmental challenges. However, if we take the issue of "sustainability" seriously now, we will be better prepared to meet those challenges, and we will lessen the adverse effects of our presence on Earth. And, my younger friends, you should be very interested in this because you will live well into the latter part of this century. Thus, regardless of one's chosen discipline and career, sustainability must become a key facet of one's life.
We need solid scientific thinking to analyze our situation, understand the interactions of our biological and chemical systems, model future outcomes of current practices, and formulate effective changes that will avoid unintended consequences. We need thoughtful humanistic thinking to remind us of what we have done in the past ("those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it"), help us to retain (or regain?) our identity as human beings, and guide us in communicating the problems and solutions effectively. We need creative social scientific thinking to build organizational structures that promote long-term sustainability, shape social systems that value mutual support, and muster the political forces to establish new policies for a better future.
I am very pleased that Maryville College hosts an active environmental movement, with a major devoted to the field, a college committee, and a student committee. Many dedicated individuals among the faculty, staff, and student body continually remind us of our local and global responsibilities to minimize our environmental footprint. The college (at a variety of levels) has already taken many positive steps to make our corner of the planet cleaner and more "earth-friendly." There is much more to be done. For example, we should forswear the use of bottled water. Did you know that the manufacture of a one-liter plastic bottle requires five liters of water? When we drink bottled water, we pay a company an exorbitant price for a public resource, which is delivered to us by truck in plastic bottles that have already used five times as much water as is in the bottle itself.
Many more simple actions exist that will make a difference. If you see an issue to be addressed, please let us know. This is our only home; we must care for it.
It seems inevitable that over the next several decades we will face serious environmental challenges. However, if we take the issue of "sustainability" seriously now, we will be better prepared to meet those challenges, and we will lessen the adverse effects of our presence on Earth. And, my younger friends, you should be very interested in this because you will live well into the latter part of this century. Thus, regardless of one's chosen discipline and career, sustainability must become a key facet of one's life.
We need solid scientific thinking to analyze our situation, understand the interactions of our biological and chemical systems, model future outcomes of current practices, and formulate effective changes that will avoid unintended consequences. We need thoughtful humanistic thinking to remind us of what we have done in the past ("those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it"), help us to retain (or regain?) our identity as human beings, and guide us in communicating the problems and solutions effectively. We need creative social scientific thinking to build organizational structures that promote long-term sustainability, shape social systems that value mutual support, and muster the political forces to establish new policies for a better future.
I am very pleased that Maryville College hosts an active environmental movement, with a major devoted to the field, a college committee, and a student committee. Many dedicated individuals among the faculty, staff, and student body continually remind us of our local and global responsibilities to minimize our environmental footprint. The college (at a variety of levels) has already taken many positive steps to make our corner of the planet cleaner and more "earth-friendly." There is much more to be done. For example, we should forswear the use of bottled water. Did you know that the manufacture of a one-liter plastic bottle requires five liters of water? When we drink bottled water, we pay a company an exorbitant price for a public resource, which is delivered to us by truck in plastic bottles that have already used five times as much water as is in the bottle itself.
Many more simple actions exist that will make a difference. If you see an issue to be addressed, please let us know. This is our only home; we must care for it.
Jeff Fager
Vice President and Dean of the College
Vice President and Dean of the College
