One of our assignments was to prepare for a United Nations style debate, and there were 14 pairs, each assigned a country. Me and Hannah got Columbia. Now, Columbia is not the most advanced country in the world, nor is it the safest, but it seems to have a grip on most things, like disease and the economy is taking a turn for the better. Being a UN style debate, it was going to be tough, talking about the country and what its sustainable development goals are, and then being asked questions about what we have said or about the country itself. Preparing it was tough, we managed to work as a team and collect facts about the country but getting information about its sustainable development goals were a bit more tough, as they were all in Spanish, and me or Hannah not being able to speak any Spanish, were not able to translate. But we looked at the facts and figures and recognised what we think the goals would be. After talking with a few people in other groups, it surprised me on how much people recognise sustainable development across the world. Even LEDCs (Less Economically Developed Countries, for anyone who hates Human Geography and didnt pay attention in a-level) had some goals drawn up and put in place to help save the planet.
Throughout the whole debate, i was nervous, safe to say, but whilst i was listening to other groups, i was astonished to see what other countries had in place. For example, Denmark was at the cutting edge of agricultural farming and recycling, and had many goals in place, which in the end, lost them the money because they were way in the lead with Sustainable Development, but if that was me, i would have given them a little bit more money to develop more goals and put them into place to make it a very sustainable country. I honestly felt i had let Hannah down from being such a pillock standing in front of 27 people and talking a load of random facts, which somewhere, had goals in there. I felt bad because everyone else had prepared better and i wish that i could have done more of that, and prepared what i was going to say when. Nerves got the better of me, and i think it got to Hannah as well.
The UN debate i thought was quite fun, we need more activities like that to keep us going, it is better than just reading off a powerpoint and taking notes. Geography is all about getting out there and exploring the world and what the world is about. I would be happy to do another UN style debate if they would let us, and give us better countries (sorry faith and greg, you did do your best, which we appreciate). Also whilst listening to everyone talk about their countries, it gave me an insight into countries that i had never even heard of. Places like the Solomon Islands and Belize, these countries were new to me, but once the representatives talked about them, it helped me picture what life would be like there. The whole debate was great as it helped bring people together more and get to know each other more, and it also gives us more charisma as we have to stand up and present what we have found in front of 27 people and i thought it was good, even though i was nervous. Activities are all about getting together and learning more, without being bored and write notes. We need more of these and if they do happen, i think Geography would be much more fun, as well as educational.
Thursday, 20 November 2008
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Recycling Today
Recycling is a very important thing nowadays. There are a lot of materials that people today throw out which are recyclable and made into something else that is useful. Im a big fan of recycling. Now that i have moved into a new life in University, it has made me realise how aware people are about recycling. When i first walked into my kitchen, i saw 3 bins. I was aware that one was for general waste as it had a black bin liner, but there were 2 others, a green and a blue one. I then noticed a poster on the wall about which materials to place in what bin and what not to put in there. I was amazed by how much can be recycled. A few years back and recycling was only just beginning and the bins were small when i was back home and as the awareness came about, the council had realised that recycling was becoming more popular so bigger bins were needed. When i went back home, it was recycling bin day and when the lorry went past, i was even more amazed to see more things can recycled, like glass. if you put glass in the recycling a few months ago, the council wouldnt have taken your rubbish and then within one week, the bin would be massively full. At least i now dont have to carry heavy bags full of glass to the bottle bank now.
Today in the Northamptonshire area, recycling rates have soared since the start of the century. There has been greater awareness of recycling all that you can so there is less landfill waste to deal with. Recycling helps create new products from old and this is great as it means that our landscape is less susceptible to eyesores like landfill. Over the whole of the Northamptonshire area there are variations which show that some places maybe doing more recycling than others, but the figures show that one third of all recycling in Northamptonshire is recycled. That is a pretty good figure but there are targets to make that even greater. With all this recycling, it helps the strain on getting raw materials to make things easier as the material is there, just in a different form. Also, the rates being high can also be down to the times in which the recycling is collected and this is like a ongoing operation which runs like clockwork. Supplies are always in demand and with collections every 2 weeks maximum, whoever wants this material, gets it in such a short amount of time.
But recycling has its flaws. There are many people out there who still do not recycle everything they can. Some ignore the recycling prospect and this can harm the figures, which seem to be going well. There have been many tv and paper adverts showing how much recycling can help society today. The government really needs to get the message across that would grab everyones attention, like a picture of what could happen if recycling doesnt happen. That would be a way of getting to people, showing how they are affecting future generations and then show what they could do about it as well.
In the lecture last week, we had a visitor from an organisation that helps look at waste management in business. I was shocked by the fact that legislation from the government stops companies from giving waste to other companies that may find it useful. It states that transporting any waste across to another company requires a licence and this can take ages with forms to fill etc. This is the kind of legislation that needs to be put down as it is hindering recycling rates and like the old saying goes: 'one man's rubbish is another man's treasure'.
But im happy with what society is doing to help keep resources in tact and how most people are seeing the benefits that recycling does and recycling. Just some laws need to be modified slightly and for everyone to really start looking at recycling what they can and get the most out of what we have today.
Today in the Northamptonshire area, recycling rates have soared since the start of the century. There has been greater awareness of recycling all that you can so there is less landfill waste to deal with. Recycling helps create new products from old and this is great as it means that our landscape is less susceptible to eyesores like landfill. Over the whole of the Northamptonshire area there are variations which show that some places maybe doing more recycling than others, but the figures show that one third of all recycling in Northamptonshire is recycled. That is a pretty good figure but there are targets to make that even greater. With all this recycling, it helps the strain on getting raw materials to make things easier as the material is there, just in a different form. Also, the rates being high can also be down to the times in which the recycling is collected and this is like a ongoing operation which runs like clockwork. Supplies are always in demand and with collections every 2 weeks maximum, whoever wants this material, gets it in such a short amount of time.
But recycling has its flaws. There are many people out there who still do not recycle everything they can. Some ignore the recycling prospect and this can harm the figures, which seem to be going well. There have been many tv and paper adverts showing how much recycling can help society today. The government really needs to get the message across that would grab everyones attention, like a picture of what could happen if recycling doesnt happen. That would be a way of getting to people, showing how they are affecting future generations and then show what they could do about it as well.
In the lecture last week, we had a visitor from an organisation that helps look at waste management in business. I was shocked by the fact that legislation from the government stops companies from giving waste to other companies that may find it useful. It states that transporting any waste across to another company requires a licence and this can take ages with forms to fill etc. This is the kind of legislation that needs to be put down as it is hindering recycling rates and like the old saying goes: 'one man's rubbish is another man's treasure'.
But im happy with what society is doing to help keep resources in tact and how most people are seeing the benefits that recycling does and recycling. Just some laws need to be modified slightly and for everyone to really start looking at recycling what they can and get the most out of what we have today.
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