Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility

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The tough lives of coal miners and oil rig workers encourage readers to ponder America’s huge appetite for fossil fuel, and the story of Sputter the truck driver attests to our never-ending need for material goods. But it’s in investigating the landfill that Laskas really challenges our American lifestyle of use, waste, and ignorance. The dirt and rubbish guys and waste engineers may love their jobs, but the truth is we are using up resources and piling up stuff at a rate out of balance with the systems of nature.

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            Research and propose a footprint-reducing strategy that could be implemented at the individual, college, or city level.

Medium suggestions: essay, op ed, documentary

 

Present, with the goal of raising awareness or generating momentum, an environmental issue you feel passionately about. Consider the local and global ecological effects as well as human causes, costs, and complexities.

Medium suggestions: dance, monologue, poem, essay, multimedia presentation