Share and Voice:Fourth Anual City-Wide Spring Sweep

So today I was trying to pay some of my bills when I ran across this really cool add in my Comfort Systems bill.

This add brings up the great question..."What do you do with sand that is plowed up onto your sidewalks?". The add continues to explain that raking or sweeping sand into the street is bad for our streams because anything that is on our streets ends up in creeks. All of this water ends up in Lake Superior. The add mentions some of the main problems with sand and grit ending up in the water. "The sand and grit fills in and destroys habitat for fish, insects and aquatic life; sediment clouds streams...which means that trout cannot see their food; and sand and grit carries other pollutants like oil, grease, and nutrients".

So here is the Solution: Participate in this Fourth Annual City-Wide Spring Sweep!

When: During Spring Cleaning. (Early April through May)
Where: Sidewalks, boulevards, gutters and ditches around your home
What: A community effort to sweep up sand and dirt
Why: Protect our streams and Lake Superior
How: Collect sand and grit and bring it to a neighborhood Road Sand Collection Site

To find a drop off site near you call 218-730-4130, or come find me and I can let you look at the brochure for possible drop of sites.

PLEASE join me in the Fourth Annual City-Wide Spring Sweep! I had no idea that sand and grit was bad for the environment, so why not do something about it. Use the collection sites that they have created for this issues, and try to make our lakes safer and cleaner.

The add is for the stream protection project and is brought you by the City of Duluth and the South St. Louis County Soil and Water Conservation District, through funding from the Great Lakes Commission.


The Western Lake Superior Sanitation District was also mentioned in this add to help with any of your other sanitation needs.

If you want to learn more about where you can recycling, garbage, wastewater, polution, composting, and more environmental issues, please check out the Western Lake Superior Sanitation District homepage at: http://www.wlssd.duluth.mn.us/


Have a Great Day!!!

Advocacy Project: Issue Overview

Introduction

-The issue that I want to discuss is consequences of second hand smoke, especially on children. For my advocacy project I would like to ask that new legislation be made in Minnesota to protect children from second hand smoke in cars. There have been some great steps being made towards protecting people from second hand smoke. According to American's for Nonsmokers' Rights (ANR), second hand smoking can have the following affects on children: low birth weight, higher rates of SIDS, cognitive impairments, respiratory problems, asthma, and other repercussions as an adult. This really proves the need for new legislation to be made in order to protect children from their parent's smoking. Some even view smoking around children as child abuse.

As of October 1, 2007 all indoor public areas have been made smoke free thanks to the Freedom to Breathe Act of 2007. Also, in a couple different states there are laws that ban smoking around foster children. Other states have even made laws against smoking with children in the car. Each state that has made a law of this type has slightly different consequences for breaking this law, and slightly different age limits of children that cannot be in the car with a parent who is smoking. I would really like for Minnesota to have a law like this.

Who is affected by the issue?

- I feel that children are affected the most by smoking that goes on in a car. In the research that I did on this issue I learned that children are more at risk from second hand smoke due to the fact that their lungs are still developing. This leads to more respiratory problems in their future.

-If a law is made to ban smoking in cars with children; children will be healthier, and have less medical problems. I realize that parents that currently smoke may have some issues with this new law, but I think that if they really care about their child's well being, they will accept this new law.

What are the consequences of the issue?

-I feel that the consequences of this issue are mostly positive. I think that a smoking ban for cars with children will not only positively affect the child' s health, but it will also positively affect the parent's health. This ban will most likely lead to the parents smoking a few less cigarettes a day. I realize that this ban will be a huge challenge for some parents, but I honestly feel that they will get over it.

-I think that this ban will also positively affect society. If less cigarettes are smoked; the air will be healthier. I also realize that cigarette companies may not like this ban because they may lose some sales.

What is the economic impact of the issue?

-I think that the economic costs of this issue would be less money coming into the economy from cigarette sales or even medical bills.

-I think that the economic benefits of this issue would be healthier people that will be able to work more.

What is the social impact of the issue?

-I think that the social costs of this issue would occur for people who smoke. They may not have the same social opportunities as they used to have.

-I think that the social benefits of this issue are healthier people.

What are the barriers?

-I think the main barrier to this problem is the parents of children who do smoke.

-In order to eliminate this barrier, the parents will need to either find other times and places to smoke, or figure out how to quit smoking.

-Quitting smoking would create many barriers for many people. There would be issues of money, time, childcare, and transportation. In order to get rid of a few barriers, maybe there could be free smoking cessation classes with child care provided.

What are the resources?

-We will need the support of the community and the State Senator. We will need legislation to be written by the Senator. In order to get the support of the Senator, we will need the people to write letters to her that show the importance of this issue. These letters will need to be well researched and written.

What is the history of this issue?

-There hasn't been any history on this particular issue in Minnesota, so that is why I am wanting new legislation to be written on this issue. Other states such as California, Maine, Louisiana, and Arkansas have already passed similar laws, and it has been very well taken.

Allies & Opponents

-People/Groups who would support this issue would be:Families of non-smokers, families of smokers (I read that even parents who smoke feel that this ban would be a good idea), and Non-Smokers' Rights Groups, such as ASH or ANR.

-People/Groups who would oppose this issue would be: Parents/Families of smokers and Smokers' Rights Groups, such as Minnesotans Against Smoking Bans and The Smokers Club.

My Recommendation

-I would really like to have Senator Amy Klobuchar propose some new legislation that would ban smoking in the car with children.

Have a Great Day!!!

Reflection: Weeks 11 and 12

It's FINALLY sunny!!! YAY!!! What a great start to this weekend!

The last two weeks of class have just flown by. During Week 11, we watched the documentary, "Unnatural Causes", in class. This documentary was incredibly interesting to me. The documentary basically explained that power, money, and economic ranking all relate to a person's health status. I did a review on this documentary, and loved it!!! This was by far my favorite documentary that we have watched in class. We then learned about the goals of Healthy People 2010 and found out that we were going to choose one, and find some Environmental Legislation, using THOMAS. We used that information to make our next advocacy post.

In Week 12, we talked more about our Advocacy Projects. We also were assigned Reading 20 from our book. This reading was about the fact that the hole in the ozone layer is closing. We had a great class conversation on Thursday about how we are used to hearing the bad about the environment, and that it is also really important to hear about the good that is coming from all of our hard work. If people start thinking that what they are doing isn't making a difference, they will eventually give up. I think that this article really brought our class' spirit up.

Earlier this week we received reusable cloth bags from Super One, so in class on Thursday we took a class picture and made a thank you note out of a recycled Super One paper bag. I think that the whole class had fun with that, I know I did.

Well, thanks for reading! I hope you all have a blast this weekend!!!!!

Have a Great Day!!!

Advocacy Project: Healthy People/THOMAS

The topic that I looked into was Tobacco Use.

Goal: Reduce illness, disability, and death related to tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke.

I am really concerned about second hand smoking, so I chose to focus on the areas in this goal that relate to smoking its effects on the outdoor and indoor environment that people live in.

From the Progress Quotient Chart I found the following progress on this goal:

section 27-10: Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke: nonsmokers 4+ years, has been met by 136%.

section 27-11: Smoke-free and tobacco-free schools, is 13% towards its target.

section 27-12: Worksite policies prohibiting smoking, is 6% towards its target.
section 27-13: Smoke-free indoor air laws:
a. Private workplaces are 8% towards the target

b. Public workplaces are 12% towards the target

c. Restaurants are 6% towards the target

d. Public transportation is 6% towards the target

e. Day care centers are 10% towards the target

f. Retail stores are 4% towards the target

i. Bars are 4% towards the target

To see the graphs for the goal's progress you can go to this link: Figure 27-1. Progress Quotient Chart for Focus Area 27: Tobacco Use

Progress

• All of the sections of my goal moved towards their target, and one of them even exceeded its goal.
  

Disparities-I found the following information from Healthy People 2010

• The Asian or Pacific Islander population had the best rate of working in worksites that prohibit smoking.
• Exposure to tobacco smoke at home among children showed persistent disparities by race and ethnicity and by income level.
  
• The Hispanic population had the best rate in 1998, with half as many Hispanic children aged 6 years and under exposed to tobacco smoke as black non-Hispanic and white non-Hispanic children were.
  
• Among populations by income, children in poor and near-poor families were twice as likely to be exposed to tobacco smoke as children in middle/high-income families were. Poor families have over 100% greater health disparity compared to high income families.
  
• Black non-Hispanics had 100% health disparitydifference for exposure to tobacco smoke at home in comparison with the best group Latinos or Hispanics.
• Black non-Hispanics also, increase their health disparity over 50% when it comes to exposure to environmental tobacco smoke.

Opportunities & Challenges

• None
  

Emerging Issues-I found the following information from Healthy People 2010

• Potentially Reduced Exposure Products (PREPS) deliver lower amounts of toxic, carcinogenic, or addictive agents to the user compared with conventional products.
• Youth obtaining tobacco from other sources as it becomes harder for youth to access tobacco from retail sources.
• Smokeless Tobacco-example: Hookah, can lead to use of other carcinogenic things.
• Internet Sale of Tobacco Products- weak or no age verification mechanisms.

Related Bill
I was not able to find any current national legislation relating to what I would like to advocate. I was looking for a bill on second hand smoke relief or smoke free homes and cars. I was unable to find any legislation on these topics through Dr. V.'s links, so I am going to do some research on my own, and find something I would like there to be legislation on. I am leaning towards a ban on smoking in the car with underage children. My next step is to contact my local representatives and ask them to propose new legislation on this issue.

I will be calling Minnesota Representative:Roger Reinert and Minnesota Senator: Yvonne Prettner Solon and ask them to create some legislation on this issue.


Have a Great Day!!!

Documentary Review: Unnatural Causes

The documentary that we watched this week was Unnatural Causes...is inequality making us sick? The section of this documentary that we watched was, "In sickness and in wealth". The main themes of this section were how jobs, wealth, etc.. affect our biology, and why some people get more sick than others and die sooner.

Summary
The documentary went around to four different neighborhoods in Louisville, Kentucky and interviewed someone who lived there to see what their life was like in that area. They first went to a North East neighborhood and interviewed a man named Jim Taylor. This area was a very high income area. The people who lived in this area were in the top 1% of income, which was more than the bottom 90% of people's incomes combined. Jim says that he feels safe in his neighborhood, and that there is no excess death in this area. The people in this area actually have a life expectancy that is two years over the national average.
Tonya was in the second neighborhood that this documentary looked at. This neighborhood was in southern Louisville, and was mainly middle class citizens. There was one thing that divided this neighborhood, and it was education. Apparently college graduates live two and a half years longer than people with just a high school diploma. College tuition keeps on increasing, so this division is a situation of money. Not everyone can afford going to college, therefore, people in this area have unequal lifespans. The people in this area will live four years less than the people in the really rich neighborhoods like Jim.
In West/Central Louisville, Cory was interviewed. This area was poor and had the median wealth of Louisville. In this area diseases sets in earlier, and people live six years less than the people in the really rich neighborhoods like Jim. In this neighborhood there aren't many businesses, all there is are liquor stores and fast food places. People who lose their jobs may need to leave home in order to find another. This is really bad because home ownership builds financial security.
The last neighborhood that was visited was farther West in Louisville. Mary, who lived there, never graduated from high school and is living at, or below the poverty level. There is also a lot of crime in this area. People who live in this area will live nine years less than people in the richest neighborhoods like Jim. She lives off of social security and eats what can fit into her budget. She often eats only one meal a day in order to make her money last. Many people in this area are unemployed and feel like they have no control over how their lives are going to turn out. Here is an example of a problem that occurs in an area like Mary is living in. Mary currently needs medicine to be able to work, she needs to get health coverage in order to afford her medicine, but she needs to have a job in order to receive health coverage. This is a vicious circle, and there really isn't any way that she can stop this from happening.

The rest of this documentary explains the main reasons for unequal health in our nation. Life expectancy relies on resources available to people, like education, money, or your economic ranking. Social class influences events that impinge on people's lives. Poverty decreases control of one's life. No control leads to stress which leads to the body releasing cortosol (which puts your body on alert for survival), which increases heart rate and blood pressure, which accelerates aging and leads to an early death. Also, the higher demand of job you have, the more stress you have. There is more crime in poor areas, which also leads to a more stressful lifestyle. The documentary mentioned that the differences that people have are not natural, they come out of social policies that produce inequality. There is a lack of equal access to resources. Also, the more education someone has, the longer they live. I have heard all of these things before, but I have never actually seen proof of why this is. This documentary was really moving to me because of that. It really made me think of how lucky I am for the lifestyle that I have.

What Challenged My
Thinking
The first thing that really struck me was that we always see America representing good health, yet we spend tons of money on medical care, and still live shorter and sicker lives than any other industrialized country. We are ranked 30th for life expectancies, and more babies die here than in really poor places. Also, there are 47 million people in America that don't have health care coverage.

People who are in the top 1% of income have more money than the bottom 90% of people's incomes combined. I think that that is ridiculous.

I found the following to be really interesting. People who are poor and smoke are worse off than people who are rich and smoke. The same thing is true for stress. If two people are eating the same exact diet, but one is really stressed, the person who is stressed will form more plaque in their blood vessels, which will lead to an earlier death. This really explains why health is unequally distributed. Finally, black people that live just as well as white people, will still live less long. The reason for this is discrimination. Discrimination puts someone on constant guard, which leads to higher stress, which leads to an unhealthy lifestyle.

The more education, money, and status you have; the less stress you have, which means that you release less cortosol; which leads to less immune issues, which leads to better health. This proves how people who are poor and less educated have such a lower life expectancy. The relation between these traits are incredible.

The thing that I find really sad is that on top of the fact that rich people have less overall stress, they also have the money and resources available to reduce the stress that they do have. They have the time to exercise, the money to go on vacations, the money to eat healthier, etc.. This really is unfair becuase the people who have the most stress, the poor, don't have the resources they need in order to reduce their stress. This means that they most likely have at least twice the amount of stress that wealthier people have, which means that they will live relatively shorter, less quality lives.


Additional Resources
I found an article called, "Health, Income, and Inequality", written by, Angus Deaton. This article was written through the NBER (National Bureau of Economic Research).
http://www.nber.org/reporter/spring03/health.html#N_*_

You can also visit the following website to learn more about the documentary, "Unnatural Causes".
http://www.unnaturalcauses.org/video_clips.php

Have a Great Day!!!

Reflection: Weeks 9 and 10

These last two weeks have gone super fast and have been pretty easy. We branched out from our regular documentary viewing and article reading, and started to learn about advocacy and good picture taking techniques. This was really interesting to me, because I recently have been really interested in advocacy, but haven't taken the chance to learn more about it. I really enjoy speaking about controversial issues and speaking up for people who don't have a voice, so I think I will be really great at this advocacy project that is coming up.

So in week 9 we learned about advocacy and then did our first post for our advocacy project. Our assignment was to look up our political leaders and find their contact information and political affiliation. I thought that this post would be super easy, but finding our political leaders was harder for me than I thought it would be. I really enjoyed doing this assignment because I got to learn who some of our more local leaders are, and I had no idea who they were before this project.

In week 10 we did not have class. I really enjoyed this, just because I think that all of us are starting to get really burnt out, so I think that we all just needed a little break. Now I feel recharged and ready to hit these last six weeks hard. During this week we had our Photo Essay Eye Opener due. Our assignment was to pick an environmental issue and describe the problem through photos. This project was really hard for me because I am not a very creative person. But after I finished this assignment I felt really proud of myself, so I am really glad that we had this assignment and that I had this chance to push myself.

Overall I really enjoyed these last two weeks!


Have a Great Day!!!

Eye Opener: Photo Essay

Ok...so I chose to do my photo essay on a problem that has been bugging me for the last two years. For the last two years I have been buying my own groceries, and have noticed how many plastic bags accumulate from my roommates and my own shopping trips. By the end of the semester we have accumulated a ridiculous amount of bags. Now here is the problem...where do you get rid of the bags??? You can't recycle these bags, so it seems that your only option is to toss the bags in the trash, but then they are filling up our landfills. There is one other solution, but you need to have time, and a car to use it. This option is bringing all of your plastic bags to your local Cub Foods, where they have a recycling bin for plastic bags. It is so wonderful that we have that option...but I am wondering how many people actually choose to save all of their plastic bags and then drive all the way out to their local Cub Foods to recycle their bags. I think that there should be more places where people can recycle their plastic bags.



My photo essay restates what I have just described above. I hope you enjoy it!!!


This is how the problem starts...just one small shopping trip to the grocery store.

There are just two bags....harmless...right????

But now all of my roommates have gone shopping...

Now here is a whole semesters worth of plastic bags that my roommates and I have accumulated.


There are so many bags. I need to get rid of them somehow.

I don't want to throw them in the trash.

I can't recycle them.

So what am I going to do???? I am going to pack up my car with all of my bags and go to my local Cub Foods where I can drop them off.





This is the recycling bin for all of your plastic bags.

This is what the recycling bin says.

These are all of my bags in front of the recycling bin. I am going to try to do my part to keep the landfills less full, and recycle my bags here.



I hope that you all join me and start bringing your grocery bags to your local Cub Foods! Join me in making this one small step to save the environment!


I recieved consent from the manager at Duluth's local Cub Foods to take these picture!


Have a Great Day!!!

Advocacy Project: My Political Representatives

Here are the Political Representatives of Duluth, Minnesota:


President: Barack Obama
Democratic Party

Contact Information

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461


U.S. Senator: Amy Klobuchar
Democratic Party

Contact Information

302 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Main Line: 202-224-3244
Main Fax: 202-228-2186
Toll Free: 1-888-224-9043


U.S. Representative: James L. Oberstar
Democratic Farmer Labor Party

Contact Information

D.C. Office
2365 Rayburn HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 225-6211

Duluth Office
231 Federal Building
Duluth, MN 55802
(218) 727-7474


Governor: Tim Pawlenty
Republican Party

Contact Information

Office of the Governor
130 State Capitol
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55155

Telephone: (651) 296-3391
Toll Free: (800) 657-3717
Facsimile: (651) 296-2089

E-mail: tim.pawlenty@state.mn.us

Minnesota Senator: Yvonne Prettner Solon
Democratic Farmer Labor Party

Contact Information

Capitol Office: 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Capitol Building, Room G-9
St. Paul, MN 55155-1606
651.296.4188


Minnesota Representative:Roger Reinert
Democratic Farmer Labor Party

Contact Information

429 State Office Building

100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
651-296-4246

E-mail: rep.roger.reinert@house.mn

St. Louis County Board President:Commissioner Steve O'Neil

Contact Information

2nd District
Room 208
100 N. 5th Avenue West
Duluth, MN 55802

(218) 726-2359


Duluth Mayor: Don Ness
Democratic Farmer Labor Party

Contact Information

Mayor's Office
Room 402, 411 West First Street
Duluth, MN 55802

Phone: (218) 730-5230
Fax: (218) 730-5904

e-mail:dness@duluthmn.gov




Thanks for reading,

Have a Great Day!!!

Reflection: Weeks 7 and 8

Wow...another two weeks have gone by. This class is still really interesting to me. I am learning about so many different environmental issues. Before this class, I thought of environmental issues as recycling, air pollution, conserving electricity and alternative forms of power. I never really thought about plastic factories, chemical spills, water privatization, cosmetics, etc... We covered these topics these last two weeks throughout our readings, class assignments, and the documentaries that we watched in class.

During week 7 we were assigned Reading 16: Ill Winds: The Chemical Plant Next Door. This reading was about life in a small rural town and the results of having a chemical plant near by. This was really interesting to me because I haven't lived in a small town, and I have always wondered why people just don't leave if things are so bad. Ii have a better understanding of their lives now. We also watched the documentary, "Green", in class this week. This documentary was about "cancer alley". This documentary was really hard to watch because it showed how horrible our government is and how people are getting sick or hurt because of it. This is just really upsetting to me. We also did an Eye Opener on the environmental effects of one of our favorite cosmetic items. This was really interesting because I have never really thought about how my cosmetics effect the earth.

Week 8 was a little less busy. We were assigned to read Reading 31: Privatizing Water. This article was about how water privatization is starting to become a larger part of our world. The article mentioned the pros and cons of water privatization, and why certain areas would be benefited by this option. We watched half of the documentary, "Thirst", this week, which was about the water privatization issue that we had just read about. The second half of the documentary didn't work, so we spent the class period talking about environmental issues. I really thought that that was a fun way to mix things up.

Overall, I really enjoyed these last two weeks. Thanks for reading, and I hope you guys have a great spring break!!!

Have a Great Day!!!

Share and Voice: Top 10 Ways to be Green

Hey guys! I realize this isn't the most creative Share and Voice ever, but I do feel that it is an important one for everyone to know about. I am surprised that no one has beat me to something this simple. So here goes... I decided to find out what the top 10 ways to be green are. I typed this into Google, and got lots of responses, but the one I liked the best was by Yahoo. Their Top 10 Ways to be Green are as follows:

1. Unplug or Shut off Appliances
2. Use Less Water
3. Switch to Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
4. Choose Products With Less Packaging
5. Buy Organic and Local Foods
6. Drive Less
7. Plant a Tree
8. Recycle More
9. Switch to "Green" Power via Your Local Utility Company
10. Spread the Word

Please check this website out to get more information on these ten ways to be green.

http://green.yahoo.com/global-warming/lime-68/top-ten-ways-to-be-green.html;_ylt=AneOyh1WnhwTal0s4SL2kAaGV8cX

Let me know which one is your favorite. Thanks for reading!!


Have a Great Day!!!

Review of Reading #31: Privatizing Water

Summary
This reading is written by Curtis Runyan, from the magazine, World Watch, in the January/February 2003 issue.

This article begins with an event that occurred on April 8, 2000. A Bolivian soldier shot into a crowd of protesters, and killed a 17 year old student. This angered the protesters, and so even more of them were injured. This protest took place in Cochabamba, Bolivia and was a "demonstration against the government's privatization of the city's water works"(McKinney, 128).

In September of 1999, Bolivia was threatened by the World Bank. The World Bank said that they would withhold 600 million in debt relief if they didn't privatize their water utilities. So, Cochabamba signed over its "aging, inadequate waterworks"(McKinney, 128). This lead to a 35% increase in water bills in just one month, and the service was still unreliable and infrequent. The book said that the water ran less than four hours a day in many parts of the city.(McKinney, 128) This really angered the people of Cochabamba, so a coalition of laborers, and environmentalists started a started a strike that shut down the city. All of this chaos led the government officials to call an emergency meeting to cancel the water contract and return the water control to the utility. The article says that the water troubles in Cochabamba are far from over.(McKinney, 128)

The rest of this article goes more in depth with the pros and cons of water privatization. Currently two large water corporations (Vivendi and Suez) are providing water to over 200 million people in more than 120 countries, and are each drawing annual revenues of roughly 10 billion dollars from water and waste water services. (McKinney, 129) More and more governments are turning to water privatization as a means to attract much needed investment in their water systems. (McKinney, 129) This article also explains that in 1992, at the Rio Earth Summit meeting, that water was recognized as a "economic good". (McKinney, 128) This has led to water being viewed more as a "profitable commodity rather than a human right in some areas"(McKinney, 128). The article mentions that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been pressuring countries to move to water privatization. Though, some cities are actually turning down large money bids from Suez, and controlling their own water.(McKinney, 129)

Since I learn better with lists than paragraphs, I am going to list the main pros and cons of Water Privatization for you. All of the below came straight from the book, McKinney pages 128-130.

PROS:
-Gives some governments the chance to attract the private capital and expertise needed to build and expand expensive water systems
-Helps connect the millions who currently make do without piped water.
-Provides equatable access to water for poor communities.
-Help improve efficiency and and productivity of water systems.
-Help utilities improve their services by providing the capital and expertise needed to, for example, repair leaks in water mains, expand connections to unserved communities, or improve billing systems.
-Help when governments are weak and cannot meet the basic water needs of their country/city.

CONS:
-Drastic rate increases
-Inadequate customer service
-Loss of local control and accountability
-Undermine conservation programs
-Degrade ecosystems through efforts to tap new water sources.
-Significant job cuts
-Fewer environmental safeguards
-Dropped conservation initiatives
-Halted service to poor or remote communities
-Companies are more motivated by profit than public service. This can leave poor and underserved communities neglected
-Weak governments are unable to provide the oversight and management functions necessary to protect public interests. This can lead to corruption.

My Thoughts

This reading was really interesting to me because I am honestly confused on whether or not their should be water privatization. There are many things about it that really rub me the wrong way, but then there are some things that seem extremely necessary. I think that it is really important that their is equal access to clean water for everyone, and that is one of the things that water privatization will help with. Another thing that really struck me in this article was that many poorer communities are paying much more for safe drinking water than we are. That just doesn't seem fair. I would like to end my review with a great question asked by Sandra Postel, of the Global Water Policy Project. She asked, "How do we mobilize the capital needed to put in the pumps, pipes, and wells that are needed, and do it in a way that is fair, affordable, and environmentally sound?"(McKinney, 130).

Vocabulary

World Bank-an international bank established in 1944 to help member nations reconstruct and develop, esp. by guaranteeing loans: a specialized agency of the United Nations.

International Monetary Fund-an international organization that promotes the stabilization of the world's currencies and maintains a monetary pool from which member nations can draw in order to correct a deficit in their balance of payments: a specialized agency of the United Nations

Privatization-changing something from state to private ownership or control

Rio Earth Summit in 1992-sought to help Governments rethink economic development and find ways to halt the destruction of irreplaceable natural resources and pollution of the planet.

Martial Law-the body of law imposed by the military over civilian affairs (usually in time of war or civil crisis); overrides civil law

Consortium-a combination of financial institutions, capitalists, etc., for carrying into effect some financial operation requiring large resources of capital.

Coalition-a combination or alliance, esp. a temporary one between persons, factions, states, etc.

Rescinded-To make void; repeal or annul.

Commodification-to turn into an article of trade

Global Water Policy Project-aims to promote the preservation and sustainable use of Earth’s fresh water through research, writing, outreach, and public speaking

Municipal-of or pertaining to a town or city or its local government

Infrastructure-the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organization.

Paternalistic-the system, principle, or practice of managing or governing individuals, businesses, nations, etc., in the manner of a father dealing benevolently and often intrusively with his children

Subsidiary-serving to assist or supplement

Lobbying-to try to influence the actions of (public officials, esp. legislators).

Provision-the providing or supplying of something, esp. of food or other necessities.

Breach-the act or a result of breaking; break or rupture.

Extra Links

I found more information about Water Privatization on Wikipedia, and I found a Water Privatization Overview article on the Public Citizen Webpage.


Have a Great Day!!!

Share and Voice: Blog on Award

So I just got the blog on award for my last share and voice about paper towels vs. hand dryers! I received this award from Dr. V. for the Health Educator in me. I had a question, so I found answers. So now it is my turn to pass on the Blog on Award. There were a lot of really great posts, but one that I thought was really cool and also demonstrated good Health Educator qualities was Hannah's Share and Voice on Air Pollution and Environmental Justice. I really liked her post because it related really well with the Documentary that we just watched in class, "Green". Her post shows the health disparities that low income and urban communities face. Please check out her post. It is really shocking! Great job Hannah!!!



Award Instructions

1. Leave a comment below so that I know you "picked up" the award.
   
2. Create a Share and Voice post that says you've received the award and indicate who the award is from (be sure to hyperlink).
3. Also indicate to whom you are going to pass on the award and why. Be sure to hyperlink the blogger (use main blog URL) and the blog title (use the specific URL for that blog post).
4. Copy and paste these instructions at the bottom of your post.
5. Publish the post.
6. Visit each blogger you've awarded and leave a comment telling them they've won.
7. Continue the process...

Have a Great Day!!!

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

For this Eye Opener I went onto the webiste, Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Database, to see how bad one of my main cosmetic products is for the environmetn. This website didn’t have my exact mascara color, but the information below is for the closest option. I currently wear Cover Girl – Very Black, Waterproof, Lash Blast Mascara. The website had waterproof, black brown Lash Blast Mascara. So here are my results from the website:





COVERGIRL LASH BLAST WATERPROOF VOLUME MASCARA, BLACK BROWN
last updated: 04/01/08 brand: Cover Girl by Procter & Gamble




SCORE
4
moderate hazard (out of 10)



BETTER PRODUCTS
13% of mascaras have lower concerns




INGREDIENT CONCERNS
Percentage of ingredients in this product that meet these criteria:

Ingredients in this product are linked to:
Cancer
Developmental/reproductive toxicity
Violations, restrictions & warnings
Allergies/immunotoxicity

Other concerns for ingredients used in this product: Persistence and bioaccumulation, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Multiple, additive exposure sources, Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Contamination concerns, Occupational hazards, Biochemical or cellular level changes

This manufacturer:
Compact for Safe Cosmetics signer
Conducts animal testing

Ingredients from packaging: Petroleum Distillates, Polyethylene, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Carnauba Wax - Copernicia Cerifera, Trihydroxystearin, Propylene Carbonate, Pentaerythrityl Hydrogenated Rosinate, Tall Oil Glycerides, Tocopheryl Acetate, Propylparaben, Panthenol, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Iron Oxides, Titanium Dioxide - May Contain, Ultramarines - May Contain, Talc - May Contain


Directions from packaging: Discard bottle cap.Replace with brush and close cap completely before first use.




Warnings from packaging: Safeguard Purity: Always handle/apply in a careful, sanitary manner.Don't share or add anything to mascara. Treat applicator in a hygienic manner, don't reuse in a new case.Don't use if change in odor or appearance occurs. Cap tightly.Do not dilute.Never use if your eye is irritated, infected, or scratched.In extreme cases, eye infections can lead to blindness.Consult an eye doctor immediately in case of injury.

I thought that this Eye Opener was really fun and interesting. I never really thought about how my mascara is effecting the environment. Now I know, how cool!!! The one thing that made me the most upset about my results was that my cosmetic item is tested on animals. That is reallly disappointing to me. :( I have never really looked at the packaging before to see if the product I am interested in tests on animals, so I guess I can maybe try to check the packaging next time. I really don't want to wear something that has been tested on animals.

One thing that I found incredibly intersting is that on the website, the same mascara, that wasn't waterproof, had a score of 8! That is twice the score of my waterproof mascara. How weird. I expected my waterproof mascara to be much worse becuase manufacturers need to add something to the original formula to make the mascara waterproof, so I just always assumed that that chemicle would be worse for the environment. So I guess this information makes me feel better about my choice.

Maybe in the future I will research some of my cosmetic items before buying them so that I can see how bad they are for the environment. Thanks for reading!!

Have a Great Day!!!