Population Dynamics
What are the four historical revolutions associated with human growth and development on a global scale?
1. Agricultural
2. Industrial
3. Medical
4. Green
What are the four key processes/factors contributing to biodiversity decline?
-Habitat Loss
-Invasive Species
-Pollution
-Overexploitation
What defines Sustainability according to the Bruntland Report?
The ability to meet current human needs without compromising the needs of future generations.
Satisfying physical, social and environmental factors in a way that does not place an undue burden on future generations.
What is an HDC and LDC?
Give an example of each.
HDC: Highly Developed Country
HDC: US, Japan, Germany, Norway, etc.
LDC: Less Developed Country
LDC: Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, Afghanistan
Define: Replacement Fertility Rate relative to global population dynamics
Replacement Fertility Rate: is the total fertility rate at which women give birth to enough babies to sustain population levels. According to the UN Population Division, a total fertility rate (TFR) of about 2.1 children per woman is called replacement-level fertility.
Above 2.1: Population growth
Below 2.1: Population decline
What are three possible, negative consequences of population growth?
-Environmental degradation
-Hunger
-Health Issues
-Persistent poverty
- Economic stagnation
What are the 5 biogeochemical cycles on the planet?
1. Carbon
2. Nitrogen
3. Phosphorus
4. Sulfur
5. Hydrogen (Water)
What is a systems-based approach to modeling physical and global phenomena?
System: set of components interacting to function as a whole.
-Nature-Society
-Human-Environment
Avoiding singular approaches (species, policies, etc.)
What are three characteristics of an HDC?
1. Industrialized economic productivity
2. Low population growth, birth rates, infant mortality
3. Low fertility rate, near replacement level
How does loss of biodiversity affect sustainability?
Loss of biodiversity reduces ecosystem resilience, decreases resources available for humans, disrupts ecological processes, and undermines the ability of ecosystems to provide services necessary for human survival.
Give two examples of effective strategies for slowing population growth.
-Raise average level of education
-Increase $$ allotted to public health & family planning services
-Education on methods of birth control
-Politics and laws incorporating comprehensive social policy, human rights
What are the four key ecosystem services we as humans rely on to exist? Describe & give an example for each.
-Supporting: Soil formation, Biodiversity, Primary production, Habitat
-Provisioning: Food and fiber, Wood, Clean Water, Medicinal
-Regulating: Climate and Regulation, Pollination of Crops, Store Carbon, Control Flooding
-Cultural: Inspiration, Recreation, Education, Aesthetic
What is the main difference between the ideas of preservation and conservation?
What individuals led each philosophical approach to land management in the late 1800s?
Conservation is the sustainable use and management of natural resources including wildlife, water, air, and earth deposits, both -- renewable and non-renewable.
Preservation, in contrast to conservation, attempts to maintain in their present condition areas of the Earth that are so far untouched by humans.
Conservation denotes an effort to sustain a space or resource for perpetual use. Preservation denotes a fortress-like approach to nature, walling off human influence in order to maintain pristine “wilderness”.
John Muir: Preservation
Gifford Pinchot: Conservation
Give an example of a sustainable practice that could help manage resources in an LDC.
Examples include community-based forest management, sustainable agriculture techniques that conserve soil and water, or renewable energy use like solar power to reduce reliance on nonrenewable fuels.
Define: Carrying Capacity (k) and how it relates to population dynamics
-Max # of individuals an environment can support indefinitely, without environmental impact.
-Environmental constraints & human values affect (k)
- Malthusian Theory of Crisis: Surpassing (k) leads to famine
Give two examples of trends, spatial distributions, and/or leading indicators of modern population patterns?
-Fertility transition brings about population stability.
-Requires changes in social & cultural factors that influence TFR
Characteristics:
--Reduced infant & childhood mortality rates
--Reduced need for children as workers
--Higher status of women – educational opportunity, employment outside home, property ownership
--Cheap and widespread access to contraceptives
--Security in old age via social security programs or retirement savings
What are biodiversity hotspots and what is their relevance to supporting biological life on the planet? List 3 locations as examples of biological hotspots
-Biological environments home to many endemic species.
--Madagascar, New Zealand, Western Ghats & Sri Lanka, Brazil’s Cerrado, Caucausus Region
CASE STUDY EXAMPLE: Describe some of the system impacts in the Aral Sea/Sahel disasters.
- World’s 4th largest inland water body
- Irrigation: 5 to 7.9 million hectares
- 10% of size (2007)
- Destroyed marine ecosystems
- Removed freshwater source for surrounding communities
Systematic, catastrophic ecological disaster
What are the four stages of the demographic transition model and explain a characteristic of each stage? (ex: birth rate / death rate increase or decrease)
1. Preindustrial: Agricultural economy, LDC conditions, high birth rate/death rate, lower life expectancy
2. Transitional: Advancing from agrarian society, B/D rates begin to slow, life expectancy increases
3. Industrial: HDC status; stabilizing B/D rates & life expectancy
4. Postindustrial: HDC, B/D rates decline, life expectancy (sometimes) declines due to personal choices!
Why is the concept of ecological footprint important in discussions about sustainability?
The ecological footprint measures the amount of land and resources an individual or population uses, helping assess whether resource use exceeds the Earth's capacity to regenerate them—key to evaluating sustainability.
Describe some differences between the MDGs and SDGs. Give two examples of how they differ.
-Millennium Development Goals (MDG's) were to be achieved by 2015. Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's) are to be achieved by 2030.
-MDG: 8 goals. SDG: 17 goals
- MDG has a focus to end poverty. SDG has a focus on sustainability and social equality.
What are three components/metrics used to assess biological species variability?
1. Genetic diversity
2. Species Richness
3. Ecosystem diversity
Which fossil fuels are more likely to be consumed in HDCs than LDCs, and why?
Petroleum/natural gas in HDCs: More transportation demand, urbanized populations
Coal, biomass in LDCs: Agrarian societies, also affordability of coal compared to oil/gas energy
What is the IPAT equation? Explain each variable. Give an example from course material where an increase or decrease in one factor value can lead to changes in overall environmental conditions.
I = P x A x T
I = Overall Impact (Different for HDC/LDCs)
P = Population: Growth/decline determines demand of existing/limited resources
A = Affluence: Ability to access/pay for resources, mitigate negative effects
T = Technology: Use of technological advancements/tools to increase efficiency, mitigate impacts, possibly increase pollution/damages too