Spring Break
City talks environment
Student Union hosts 'Sustainability for Dummies'
Jesse Kimbrel
Issue date: 4/22/08 Section: News
Three representatives from the City of San Jose's Environmental Services Department led the discussion "Sustainability for Dummies," in the Costanoan Room inside of the Student Union on Monday afternoon.
Shayna Hirshfield opened up the sustainability conversation in front of about 15 people by explaining that sustainability comes from the American Indian idea that people shouldn't do things now that will hurt them later.
"We need to replenish our resources at the same rate we use them," said the San Jose environmental department's Linden Skjeie, who is also an SJSU graduate.
"If you think about it in terms of a checking account, when you keep using and using your resources faster than you can create new ones, eventually all your money will be gone," Skjeie said.
Hirshfield said that every major ecosystem in the world is in decline due to the lack of sustainability on Earth.
"In the past hundred years, the world's sea levels have rose four to eight inches," said Jennifer Seguin, a representative for the Environmental Services Department.
By 2050 the world will have an estimated 9.1 billion people, Skjeie said.
As of April 21, 2008, the world's population was more than 6.6 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Web site.
She said the population growth is starting to slow down because some countries have implemented family planning laws and that AIDS has slowed down growth as well.
The past 50 years took a large toll on the Earth's resources because the world's population grew 3.5 billion, depleting a lot of the natural resources, Skjeie said.
Seguin spoke about the different things that are being done to help boost sustainability on a local level.
She said San Jose's "Green Vision" is in place and set to reach its goals within 15 years.
The vision consists of 10 objectives, including creating green jobs, reducing per capita energy use, building green and reusing wastewater, along with other objectives.
San Francisco banned the use of plastic bags in March of 2007. Seguin said it stirred other controversial issues, such as the cost of shipping for heavier paper bags.
Skjeie said people need to figure out ways to use consumer waste to produce other products, Seguin said.
"Cradle to cradle," she said, "not cradle to grave."
Hirshfield said everyone can do something to help out sustainability, adding that people need to "reduce, reuse and recycle."
We need to re-invent the way we make things, vote to support laws that will help out the environment and purchase domestic products because they don't require as many resources to ship, Hirshfield said.
Seguin ended with what she said was one of her favorite quotes, "Those who don't study history are doomed to repeat it."
Shayna Hirshfield opened up the sustainability conversation in front of about 15 people by explaining that sustainability comes from the American Indian idea that people shouldn't do things now that will hurt them later.
"We need to replenish our resources at the same rate we use them," said the San Jose environmental department's Linden Skjeie, who is also an SJSU graduate.
"If you think about it in terms of a checking account, when you keep using and using your resources faster than you can create new ones, eventually all your money will be gone," Skjeie said.
Hirshfield said that every major ecosystem in the world is in decline due to the lack of sustainability on Earth.
"In the past hundred years, the world's sea levels have rose four to eight inches," said Jennifer Seguin, a representative for the Environmental Services Department.
By 2050 the world will have an estimated 9.1 billion people, Skjeie said.
As of April 21, 2008, the world's population was more than 6.6 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Web site.
She said the population growth is starting to slow down because some countries have implemented family planning laws and that AIDS has slowed down growth as well.
The past 50 years took a large toll on the Earth's resources because the world's population grew 3.5 billion, depleting a lot of the natural resources, Skjeie said.
Seguin spoke about the different things that are being done to help boost sustainability on a local level.
She said San Jose's "Green Vision" is in place and set to reach its goals within 15 years.
The vision consists of 10 objectives, including creating green jobs, reducing per capita energy use, building green and reusing wastewater, along with other objectives.
San Francisco banned the use of plastic bags in March of 2007. Seguin said it stirred other controversial issues, such as the cost of shipping for heavier paper bags.
Skjeie said people need to figure out ways to use consumer waste to produce other products, Seguin said.
"Cradle to cradle," she said, "not cradle to grave."
Hirshfield said everyone can do something to help out sustainability, adding that people need to "reduce, reuse and recycle."
We need to re-invent the way we make things, vote to support laws that will help out the environment and purchase domestic products because they don't require as many resources to ship, Hirshfield said.
Seguin ended with what she said was one of her favorite quotes, "Those who don't study history are doomed to repeat it."
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