For my social sphere, I chose to take GEOG 1125, resources, society, and the environment. This course focused on the interactions between physical systems and human activities and how they affect environmental quality and sustainability. Throughout the duration of the class, we studied the geography of population, food production, water, and air quality, energy policy, and resource management. My professor had a uniquely philosophical approach to examining these issues and incorporated the idea of environmental ethics. He introduced conflicting viewpoints to socioeconomic issues such as Malthusian vs. Marxist thought and helped us identify their strengths and weaknesses. This was the first time I had ever studied sustainability from a social and theoretical perspective and I became fascinated with learning more.
I had the opportunity to present and analyze my opinions on these issues in a midterm research paper. As a business student, this was the first research paper I had written since the first semester of my freshman year so I struggled to begin. I ended up writing a seven-page paper analyzing population, markets, political economy, and social constructionist approaches to sustainability and received a one hundred on the paper. This experience proved to me that I still had the capacity to study and understand pressing issues related to the environment even though they were not in my primary field of focus.
In addition, we were tasked with crafting a resource report advocacy letter concerning a topic we were passionate about. Since I had recently completed the discover abroad program in Australia and New Zealand, I chose to write to the Australian minister for natural resources, mines, and energy regarding the effects of coal mining on the great barrier reef. This process taught me more about how sustainable business should be conducted and related back to a variety of my coursework thus far. Overall, I really believe that this class came at the perfect time because I was able to build on and reinforce all the topics I had previously studied and could apply them going forward in my career.
Volunteering at William’s Farm to Incorporate Service Learning
