Grassroots
(adjective) - 1) Fundamental or basic; 2) Common or having no special
distinction or quality
Change begins with awareness, but awareness is not enough. It takes action and engagement to make that change. Years ago, people decided to go beyond their grassroots and alleviate their standard of living. However, because of their desire for progress, they failed to care for what is fundamental—the environment, the source of all our needs. Through our lessons in Science and Society class, we were able to become aware of the impact of our activities and our choices on the environment, and we were reminded of the importance of our grassroots. With this awareness, our group would like to reflect on this and strive to start that change.
Change begins with awareness, but awareness is not enough. It takes action and engagement to make that change. Years ago, people decided to go beyond their grassroots and alleviate their standard of living. However, because of their desire for progress, they failed to care for what is fundamental—the environment, the source of all our needs. Through our lessons in Science and Society class, we were able to become aware of the impact of our activities and our choices on the environment, and we were reminded of the importance of our grassroots. With this awareness, our group would like to reflect on this and strive to start that change.
Wake up call
During kindergarten, we were taught at school to put back our toys
in the right place, to throw our trash away properly, and to close the faucet
when not in use because the fish in the sea will die if the water runs out.
Even until now, we are still being reminded to “Clean As You GO” and are always
taught about the consequences of our action, but we still sometimes ignore
these. We need to know that our
resources are limited, and we can’t just go on abusing it. We can’t use the
water cycle as an excuse for not saving water, or the Earth’s size for not
having proper family planning, because sooner or later, water may not be
accessible anymore due to climate change and overpopulation may lead to
unwanted disaster. Save while there are still some things to save. Act now,
before it’s too late.
This semester, our group was given lots of opportunity to see the
many facets of science, albeit not all. From the readings to the lectures to
the plenaries, the advantages and disadvantages of this body of knowledge‘s
contributions were compared in such a way that they provoked our minds to think
of the possibilities of compromise and solutions to the problems its
innovations have caused. Furthermore, the issues that were tackled made us
realize that every move science makes has an undesired consequence, and
to overcome this, the community must decide on whether to undo the change by
another change or to let it slip because of logical reasons. Indeed, this
course has made our lenses clearer; we see the fragile yin and yang of science, and we are determined to aid on ultimately making it a tool to make the earth a
better place.
On Rethink, Restore, Redesign & Shift in Mentality
However, in our desire to enhance our quality of life, we can cause our own
destruction. The world is becoming overpopulated, and our natural resources are
being depleted. The problem is not just overpopulation but also, the lifestyle
of every individual. We all want rapid progress and development, and we seem to
be willing to risk everything to fulfill our selfish needs. We put so much importance on “reduce, reuse,
and recycle” but do we really know what it means to integrate them in our daily
routine?
It's not that we need more policies, or facilities to help us improve our current practices. Rather, what we need right now is a better approach to the "R's" we have today. This is where "rethink, restore, and redesign" comes in. The whole idea of these new "R's" is to reevaluate ourselves and our preexisting methods on utilizing goods and propagating wastes. This proposed concept involves open mindedness and challenges our current beliefs on consumerism. The goal of this approach is not to generate unnecessary waste, to segregate waste properly, and to make those bits and pieces into more useful products. We need to realize that the waste we throw in our trash bins do not magically disappear. It is in rethinking our choices and options that we may be able to restore the natural balance in the whole ecosystem of earth.
It's not that we need more policies, or facilities to help us improve our current practices. Rather, what we need right now is a better approach to the "R's" we have today. This is where "rethink, restore, and redesign" comes in. The whole idea of these new "R's" is to reevaluate ourselves and our preexisting methods on utilizing goods and propagating wastes. This proposed concept involves open mindedness and challenges our current beliefs on consumerism. The goal of this approach is not to generate unnecessary waste, to segregate waste properly, and to make those bits and pieces into more useful products. We need to realize that the waste we throw in our trash bins do not magically disappear. It is in rethinking our choices and options that we may be able to restore the natural balance in the whole ecosystem of earth.
Globalization has ultimately led to a wider gap between the so-called “developed” and “undeveloped” countries. SCI10 made our group realize that there have
been a lot of technological devices that have aided in the growth and well
being of our country. Take, for example, the improvement of communication in terms of speed of connection and accessibility due to
cell phones. However, because of limited resources and financial concerns of
the Philippines, our country cannot fully adapt to all technological trends. Instead, the biodiversity of the Philippines could be used as a way to compete with these “developed”
countries. Conforming does not necessarily mean success; it is how we use what
we have to change the society around us that can start a meaningful change in the world.
Expansion & Satisfaction
We are then called to reflect on the world we call home. We live in a universe that scientists believe
is ever-expanding. Humans have come to a point in their existence where
ignorance is a point no longer acceptable in the dictum of society. We are
obsessed with seeking out truths and facts that we have dissolved into a
society of pluralists. We have already seen the feats that theoretical physics
have achieved in order to bring us closer to the origins of life. However, we can only assume what is true based on
what we consider as universal truths as of the moment since science constantly
changes based on the results of new experiments. Science cannot foresee the
future 100% clearly. We can only just imagine what it will be like based on
what we know now. Ironically, science quenches our thirst for knowledge a
little but still keeps us yearning for more.
Conclusion
To come in full circle, Sci10 made our group realize that we need
a shift in our mentality. We should start looking at the bigger picture at different perspectives (as what we did in writing this blog post) so that we could do minimal harm to ourselves and to others. If not, sooner or later, we would have to suffer from our selfish choices.
With our ever-expanding curiosity on one hand and informed decisions gained from scientific and technological breakthroughs on the other, we may then be able to not just pay attention to our needs but also, to go beyond our egoistic inclinations to save our one and only home.
With our ever-expanding curiosity on one hand and informed decisions gained from scientific and technological breakthroughs on the other, we may then be able to not just pay attention to our needs but also, to go beyond our egoistic inclinations to save our one and only home.
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