Question
Hello nsdl experts!!
My students have to think of TWO ways in which human activity affects the environment in a POSITIVE way (to satisfy the syllabus learning outcomes). I, their teacher, and my colleagues, are having problems thinking of two. Can you give us some inspiration?
Thanks, Mags
Answer
Thank you for your question.
The museum I work is celebrating our 50th anniversary this year and as part of that we have a huge exhibit devoted to 50 years of postive things that have been happening in the environment.
Among them are:
wildlife rehabilitation - during the last fifty years there has been a huge upwelling of support for helping injured and orphaned wild animals
endangered species protection - the laws enacted in the U.S. over the last century, from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to endangered species legislation has done quite a lot for many species of wildlife
national parks and wildland protection at state, federal and international levels has done a lot to protect huge chunks of land from major development, this includes the growth of the greenbelt movement which helps provide wildlife with corridors for movement between larger protected areas
pollution controls, including the clean air and water acts have improved the environment in general including wildlife habitat
the growth of groups such as the Sierra Club, Audubon Society and Nature Conservancy as well as local, regional and even international groups like Greenpeace have worked in areas from public awareness to buying land for protection to beach clean-up days at many levels and in many jurisdictions
If you think of a broader picture, many of the day-to-day things we do can have a positive impact on wildlife - whether you simply pay attention to the "deer crossing" signs along roadways or turn off the lights to save energy or buy a fuel efficient car to save money, it's all helping wildlife to some extent as well.
I hope this all helps!
http://www.wildlife-museum.org
http://nature.org/
http://www.sierraclub.org/
http://www.audubon.org/
http://laws.fws.gov/lawsdigest/migtrea.html
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