Welcome to The Digital Environment! The Internet has changed our world dramatically, and not always for the better. Here you can learn about environmental issues related to computers and the Internet and what you can do to minimize your environmental impact.
Trey
Cyber Defender &
Message Center Supervisor
As an environmental activist, Trey believes that technology has the potential to improve our world, but only if it is used and created responsibly. He encourages people to become aware of their actions and to make simple changes in their lives that will have a big impact on the environment.
A recent graduate of the Academy (class of '07), Trey runs the Message Center in Cyberspace. He loves communicating via email because it is quick, easy, and reduces paper waste.
Favorite Quote:
When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.
- John Muir
Vegetable Curry
Interests:Ultimate frisbee, Gardening, Recycling trash into treasure
October 22 2008
Environmental Issues: Politics and the environment
I don't know about you, but this year's presidential election is especially exciting for me because, with rising fuel costs and the threat of climate change, the environment has become a major political issue.
Both candidates have taken a stand on the issues and outlined different plans to solve the problem. Even if you are too young to vote, it's important to understand what the issues are and consider your own opinion about how we should solve the problem.
Some of the environmental issues that are involved in this election are:
- Global Warming/Climate Change - Scientists say our planet is getting warmer. Is it really happening? Is it man-made? Can it be stopped? Should we try to stop it? How should we try to stop it?
- Carbon Emissions - Cars, construction and a number of other human activities produce pollution in the form of carbon emissions. Will reducing them help the environment? How can we reduce them? Should some countries be required to reduce them more than others?
- Domestic Oil - Oil is the source of gasoline for cars and other commonly used fuels. We have oil underground in the United States. Will drilling for it lower the cost of fuel? Will it harm the environment? Where should we drill? Where shouldn't we drill?
- Clean Coal, Natural Gas, Nuclear Energy - These resources are other options that we can use to make fuel. Can we use these instead of oil? In addition to oil? Will they cost less than oil? Will they harm the environment or future generations?
- Renewable Energy (Solar, Wind, Geothermal) - These resources can also be used for fuel, plus they are readily available from nature, without having to drill for them. Can we develop these to use instead of oil? Will they cost less than oil? Will they work as well as oil? Will they harm the environment or future generations?
- Fresh Water Supplies - Water is essential to life, but human activity can pollute it and our growing population puts it at risk. Is there enough fresh water for everyone on the planet? Will we run out? What can we do to keep that from happening?
- Endangered Species - Many kinds of animals, such as the polar bear, are finding it hard to survive, due to climate change, the growing human population, pollution and other human factors. Will more animals become endangered if we don't make changes in the way we live? Should we try and save them? How?
Scientific American has a great non-partisan article where you can learn
where the two candidates stand on these issues. I encourage you to read
through it and think about the candidates' plans and what you think the solution should be.
Even if you can't vote, talk about it with everyone because this is your planet, too. How we deal with many of these issues
may make a huge difference to your future, so make your voice heard!
posted by Trey
topic: Environmental Issues
October 8 2008
Being Green: Buying Green
Since the goal of Being Green is to reduce the environmental impact of computers, one thing you can do is to choose more energy efficient and environmentally friendly options when buying a computer and accessories. This is good for you because it saves you money, and it’s good for the environment because it uses up less resources.
- Laptop computers use 75% less power than desktop machines.
- Monitors account for about half of the energy used by a computer, and the larger the monitor, the more power it uses.
- LCD, or liquid crystal display monitors (the newer, flat monitors) use only about 10-20% as much energy as CRT, or cathode ray tube monitors (the big box-shaped older monitors), and they cost less.
- Ink jet printers use about 90% less energy than laser jet printers and you can hardly tell the difference in print quality with some of the newer models.
Being Green is about making smart, responsible choices to help make your world a better place. Every choice you make towards Being Green benefits both you and the planet.