This afternoon, as an extension of our previous two classes on environmental history and values, I thought I'd try a little social experiment...

Historically, music has been, and continues to be, a powerful force with the ability to communicate all manner of social and political messages across generations (see this article by Doug Ramsey in the Canadian Journal of Environmental Education for information on environmental issues and song; a link to the full PDF article is at the bottom of the page).

In this vein, I set up an internet radio station on blip.fm for the ENVS2023 course. Starting today, and for the duration of the course, students will submit songs with an environmental theme or connection to be featured on the station. Students submit song information via posts to a discussion forum hosted in Blackboard. The following details must be included:

• Name of Artist
• Name of Song
• A quote from the song's lyrics connecting it to an environmental theme

As the station "DJ" (account holder), I will post links to these tracks on the course radio station home page [Note: blip.fm creates links to .mp3 content hosted elsewhere on the internet—it does not does .mp3 files on its own servers.] All genres / decades / artists are up for grabs; the more obscure the better!

The station integrates nicely with Blackboard too, with a direct link in the sidebar:
 

 
Station DJs receive "props" (votes of approval from other listeners in the blip.fm community) each time a listener favourites a track. Our goal is to inspire 100 props by the end of the course, and generate an entertaining—and environmentally relevant—playlist in the process.

Listen now: ENVS2023 radio

Day 2 of class and a showing of the National Film Board's "Suzuki Speaks"; the opening three minutes are shown below:
 

 
At the end of the film, the class had a number of questions/comments, which have been forwarded to the NFB—I'll post any responses I receive, here.

1. Will "Suzuki Speaks" be hosted online like the rest of the NFB's catalogue?

2. The film's message sometimes got lost in the visuals, which either dominated or seemed out-of-place on occasion; occasionally the film's soundtrack made Suzuki hard to hear.

3. In the film, Suzuki warned against the saturation of technology in our societies a number of times; however the film itself relied heavily on technology and digital special effects to deliver it's message. How much input did Suzuki have during the production of the film? Has he commented on the final product since completion?

It is often difficult to deliver environmental news stories and discuss research and reports as many of the messages are so negative: our global situation can often feel hopeless, leaving one feeling overwhelmed and paralysed.

Using the excellent "Taking Action" resources from Soka Gakkai International (Canada) as a starting point, I presented the following survey to my students in an attempt to gain insight into their viewpoints and assess attitudes with respect to global environmental issues. The graphic below illustrates the mean of the class responses:
 

It will be interesting to revisit these questions as the course progresses.

Today was the first day of teaching for both Hana and I this winter term. Hana is teaching a first-year non-majors Biology class entitled, "Microbes: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly", and I'm teaching a second-year Environmental Studies course, "Understanding Environmental Issues".

Following Hana's lead, I thought I'd post my students' responses to question, "what does the word 'environment' mean to you?" Although a second-year course, students from all years (1–4+) are participating and from a wide variety of disciplines across science and arts: e.g. forestry, biology, chemistry, political science, languages, and philosophy. We'll revisit these definitions at the end of the course and discuss any changes their authors might make to them, if any, and why:

A place in which a species lives where it takes advantage of all resources within the biosphere.

I consider "environment" to be our surroundings.

Mother Nature and her natural resources.

The environment is the natural world in which we live that surrounds us every day.

The environment is all the things surrounding us on the planet.

The natural and built world that people, plants, and animals inhabit.

Your natural surroundings.

The environment is the area which surrounds us, whether it be nature, people, etc., and is subject to manipulation.

Our surroundings.

Where humans, plants, and animals live; natural resources which provide essential tools for survival.

The world we live in and what surrounds us.

The physical area in which an organism lives.

Everything that surrounds me. An object's surroundings and the interactions between them.

Natural surroundings and our impacts or dependance upon them.

The areas in which life exists and resources are available.

The habitats and interactions within habitats in an area.

The environment pertains to the surrounding elements that are crucial for our healthy lifestyles.

The interaction between plants, animals, people, and their surrounding world.

That which is around us and interacts with us.

Living and nonliving things around you that interact with each other.

It surrounds us: from mountains to deserts, the environment is what makes that area unique.

All surrounding settings involving nature or otherwise.

Everything together: the land, sea, oxygen, plants, weather, etc... How they work together — cause and effect.

Best wishes to everyone for a safe and joyful 2009. May our—and others'—food, shelter, and nesting needs be met!

[Photo: Local neighbourhood trail, College Hill, Port Moody, British Columbia]