Diamond

1. “The past offers us a rich database from which we can learn, in order that we may keep on succeeding.” –Pg. 17

             Learning from the past is a way for one to determine whether their actions are correct or not. It is a lock to check whether the key fits, therefore, meaning that their decision was the right choice. However, how does one know whether they are making the correct choice? It is until we receive the result that indicates whether the choice was correct or not. Therefore, this allows me to think about our generation. We have database to learn from but we do not apply it. We have the education to learn how to preserve objects but we find ways to work around it, which end up depleting our ecosystem even more. I feel like we do not learn from our past and we end up causing more problems than what we began with. In certain situations we do not learn from the past but in certain situations we do. For instance, the Everglades are now preserved and before this was not in our mind. Hence, we can learn about the past in certain situations but we should consider them more often.

http://explanationrequired.blogspot.com/2010/07/lessons-learned-from-lion-king.html

2. “If this reasoning is correct, then our efforts today will determine the state of the world in which the current generation of children and young adults lives out their middle and late years.” –Pg. 22

             This quote has allowed me to think about the actions of our past generation and the actions of our present generation. Our past generations have performed mistakes but so has our present and future generation. We have learned and incorporated different eco-friendly tasks into our everyday lives, such as recycling. However, we continue to increase the greenhouse gases or the use of nonrenewable resources. Also numerous developmental plans continue to take place in wildlife areas. It’s scary to think that we are doing all these changes to help our economy, but little do we know that we are damaging ourselves in the long run. For instance, due to these changes future generations will not see the ecosystems that we have nor will they witness species that are soon to be extinct. It’s sad to know that future generations will not be able to witness this and even our present generations do not know much about the species in Florida. For instance, I know there is a lot more that I should know about Florida and I am guilty to have lived here my whole life. As a native Floridian I feel like I should know more than what I know.

http://blogs.trb.com/news/opinion/chanlowe/blog/environment/

3. “Even signs in hotel rooms now invoke love of the environment to make us feel guilty if we demand fresh towels or let the water run.” Pg. 24.

             This quote caught my attention, because in hotels that I have stayed at do have these signs. When I read them it reminds me of a lesson that my mother taught me. That is, to reuse and take care of objects that I have. Therefore, when I stay at hotels I reuse my towels and I do not ask for more than needed. This also brought a flashback with the book A Land Remembered. The scene where Tobias mentions that he does not take more than needed. I feel like more people should try and preserve, instead of trying to have more than required. Either way, I think this is a good idea so the population can remember that we need to limit the use of our resources. By preserving, it will cost less to restore what was depleted, because the damage is not as severe.

http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/do-you-equate-wealth-with-hard-work/question-1984667/?link=ibaf&q=&esrc=s