This article tackles the reality of the impact of invasive species in Miami and how the The Nature Conservancy is actively taking steps to protect native species from the newly introduced invasive ones. I plan to use this source to introduce the idea of how the effects of invasive species can be overcome and how to minimize the negative impact of the issue. 

2. Thomas, Rachael. “Florida's Least Wanted: 10 Invasive Animal Species That Are Wrecking Native Ecosystems.” Florida Today, Florida Today, 15 Apr. 2019, https://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/environment/2019/04/13/florida-invasive-animal-species-wrecking-native-ecosystems-non-native/3456294002/.

This website clearly describes the invasive species present in Miami as well as most of south Florida. It gives a detailed description (including physical attributes) of the nature of these species and when they were introduced into the Floridian ecosystems. I plan to use this source to introduce the idea of invasive species and what they are in the Mimian ecology. 

3. “Florida National Invasive Species Information Center.” Florida | National Invasive Species Information Center, https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/us/florida.

This website is government operated and clearly lists all the effects that invasive species have had on native species. It also lists ways that the government is trying to incorporate to control the issue at hand. It details the programs that have been put in place to help stop the growing population of invasive species, which is why I plan to use it detail the negative impacts these species have on our native ecology. 

In the video The story of microbeads, microbeads are described to be small pieces of plastic smaller than a grain of sand. These microbeads are most present in personal care products like face soaps and body washes. They are so small that when they go down the drain, filtering them is very difficult, ensuring that millions of them end up in our waterways every day. These microbeads are extremely absorbent to toxins, so they can be up to a million times more toxic than the surrounding water. These toxic microbeads are then eaten by other animals, such as fish, through the water. Eventually, these can be the animals that you end up eating, meaning that you just consumed the toxins that you laid out through the microbeads in the first place.

As a global citizen, I realize that I consume products mindlessly, not paying attention the harm that these products can cause me and even others. As a consumer, it is important to be more conscientious of the products I buy, as not only could it have a negative impact on my health, but on the state of the environment and its creatures as well. Doing my part to help the reduction of these products in stores would be becoming a more active member of my community. Petitioning and protesting for the safety of products being distributed is one way could involve myself more into the solutions to the problem at hand in today’s stores.

After watching the videos on the stories of both cosmetics and microbeads, it has inspired me to make more conscientious buys in the store as a consumer. Not only would it be beneficial to my health to make more educated informed decisions, but it would be beneficial to others and the environment as well. It is also important to note that the more people begin to make these lifestyle choices, the less large companies will make such products, as less people are buying them. Being a part of the process that eliminates these harmful chemicals from being used in cosmetics in microbeads is a change that will improve the wellbeing of everyone in the world.

This article highlights the concept of fast fashion and the impact it has had on the environment. In modern day society, impulse shopping is present ine everyday life, especially when it comes to new clothes. A lot of the time, people get bored with the style of their clothing and just throw it out, never to be used again. In the United Kingdom, the average citizen keeps an item of clothing for around 2.2 years then gets rid of it. Because of this, about £ 11 million worth of clothing goes to landfills every week in the UK. This is extremely problematic not only to the environment, but the use of our resources. The fashion industry and consumers are building an unsustainable process that drains our resources when it can be avoided. Because of this, there has been a large movement recently to purchase used clothes while thrifting. 

Works Cited

'don't feed the monster!' the people who have stopped buying New Clothes. (2019, February 19). Retrieved February 03, 2022, from https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2019/feb/19/dont-feed-monster-the-people-who-have-stopped-buying-new-clothes.

Article 2: The Kitchen Garden series

This article talks about a costume designer seeing her costumes being used in a single play or production and then being put in storage or being thrown away. It brings her awareness to the concept of wasting fabric and just getting rid of something that is only used once or twice, creating a very wasteful cycle. Becasue of this, she created a company that helps resuse these old costumes and puts them in a new home in the kitchen. Urban farmers are her main customers, as she tends to make large sacks for flour and even things such as reusable cloth coffee filters. Next to oil, textiles are one of the most pollutive substances that exist, and finding different ways to utilize these clothes in an innovative way can help reduce wastefulness. 

Works Cited

The kitchen garden series upends the textiles industry by reviving an old Philly Tradition: Producing local linen. The Philadelphia Citizen. (2020, August 13). Retrieved February 3, 2022, from https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/kitchen-garden-series-philadelphia/.

Reflection
Both of these articles have helped me understand the gravity of just how much damage the fashion industry and our habits as consumers is actually harmful to our resources and our environment. I had never really thought about the amount of clothes that is thrown away and sent to landfills after being used only a couple of times, while many clothes are never bought in stores. Both of these articles have highlighted the importance of finding new, sustainable ways to utilize your clothes instead of throwing them away. One mentioned thrifting and buying secondhand clothes rather than spending money on purchasing new clothes, promoting the reusing of clothes rather than throwing them away. I think that this idea has sparked a movement that has pushed people to incline toward buying things at thift stores rather than at chain stores. Not only that, but it is also a good way to get cothes for a better price and supports a sustainable movement. I think that the solutions media did a great job of not only narrating the problems with unsustainable fashion, but offering ways to improve these problems. Offering multiple solutions to the issues surrounding fast fashion gives people more alternatives to choose from in order to help the world become a better place in the end. 

Works Cited

Harris, P. (n.d.). Taking trash talk to a whole new level. Peter Harris: Taking trash talk to a whole new level | TED Talk. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.ted.com/talks/peter_harris_taking_trash_talk_to_a_whole_new_level

The project "zero waste to landfills" was started by Rania Bahaa and her colleagues. Many people looked around and rummaged through garbage, looking for recyclable material to reuse in their daily lives or to sell as products. This sparked an idea for Raina and her team: what if companies, instead of getting rid of waste, gave recyclable materials to people, so they could use it and/or sell it? With this innovation, people have made things such as environmentla fertilizers, clothes hangers, fisherman bags, and more, making use of recyclable materials and taking advantage of potential food waste. However, "zero waste to landfills" specializes in paper-making, ensuring the use of all recyclable materials and reusing them in an every day object. 

Works Cited

Bahaa, R. (n.d.). Watch what you dispose of. Rania Bahaa: Watch what you dispose of | TED Talk. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.ted.com/talks/rania_bahaa_watch_what_you_dispose_of

I find it incredible how people have the innovation to take something that is harmful to the environment and turn it into something that helps conserve nature and the people and animals living in it. The first TED talk found different ways to use methane in a circular economy diagram, to ensure that methane would be helpful rather than serve as a catalyst to the worldwide problem fo global warming. The second TED talk showed innovation through sending companies' waste to people so they can use it for different purposes. Through the making of fertilizers, plastic products, and paper, this organization has helped waste become a thing that helps people make a living, and helps them find a source of income. This of course, while also reducing waste and helping the environment through the new innovations being made. I learned that truly when there is a will, there is a way. For many years, we believed these things to be harmful but were indifferent to their negative impact until it got progressively worse. If it weren't for people who are actively seeking for ways to make a change in their communities, and ultimately the world, no change would ever be made. Their ideas not only help the world through their innovations, but also inspire others to do the same as well. They give people hope and ideas on how to proceed when coming up with new ideas, something that in the long run changes the world over time.