School on Geoethics and Natural Issues

Author(s):  
Silvia Peppoloni ◽  
Giuseppe Di Capua ◽  
Peter T. Bobrowsky

<p>Founded on July 2019, the “School on Geoethics and Natural Issue” (http://www.geoethics.org/geoethics-school) is a scientific, international, multicultural and multidisciplinary meeting place for teaching and learning of the principles and values of geoethics in the light of the philosophy and history of Earth sciences. Its intent is to provide background knowledge and the evaluation skills necessary to understand the complex relationship between human action on ecosystems and the decisions geoscientists make in the discipline that impact society, including improving the awareness of professionals, students, decision-makers, media operators, and the public on an accountable and ecologically sustainable development.</p><p>The School on geoethics, conformed to the Geoethical Promise (http://www.geoethics.org/geopromise) and the Cape Town Statement on Geoethics (http://www.geoethics.org/ctsg), aims to provide excellent education in geoethics (http://www.geoethics.org/definition), thus promoting the development of a scientific and critical attitude to the knowledge of the Earth and its constituent systems, by fostering a growth of awareness and responsibility towards the planet, education in the values and actions underlying a respect for ecosystems, including responsible use of resources, management of natural risks, reduction of pollution and its repercussions on human health and climate, adaptation to environmental changes, in view of an accountable and ecologically sustainable development.</p><p>Moreover, it provides the opportunity to deepen reflection on the sense and social utility of geosciences, analyzing their rational categories, values, possible perspectives, uncertainties and cognitive limits, and to learn and develop more responsible strategies, operating procedures and practical actions, that are compatible with respect for socio-ecological systems, the vocation of the territories, including the health and safety of human communities.</p><p>The courses are addressed to different categories of users: they can be useful to both secondary school students and university undergraduate/graduate students in disciplines that deal with the environment from different perspectives (planning, naturalist, geo-biological, landscape, architectural, legislative, educational, cultural and relative to communication). Scholars of the phenomena and processes of the planet (researchers, academics, scientists), as well as those who physically operate in the territories (various types of professionals, geologists, engineers, landscape architects, risk experts, media operators, decision-makers) can find valid support to their scientific and professional preparation in the courses. Finally, the School on geoethics is also aimed at the general public and others, including non-experts, who are interested in better understanding the bond that links human communities to ecosystems, within the perspective of responsible development.</p>

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-89
Author(s):  
Lachlan Penninkilampi

Urbanization is arguably the most severe and irreversible driver of environmental change, particularly with respect to biodiversity. This is the case even in Australia, a megadiverse country with a sophisticated federal regime of biodiversity governance. Yet, life persists in urban worlds. In the context of global climate and ecological crises, this article endeavours to illustrate how law and policy can grapple with the complexities of urban biodiversity and enable it to flourish. First, the article outlines the current approaches to urban biodiversity: what is it, what is it like, why does it matter and how do humans think of it? Second, the article analyses the current state of biodiversity governance in Australia, focusing particularly on the laws and policies of the Commonwealth, New South Wales, and local governments in Greater Sydney. Finally, the article details a program of reform which revisits the original guiding principles of ecologically sustainable development, illustrating how they could be unleashed for the better governance of urban biodiversity with respect to decision-making, the administration of law, issues at scale, the economy, valuation techniques and community participation. The program includes not only systemic and multi-scalar reforms, but also local-level reforms which have significant yet often overlooked potential to encourage pro-biodiversity behaviours in everyday life. The aim is to reveal just some of the many ways in which hope can be creatively transformed into action for a biodiverse urban future – that is, to reveal the possibilities of law and policy to enable urban biodiversity to be better recognized, understood, valued, protected and enhanced as Australia develops in the twenty-first century.


2013 ◽  
Vol 864-867 ◽  
pp. 328-332
Author(s):  
Lai Zhang

In the urban ecosystems , the greening as a subsystem in the beautiful urban environment , it plays an active role of maintaining urban ecological balance and sustainable development. On the basis of surveying the greening in Anshun city of Guizhou, the ccological effect of 16 typical plants of them, releasing oxygen and declining temperature were studied. The results showed that the species less, structure only, species evenness low; the ability of releasing oxygen is different for different plants in different months, but the similar law is rising in June and August, declining in July and September; in August, the law of declining temperature is consistent with releasing oxygen, but the most obvious were Platanas acerifolia (0.32°C), Ligusttrum quiuoni (0.26°C), Parthenocissus trcuspidata (0.46°C) in arbors, shrubs and climbing plants. The results provide some basis informations and valuable suggestions for Anshun city ecological construction, improving the living environment and ecologically sustainable development.


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