Clean Water

Humans, like any other living animals, have essential needs to survive. One of the most important needs is drinking water. How clean must be drinking water be? How clean must water be in order to be consumed safely by human? There is no definite solution for "clean water". Therefore, the only way to define "clean water" is by defining "unclean water".

"Unclean water" or polluted water is water that contains contaminants, including chemicals, particles, and bacteria. Polluted water is not safe for cooking, drinking, cleaning, bathing, and other daily uses. Polluted is not just simply dirty, but it is deadly. Polluted water does not only affect humans, but also harm other organism. First, polluted water poisons aquatic animals and terrestrial ones, including human, that drink polluted water. Once the smaller species at the base of the food chain are affected, the whole food chain is disrupted. Disruption with food will lead diseases in human eventually. Sooner or later, humans will become victims of our own actions.

We, intentionally or unintentionally, cause  water pollution and scarcity of clean water through sewage, septic tanks, waste dumping, underground and on-water leakage, industrial production, etc.

As a result of global warming, the need of clean water is critical. For example, a serious drought has been in California since 2011. Area of clean water has been decreasing significantly. (Photo) Beside trying to save water as much as possible  with regulation and police force, people in California are finding another supplies. They use a desalination facility to turn seawater into drinking water (Source).

However, desalination alone is not the solution because it is so expensive. There must be other long-term acts:
- Educate to change consumption and lifestyle.
- Recycle waste water appropriately.
- Improve irrigation and agricultural practices.
- Address pollution.

Save water. Save future.

Ocean Ecology

We, human, live on land. However, land is only about one third of the whole world surface area. The rest is water. There are more creature living on this world beside terrestrial ones. There is a part of the world that human do not fully understand. That part is marine ecosystem. 

Marine ecosystem include oceans,  salt marshes, intertidal zones, estuaries, lagoons, mangroves, coral reefs, the deep sea, and the sea floor. Discovered only 5% with human technology, marine ecosystem is the home of many known and unknown creatures, including plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria. It's "estimated" that there is about 1 million species. Oceans, like any water bodies, contribute greatly to climate change.

Humans get a lot of benefits from marine ecosystem, especially seas and oceans. The first and most obvious things are fish. Fisheries today provide about 16% of world's human dietary protein source. The second one is shipping and transporting. The third one is tourism. (Source: MarineBio) Together, all these things lead to economic development, with jobs, sales, salaries, etc. 

With that being said, humans, as always, are not every appreciative. We are destroying the marine ecosystem. We over-fish, not allowing resources to replenish. As fishing technology develops with nets and electricity, we are more destructive. 20,000 porpoises die in the nets of salmon fishermen in Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. (Source: YPTE). We pollute the water with oils and wastes. These poisons will contaminate the water and harm the marine organisms. There is also acid acidification created by carbon dioxide, which weakens shells of marine creature. 

This situation needs to be stopped. Here are what "some" people are trying to do: The Marine Conservation Institute tries to increase protected marine areas, some people try to encourage to stop using nets, some other try to clean up the oil mess with these methods, etc. Here are what you can do:
- Join and Support Organizations (Ex: WWF).
- Choose sustainable seafood (Here is a tool - Seafood Watch).
Respect the ocean!

 

Gender Equality

"How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!"

- Maya Angelou

Gender equality, in the context of modern day, has never been stressed enough. Gender equality states that women and men have equal value and should be treated equally. "Equally", neither more or less.

Gender inequality has been a serious problem around the world, especially in Eastern countries. According to Gender Index Organization,

1. In 2007, 34% of Vietnamese women report experiencing at least one type of domestic violence in their lifetime.

2. Vietnam male/female sex ratio at birth in 2013 is 1.12. There are some abortion due to boy bias.

It is a long-existing tradition in Eastern countries that boy is better than girl. This "tradition" brings a lot of inequality to women. "Not publicly," they are usually treated as lower class, receive lower salary and less rights.

At a broad view, gender inequality affects the whole society.

1. In economy: gender inequality limits the amount of money women can get. 

2. In education: literacy rate is lower for women, which is not fair.

3. In politics: there are less women politicians, making politics somehow biased.

4. In society: women sometimes receive a lot of sexual harassment and stereotypes.

Women's potential not fully used, we can never improve society with limited perspective.

Is there any solution for gender inequality beside laws and media? Can women just stand up and say "We are equal!"? That's what feminist are doing. Is it affective? To some degree. However, there are corners that neither laws nor feminists can reach, the dark corner in every little family. There is currently no absolute solution except laws and promotion for inequality...

Smoking

"When it looks like I may live longer than five minutes, I'll drop cigarettes like a hot potato."

Patrick Swayze

Tobacco has a long history. Originating in America about 600 - 900 A.D., tobacco was spread by Europeans. At first, tobacco was used for religious and medical purposes. However, during 1600s, tobacco become cash crop in North America. The bloom of tobacco business took place around 1800s. 

What is actually a cigarette?
Cigarette is a small roll of tobacco, having different strength and taste depending on tobacco leaf. 

Cigarettesa are deadly dangerous.

1. At least 69 of 4,000 chemicals found in tobacco cause cancers.

2. Most common disease caused by cigarettes are respitory and cardiovascular diseases.

3. Smoking can effect other people around smokers (secondhand smoke).

4. Smoking costs more than just cigarette money.

If cirgarettes are so dangerous, why do people still smoke?

In cigarettes, there is a addictive substance called nicotine. When nicotine is absorbed in your bloodstream, it reaches your brain in 10 seconds, causing brain to release adrenaline and creating a buzz of energy. This buzz fades away very quickly, leaving your body tired. This feeling encourages you to smoke again. Since your body builds up nicotine tolerance, you will need to smoke more for the buzz.

What are the solutions?
1. If you are not a smoker, STAY AWAY FROM SMOKING FROM THE FIRST PLACE. "It is always better to prepare and prevent than it is to repair and repent."
2. If you are a smoker, you can follow these following steps: (Source: Live Strong)
- Setting the stage to quit: gradually prepare your mind (about 5 days) and clean your stuffs that have tobacco smell.
- Control cravings: either by medication or hynopsis.
- Prevent a relapse: exercise, meditate, hang out with friends, and throw away the idea of "just one cigarette only".

Domestic Violence

“Has he ever trapped you in a room and not let you out?Has he ever raised a fist as if he were going to hit you?Has he ever thrown an object that hit you or nearly did?Has he ever held you down or grabbed you to restrain you?Has he ever shoved, poked, or grabbed you?Has he ever threatened to hurt you?If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then we can stop wondering whether he’ll ever be violent; he already has been.”

― Lundy Bancroft

Does this poem sound familiar to you? Have you ever seen anyone acting like "he" in the poem? Have YOU ever acted like "he" in the poem?

Domestic violence has been serious problem for a long time. According to United States Department of Justice, domestic violence is "a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner." In simpler words, it is domestic violence when you see a family member harming another family member. Domestic violence can be either physical, sexual, economic, emotional, or psychological. 

What are effects of domestic violence? I don't know... What happen to your body when I hit you? Scratch, bruise, cut? What happen to your mind when I threaten you? Fear, depression? The effects of domestic violence are far beyond obvious! 

So why, why would a husband want to hurt his wife? Why would a parent want to hurt his/her own child? There are many factors. Internal factors include but do not limit to anger, low esteem, jealousy, and eagerness to control. External factors include but do not limit to stress, economic difficulty, illnesses.

How can YOU solve this problem? 

If you are the violent one, well, your only job is getting your **** together.

Unfortunately, it is not that simple if you are the victim. Since domestic violence occurs within a family, it is a sensitive topic to talk about. However, for your one good, you need to reach out for help, call authorized people and report your problems.

If you belong to lucky part of the world who don't have to deal with domestic violence directly, you should protect the victim, and organize a good community to prevent domestic violence in the first place.

“Never let a man put his hands on you without your permission.” 

― Melda Beaty 

Orphanage Visit

It's a blessing to be able to help others. We, the members of 21 Issues Class, fortunately had that blessing. On Saturday, the eighth day of February, we visited 2 orphanages and 3 old people's home.
Of course, nothing can be done without preparation. Getting the donation is an first essential step. The process started at the beginning of term 2, which was about November. We had small calls instead of one big call. Firstly, we called for money donation competition between houses. The rule was donating for the LOSING house. So, with the aggressive competitive nature, members of houses donated a lot to the house they hated. It was a slightly evil plan, but for greater purposes. The second call was for food, for example, canned food.
After getting donation, we needed to contact the local organization. We contacted some places and asked for some helps (especially from Ms. Van Anh). Finally, we ended up with a list of 5 places.
8:00 AM, Saturday, 8 February 2015, I arrived at school. Mr. and Mrs. Swanson had already been there with some students. We started loading food on the waiting school bus. I hated morning hard work, but it was for greater purposes.
We drove to the first Orphanage on Hai Ba Trung Street - Thao Dan Orphanage. The kids were really friendly. They were probably used to visits like this. We sang, danced, and played games. In the second orphanage, we had a chance to see the kids' sleeping place. The twisting stair leading to sleeping place had very high steps. I wondered how little kids could use it. Probably they had to. There were hard metal beds with only wooden mats covering and some pillows. The kids had to get used to that harsh conditions, too. I felt lucky...
We then visited one old women's house, if her house can be classified as "a house". There was no door or wall. Sticks were held to stand the tole cover. I couldn't fit the "house": it was about 1m50 high. There was a small TV, and some fundamental pieces of equipment.
Then we visited other houses, but I didn't went inside because the houses were too small. It wasn't necessary, either.
After the visit, something inside me changed, something small and subtle. Without know what it is, I know it was there...

Energy and Environment

Twenty-first century is the era of energy wars. People are fighting for energy supplies. Oil and natural gas are top concerns, origins of many human conflicts. However, energy create not only conflicts, but also environmental problems. We are fighting to get things that give us instant wealth and gradual death. 

Oil and natural gas are classified as nonrenewable energy resources. These are widely exploited and used because they are CHEAP and ACCESSIBLE. However, the name explains itself: nonrenewable energy resources cannot be replaced, therefore have limited amounts. For example, remaining oil can be used in 50 years, and natural gas can last only for 75 years. Someday, when nonrenewable energy resources are deplete, we may die in the darkness. Moreover, the use of nonrenewable energy releases harmful atmospheric pollutants (greenhouse gas) and dangerous chemicals (nuclear power byproducts) to environment. Nonrenewable energy resources are both life-saving and life-stealing. 

So, is there a better alternative? 

Renewable energy resources are resources that can replenish quickly and be able to used again. Some common ones are sunlight, wind, and hydroelectic power. Sun gives us energy as light. Eventually, sun will burn out, but it will take about 6 billion years (UniverseToday), a very long time. Wind is used as a source of kinetic energy to turn the turbines, produce electricity. Hydroelectic power dam uses the same princible. Thesefriendly resources seem to be the permenant for both energy wars and environmentals problems. However, these resources have one disadvantage. Although most of them are free, building infrastructure to use them COST A LOT. Buying a solar panel system is quite expensive to some people. Although they will save money in the future, not many people can afford such a huge amount of money at one time. Building wind turbines and hydroeletic dam is expensive. Therefore, these resources are not widely in use.

If we cannot afford the infrastucture for renewable energy, how can we save nonrenewable energy until we find a better solution? Here are some simple tips:

- Unplug seldom-used appliances.

- Turn off computer instead of sleep if possible.

- Turn off light when going out.

- Use compact fluorescent bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs.