POSC Assignment 1 Rachel Emard
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Apr 3, 2024
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Emard 1
Rachel Emard
Professor Stambaugh POSC 100-07
29 August 2023
Assignment #1 – Reframing the Issue
Part I
With climate change becoming an increasingly prevalent issue in the United States, it begs the question, who is to blame and how do we fix this issue? There seems to be a consensus that the blame lies with the major oil and fossil fuel companies because they contribute to gasoline-powered vehicles that harm the environment. Some environmentalists even say the blame can be shared with everyday people who drive gas-powered cars too often. They suggest that people should find an eco-friendlier way to travel such as electric cars or taking the bus to cut back on carbon emissions. Gas-powered vehicles emit greenhouse gases, which spread through the air and up to the ozone layer, causing irreversible damage. This is a major issue because the ozone layer is what protects earth from the sun’s rays and makes it livable for humans to be here on Earth without being burnt to a crisp by the sun. This issue is one of the most pressing amongst younger people because it is expected to have a direct impact on their future lives. The proposed solution is to switch exclusively to electric vehicles, which will reduce
the carbon footprint that most people contribute to daily just by driving. Many believe this would
help solve our environmental dilemma by preserving the ozone layer and slowing the negative effects of climate change.
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Part II When looking at the climate change issue and how to resolve it, the blame immediately falls on gas powered vehicles and the companies that produce them. However, an organization called Our Changing Climate reframes this issue and changes perspectives on what really should be done to solve it. They claim that simply transitioning to electric vehicles is not the answer because producing them is also very harmful to the environment due to the materials needed to make them. Materials needed to make electric car batteries such as lithium and cobalt are found in ecosystems that are destroyed and polluted by the mining of these minerals ("The Dark Cost of Electric Cars" 0:24:31)
. The cost of mining these minerals is not only destroying the land it comes from, but it also creates deadly and horrendous working conditions for those who work in the mines. These workers are taken advantage of by large corporations, doing all the work and seeing none of the benefits in return (“The Dark Cost of Electric Cars” 11:06). While electric cars cause way fewer carbon emissions during use as opposed to gas powered vehicles, the overall effects of switching to electric are far greater. This is due to the production process and the impact that mining the minerals used to make them has on the environment and the people who mine them (“The Dark Cost of Electric Cars” 0:14:28). The narrative that everyone should switch to electric vehicles as soon as possible to conserve the planet results in an overproduction of these vehicles, which is a complete waste of Earth’s natural resources. The rapid overconsumption of electric vehicles is more harmful to the environment than sticking with the gas-powered vehicles that most people use now. The organization promotes the values of living more sustainably and being conscious of what natural resources are being put towards to promote
the well-being of the planet and its ecosystems as whole (“The Dark Cost of Electric Cars”
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0:23:20). The proposed solution is to urge people to consider the weight of their overconsumption patterns and the effects it has on the environment to push everyone to start living more sustainably. “I conducted research on plagiarism using several sources, and I have a clear understanding of the different forms of plagiarism. I did not plagiarize, and I rephrased all content in my own words, provided in-text citations for quotes and paraphrased material.” (Rachel Emard)
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Works Cited
"Reframe the Issue." Beautiful Trouble
, 1 Jun. 2012, beautifultrouble.org/toolbox/tool/reframe-
the-issue/
. Accessed 30 Aug. 2023.
"The Dark Cost of Electric Cars." YouTube
, uploaded by @OurChangingClimate/Our Changing Climate, 30 Jun. 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCECoZBZ5aU
.