Uy, Kamsha I.

MST Science Education

Environmental Science

1.
Environmental Science is a natural science. It is highly interdisciplinary (Lieder, 2007). It
draws on many fields such as geology, biology, chemistry, mathematics and many more.
Environmental studies focus more on policy, law, and the political aspects of the environment. It
specifically deals with the scientific aspects of the environment. It is mostly focused on the scientific
research, may it be laboratory as well as field, and analysis to reach out to conclusion for the
betterment of the degrading environmental conditions. It also incorporates more of the social sciences
for understanding human relationships, perceptions and policies towards the environment
Environment Studies, on the other hand, deals with the social aspect of the environment. It is
a multidisciplinary academic field which systematically studies human interaction with
the environment in the interests of solving complex problems. It brings together the principles of the
physical sciences, commerce/economics and social sciences so as to solve contemporary
environmental problems. It is a broad field of study that includes the natural environment, the built
environment, and the sets of relationships between them. One example aspect is the impact of global
climate change on the demography, per capita income, food security, impact of environmental
degradation on the social structure (Thyberg, 2004).
An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with or advocates the protection of the
environment. A person who is a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, a political and
ethical movement that seeks to improve and protect the quality of the natural environment through
changes to environmentally harmful human activities (Courtney, 2009). He conducts research to
identify, control, or eliminate sources of pollutants or hazards affecting the environment or public
health. Their research generally involves determining data collection methods; collecting and
analyzing air, water, and soil samples; analyzing environmental data gathered by others; and
analyzing for correlations to human activity. They also need to prepare reports and presentations that
explain their findings. An environmentalist also develops plans to prevent, control, or fix
environmental problems like air pollution. They may also advise government officials that make
policy, and businesses that need to follow regulations or improve their practices.

Environmentalism advocates the preservation, restoration andr improvement of the natural

environment and critical earth system elements or processes such as the climate, and may be referred
to as a movement to control pollution or protect plant and animal diversity. Environmentalism can be
described as a social movement or as an ideology focused on the welfare of the
environment. Environmentalism seeks to protect and conserve the elements of earth's ecosystem,
including water, air, land, animals, and plants, along with entire habitats such as rainforests, deserts
and oceans.

2.

Ecological principles are basic assumptions (or beliefs) about ecosystems and how they
function that are informed by the ecological concepts. Ecological principles use ecological to draw
key conclusions that can then guide human applications aimed at conserving biodiversity. First is
protection of species and species’ subdivisions will conserve genetic diversity. Retaining a variety of
individuals and species permits the adaptability needed to sustain ecosystem productivity in changing
environments and can also beget further diversity. Second is maintaining habitat. This is primarily
because it is fundamental in conserving species.

While environmental principles offer protection to our natural world. They act as guidance for
judges and decision-makers, giving laws shape and meaning. They are used in a whole host of
government and public authority decisions, including planning applications, management of marine
protected areas and dealing with contaminated land.
Uy, Kamsha I.

MST Science Education

Journal Synthesis on Butterflies and their contribution in ecosystem

Growing up, I see my uncle collect butterflies in a frame. He personally catches it whenever
he goes on a trek or something. There are approximately more than 20,000 species of butterflies in the
world. An adult butterfly probably has an average life-span of approximately one month. In the wild,
most butterflies’ lives are shorter than this because of the dangers provided by predators, disease, and
large objects, such as automobiles. We see butterflies as eye candy. From dull to vibrant colors, they
over-all compliment the nature. But what do really butterflies contribute to the ecosystem?

Pollination is the act of transferring pollen grains from the male anther of a flower to the
female stigma. The goal of every living organism, including plants, is to create offspring for the next
generation. One of the ways that plants can produce offspring is by making seeds (Russ 2013). But
how does pollen get from one flower to another? Flowers must rely on vectors to move pollen. These
vectors can include wind, water, birds, and insects such as butterflies that visit flowers. We call
insects that transfer pollen from plant to plant “pollinators”. That being said, butterflies act as
pollinators, a food source and an indicator of the ecosystem's well being. Butterflies play a big role in
pollinating flowers that open during the day. They play vital role in the ecosystem, there is co-
evolutionary relationship between butterflies and plants, their lives are interlinked (Ghazanfar, 2016).

Kearney (2015) point out that butterflies collect nectar from plant species, which induce
genetic variation in the plants. Some butterfly species migrate over long distance and share pollens
across plants which are far away from one another. This helps plants to recover against disease and
gives them a better chance at survival. Landres and Simberlof (1988) demonstrated that Indicator
species indicate the physical and chemical changes in the environment, or the abundance of other
species through changes in their own abundance. These indicators are known as ecological indicators
and main goal of indicators is to measure the complex system without missing important information.
In many regions of the world Lepidoptera are accepted as the ecological indicators of the ecosystem
healthy. Aside from pollination, butterflies also help reduce air pollution. These species decrease the
carbon dioxide by absorbing it in the air.

Knowing how important butterflies are in ecosystem, it is therefore recommended to never

catch a butterfly. We should encourage people to leave butterflies to fly free. We should just admire
their beauty from afar. We should all be aware about the importance of butterflies and other insects.
Because the protection and conservation of ecosystem and wildlife is of utmost importance.