1. List three activities in your lifestyle that aggravates your impact on soil erosion.

Which, if
any, of these activities are you willing to give up? Why?

i. Continuous use of single-use plastic furthers the effect of climate change. Long then, climate
change exacerbates and alters climate cycles. It causes domino effects on natural processes
resulting in a global threat to the ecosystem’s function and capacity to provide. Soil erosion
is one of the main processes leading to land degradation (Koch et al., 2013) and mostly affects
the fertile top soil layer of an area that receives an intolerable amount of rain due to changing
weather conditions. Soil erosion under climate change is most directly affected by changes
in extreme precipitation (Nearing et al., 2004). Extreme precipitation is projected to increase
as a result of the increasing moisture-holding capacity of a warmer atmosphere, resulting in
a more vigorous hydrological cycle.
ii. Watering gardens and lawns excessively causes erosion. When the pandemic started
everyone was enticed to have their gardens alongside their homes my mother is one of them,
she enjoyed planting flowering plants and other ornamental plants within our backyard.
When using a garden hose or an irrigation system, the water hits the ground with enough
force to cause the soil to erode. In this view, overtime overwatering will also cause soil to
erode. in my experience, I have enjoyed watering plants in overwatered the soil to the
thinking of they might need an ample amount of water.
iii. As a future interior designer and in the present, the continuous use of wood as construction
material. According to (SoilScience, 2022) The effects of tree loss on soil are substantial. Trees
and shrubs protect the ground from the force of raindrops and provide shade, which lowers
surface soil temperature and thus evaporation. Logging and small-scale removal of trees
expose soil to rain splash which loosens and dislodges soil particles, eroding soil and creating
a more impermeable bare surface, which increases runoff.

Which, to challenge myself and to create a greater cause, I would choose to discontinue the use
of single-use plastics and the alike lifestyle that aggravates the impact of global warming. The tremendous
amount of usage of single-use plastic is long before addressed as one major contributor to pollution and
global warming. According to (Major, 2021) Sunlight and heat cause plastic to emit powerful greenhouse
gases, resulting in an alarming feedback loop. As our climate changes, the planet becomes hotter, and the
plastic degrades into more methane and ethylene, speeding up climate change and perpetuating the
cycle. In addition, 85% of the plastics especially those single used bags are ended up in the ocean and in
massive landfills that build an immense pile of pollutants (United Nations Environment Program, n.d) The
small act of refusing plastic bags and bringing our bags can take significance in the environment, least to
the community we are living in. In the long run, if we continue to practice using reusable bags and
containers for our goods and bought products on a large scale, we could not just lessen soil erosion yet
create a domino effect to a more sustainable future.

2. What are the two most important actions you would take to reduce hunger (a) in the
country where you live and (b) in the world?

Addressing the issue of hunger at the National and worldwide forum is no easy task for our
leaders, and as a student, I may have non to little significance in contributing, but the little things are
part of the solution that would help solve one of the world’s biggest problem.
i. As a student, I can start with active participation and contribution in building knowledge in
sustainable agriculture to maintain food security in the country. Part of which is joining seminars
on Sustainable farming, and how to set up Mini farms in our back yards are one of the many
possible ways we do to make our food and do not rely solely on mainstream supply. By knowing
how to make our Home-grown food, we got to see the importance of every crop thus it should
emanate a wider realization of a sufficient food supply, thus practicing to consume just the right
amount of food and limiting food waste could somehow make a difference.
ii. On a worldwide scope, as a student, our strongest weapon is our right to vote for the upright
leader. Choosing the right leader to address this issue is our light in the darkness (Liwanag sa
Dilim) of those on the poverty line, a leader that is concerned with its people can deliver a
worldwide impact on food security and hunger. Its platform is powerful enough to feed those who
are in need and elevated their life sustainably. As a student, we can extend our help by donation
and feeding programs yet it is a short-term solution that calls for a sustainable solution, that’s
why government programs are so critical in this kind of issue, and as a student, we have our
weapon on choosing only the right people to use its influence and platform to take an ideal picture
into reality.
Reference:

Eekhout, J. (2022, March 16). Land degradation. Global Environment Facility. Retrieved June 30,
2022, from https://www.thegef.org/what-we-do/topics/land-degradation

Soilscience. (2022). Deforestation | soils 4 teachers. Retrieved June 30, 2022, from
https://www.soils4teachers.org/deforestation/

United Nations environment program. (n.d.). Visual feature: Beat plastic pollution. UNEP.
Retrieved June 30, 2022, from https://www.unep.org/interactives/beat-plastic-
pollution/#:~:text=Approximately%2036%20per%20cent%20of,landfills%20or%20as%20unregulated%2
0waste.

Weeks, C. (2021, March 4). 5 ways your class can work to end hunger: Blog. Participate Learning.
Retrieved June 30, 2022, from https://www.participatelearning.com/blog/5-ways-your-class-can-
contribute-to-ending-hunger/

Major , kerri. (2021). Plastic waste and climate change - what's the connection? WWF. Retrieved
June 30, 2022, from https://www.wwf.org.au/news/blogs/plastic-waste-and-climate-change-whats-the-
connection#:~:text=As%20it%20does%2C%20sunlight%20and,and%20so%20perpetuating%20the%20cy
cle.