Brainstorming Topic

I am interested in investigating the relationship between the mass media and the environment, especially in relation to climate change. Below are two articles that discuss this topic through a narrower perspective:

Callison, Candis. "Distorting the climate message." Climate Cover-Up: The Crusade to Deny Global Warming, 2010. 161-162

This book review discusses the impartiality of mass media in relation to global warming. In their book, Climate Cover-Up, James Hoggan and Richard Littlemore argue that various public relations campaigns are distorting the public's "perception of climate change by presenting scientific conclusions as biased." Despite his position as a the president and founder of a public relations company in Vancouver, Canada, Hoggan claims that the mass media has the potential to "debunk" the credentials of climate experts, and as a result, the issue remains unsolved.

Russil, Chris., Nyssa, Zoe. "The tipping point trend in climate change communication." Global Environmental Change, 2009.

This report analyzes climate change, its relation to mainstream media, and how it influences the public. Tipping points in climate change can cause unwarranted anxiety amongst individuals, yet if the information released is too subtle, then it could result in a "false sense of security."

A slight turn in our course

In the case of the Ivory-billed Woodpeckers, humanity has taken a slight turn in its course to the destruction of our home. The reality of the situation has opened the eyes of many people, slowly deteriorating the old “utopian” world we have been summoned over the years. By utopian I mean that we have claimed ownership, by ourselves, over everything and eventually what we use will soon be refurbished. Through the recognition of the disappearance of the Ivory-billed woodpecker, a sign of faith and determination has triggered many to start valuing all the species roaming the earth; we are no one to decide whose population will be exterminated. We have now began founding organizations, performing research, collecting data to determine what adjustments need to be made to bring back species that are endangered. Restrictions on hunting rights have been imposed in order to be able to coexist with many species that foreshow the beauty of nature. Refugees for endangered species, miles and miles of forested parks, green energy…are only a few examples of how we’ve become more aware of our environment. We have begun to abandon our old habits.

Environmental Interconnectedness

One of the many significant things the Ivory-billed Woodpecker represents is humanity and nature's ability to extirpate species specialist in the environment. The Ivorybill specializes on old, dead, and dying growth trees and a warm and moist habitat (which promotes rapid decay). Since nature, through severe weather conditions, does not possess judgment, humanity (who does possess judgment) should take great care not to harm another fellow species by logging, timber harvesting, poaching, and collecting. We have an ethical obligation to do so. Disrupting a species' habitat by our activities speaks to the environmental interconnectedness we, as a class, discussed at the beginning, an interconnectedness that Jonathan Rosen discusses by elucidating the spiritual, the aesthetic, the artistic, and the cultural importance of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

Hope

Hope is what the Ivory-billed Woodpecker represents. Earth has been exploited for its resources since the existence of man, and as society develops, the natural world deteriorates. One by one species -- especially those considered "specialists" -- become extinct due to our technological advancements. Sadly, man prefers to focus on the future instead of the present and as a result weaker species experience the fatal consequences. Nevertheless, environmentally conscious individuals have realized the growing division between man and the natural world. Look at it this way: earth is the mother of all natural things; mankind is the child, and the more the child separates from his mother, the greater the chances of the child getting lost and losing sight of his purpose. The apparent extinction of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker in the late 1940s symbolizes the selfishness of mankind, and how it is losing sight of its origins. Nevertheless there were sightings of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker in February of 2004. Although it has not been confirmed whether this species still does exist, it does represent hope. Humans have little time to reestablish their connection with the natural world before its too late.

Indication

For me the Ivory Billed Woodpecker is a representation of an indicator species. From a biological standpoint I’m not sure if it really fits the scientific definition of an indicator species, although its absence seems to indicate a disorder in the natural cycle of the hardwood ecosystem, but from an ethical and human perspective it is a clear indicator. It is an indicator that we have become the most destructive invasive species on the planet, working our way into every crevice of the Earth. It is an indication that even something that artists and observers alike agreed possessed awesome natural beauty is not safe in the world we have created. And when we see fit to sit around discussing whether another species deserves to exist since its survival holds no obvious benefit for us, it is an indicator that our arrogance has reached ridiculous proportions. Perhaps more importantly though, the fact that we and others like us are continuing the discussions and even spending millions of dollars to support a Pollyanna hypothesis, indicates that there are still people who care and therefore there is still hope for the Ivory Billed Woodpecker and others like it.

P.S. I apologize for the mix up about this post, on Friday I was under the impression they were due today before class. I just got the e-mail, I realize this probably won’t count but I thought I’d do it anyway.

cockroaches, rats and pigeons

the ivory billed wood pecker would seem to me to represent a case of specialization, a biodiversity that is not necessarily Darwinian in order, a creature that developed to live successfully in the lost american wilderness. in its lack of adaptability, it shows us the defiant side of environmental balance, one that refuses to eat garbage or nest in skyscrapers. it is in its rarity, size and objective beauty a reminder of how callous we can be towards the natural order, how easily we could dismiss it, until it was or might be to late. it is a wonderful representation because as the reading suggests, something about it can captivate the human imagination, even civilization can grasp something of its inherent biotic value, and bring us to pause and reflect on what the natural order is, and what humans would assume is a normal succession of event, e.i progress. we can acknowledge in the woodpecker that alien intelligence and purpose so far from our own, and we are then able to regret its loss, and that of others like it.

P.S: sorry its late, i had no idea we had an hour to do it by!!

To Make Amends

An ugly truth of history is society’s addiction to destruction; the destruction of habitat is primarily to blame for the ivory-billed woodpecker’s extinction. Once a species known for its undeniable “charisma” and historically America’s largest type of woodpecker, the ivory-billed woodpecker represented something majestic, mysterious, and inherently natural. After its habitat was torn down for lumber and the species reduced to extinction, this bird now represents a chance at redemption. With sightings of a male of the species fifty years after it was thought to be extinct, there is hope that with effort, the species may be able to be saved. However, it is unlikely that the species can repopulate on its own accord. The bird represents a responsibility for ornithologists—what society has destroyed, it must now help recreate. And it is purely by chance that we are even given the opportunity to help. After the ivory-billed woodpecker’s omission from bird catalogues in recent years, it is amazing that in the middle of an Arkansas wildlife refuge, G. Sparling was able to not only spot the woodpecker, but identify it as one of an extinct species. This speaks volumes for a bird that has spent decades without being spotted. Something so powerful to the ornithology community must be worth saving.

The Ivory-billed woodpecker symbolizes the struggles of the American environment. On page 68 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that "one byproduct of human habitat modification is that we are losing specialist and finding ourselves more and more sharing the planet with only generalists, such as cockroaches, rats, and pigeons." We are increasingly losing beautiful species that live in only certain habitat conditions. Our world is becoming less and less diverse. With this declining diversity, comes a decline in unique beautiful species. The ivory-billed woodpecker symbolized everything that our environment has lost due to issue such as deforestation and overutilization, but it also represents hope that we may still be able to save some of the species we have lost. Along with other examples like the Louisiana brown pelican, the ivory-billed woodpecker can be an example of how human actions can also reverse the mistakes of the past.

Hello World!

The Ivory-billed woodpecker represents our disregarding of nature and shows us where the true values of society lie today. We may be gaining some reverence for our ecosystem back, but only because we are now forced to look at the destruction the we have manifested. This bird makes humanity take a second look at what we have done with an utter lack of respect for the earth. One or several broken or missing links in the interconnected web of life could prove devastating for us and the whole world. Weather or not the species is still surviving or the recent ivory-billed spotting was mistaken for some other woodpecker, which I am beginning to think is what might have happened, it got us thinking. It should serve as a warning sing that we should change our ways of deforestation and lack or respect for nature and think about someone or something else besides ourselves.

Bird of Hope

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker represents the fading American wilderness and environment, but also the hope of saving it. When America entered the industrial revolution, in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, American entrepreneurs and companies put money and growth above everything else, including the environment. The success of our countries economy made Americans not think about the environment, so we just continued to grow for the sake of Greed. The growth damaged and killed many ecosystems, Habitats, and species. The great American frontier and wilderness that made our country what it is, was now vanishing fast. “The Ivory-bill has become an emblem of the now vanished American wilderness” (Rosen p.66). Some people noticed this happening and tried to stop this destructive machine, to America and to the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, but there wasn’t enough awareness at the time. Now-a-days, I see a change in our country. There has been a lot of change done already and there is an abundant amount of people who are willing to help. There is a chance to save our country’s wilderness, and there is a chance to save the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. This bird is a symbol of hope.

The emblem of the now vanished American wilderness

Jonathan Rosen puts it very feel what the Ivorybill woodpecker represent, “The Ivorybill has become an emblem of the now vanished American wilderness.” Once the human species came to the North American contentment nature was doomed to never be the same. We as humans have left an ugly footprint on nature. Only in the last fifty-year have we tried to undo some of the thing we have destroyed. The good thing about nature is that it can rebound quickly. Like letting the Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge re-grow the Ivorybill can come maybe come back. This draws me to another question; how should we feel about the woodpecker and humans cutting down it forest? Without cutting down the forest in the beginning how would we begin to grow crops and start to set up housing. How would we begin to progress to what we have we become? Do we not enjoy the lab-tops, t.v.’s and ipod we use. We needed to progress to enjoy the many thing we have today. This has come with a cost, the extinction of the Ivorybill and its forest it once lived in.

i am not a scientist

We can all agree that the ivory-billed woodpecker is a beautiful being. It represents in a sense the death of beauty. We, as humans, have destroyed its natural habitat, killed this bird for sport, and haven’t done anything to preserve this species, until the last couple of decades. Maybe it is “too little too late”, but from what I have gathered we have done everything to try and bring them back to life. In class we articulated the question of: Does the ivory-billed woodpecker still exist, or is it extinct? We looked at the evidence and it seems like the class has understood it to be a lost cause. I, on the other hand, do not believe that. It says in the case study one that, The Big Woods has 220,000 acres of bottom land forest and 40 percent of the forest is approaching maturity. They also explain that “If a few breeding pairs do exist, most of the conditions believed to be required for successful breeding and population growth are becoming more available to them”. We have the resources, we just need the means. All we have to do now is relocate and help this species survive. I want to believe they exist; I am not a scientist or anything close to it, but we are not doing this in vain. We are doing this to make up for our negligence.

A Natural Beauty

The Ivory- Billed Woodpecker is more than just a bird. It represents life, a chance for a second chance for a beautiful species. It represents the underdog coming out on top, like a flower finding the ability to grow through a crack in the sidewalk. The evidence that has been established in regards to this particular bird are not exactly up to par. Two ordinary men in a boat swear they see it and get a video that looks like a simple blur through trees. The beauty of this bird is that it may roam free where humans are afraid to tread, they are fearless. While we were going through all the recorded "evidence" in class and continuing to read about this particular bird it comes to my attention that this bird thrives or use to thrive are in the depths of forest. This bird lives in the shadows, so in all honesty we really have no idea how many there are. Scientists, or maybe even most people would disagree with that statement but I say let them. What irritates me in a way that we are spending countless millions are trying to tract a bird that purposely wants to be left alone. If we as humans have already caused the destruction of such a species via deforestation, etc. should we not at least leave the possible rebirth of this species alone and let nature take its course?

A Chance to Save Ourselves

The case of the Ivory Billed Woodpecker is both one of hope and of despair. Considering its aesthetic qualities is enough to make one sympathize with the bird. Its impressive three-foot wingspan and beautiful markings must be quite a sight. To quote a cliche, "you don't know what you've got till it's gone." The loss Ivory Billed Woodpecker has been reconsidered, and perhaps this time around, we will be mindful of its vulnerability. It is a reminder that nature can and ill fight back. Nature does have resilience. We must appreciate this strength and respect its weakness. By continuing to destroy habitats around the world, many people do not realize that we are actually destroying our own habitat. Humans often forget that they are animals as well, and at a certain point, this destruction is going to spell our demise as well. Weather this woodpecker is still alive or not, it is a metaphor for the fact that there is still a chance to save nature and it is imperative we take advantage of this closing window of opportunity to save it.

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker and its possible extinction is not just a loss of a species, something that happens everyday. The birds disappearance represents humans lack of concern for anything other than themselves. People have caused the Ivory-billed Woodpecker to have such low numbers or possibly be completely wiped out. If we are able to recover the missing bird then maybe we have a chance to reverse some of the damage that has been done. As minute as a single species, that is not human, may seem, they all play a roll in a nature and are important whether one realizes their significance or not. It is important to respect each and their habitat. Our species has no excuse for the destruction of nature. It is time we finally try to preserve what is left before there is nothing at all. 

For me the case study and the nature conservancy data have come to show without a doubt that the search for the ivory-billed woodpecker is certainly far more important than the bird itself. The hunt for the ivory billed wood pecker has become a sort of commentary on the conservationist movement itself. Can our actions in fact reverse some of the damage we’ve caused? The answer to that remains unknown but perhaps if the wood packer can be found alive we might have some idea. Personally, I would not be surprised if the bird was indeed alive, being such an elusive creature it wouldn’t be entirely surprising if there were in fact one or two lurking around somewhere.

Societal transformation in need

The Ivory-billed woodpecker is an iconic figure that represents the immediate transformation human society needs to take. Like the extinction of most species, the Ivory-bill dwindled into non-existence due solely to human activities: habitat destruction via logging and overutilization by humans. The loss of the Ivory-bill is not only the loss of one species; it is the loss of an aesthetic figure, a figure with “charisma” as Jonathan Rosen exclaims. In other words, its loss is not merely a numerical or statistical figure, it’s the loss of an enchanting, awe-inspiring creature, a category impossible to put a number on. The loss of this magnificent bird is, unfortunately, not an exception. Hundreds of species have gone extinct, and experts predict that by the year 2050 twenty-five percent of all animal and plant species will be threatened by extinction. We as one species, a comparably minute group to the rest of living organisms at that, have dominated the Earth and all its resources. Many people argue, “Why should we care, extinction is a natural process.” Others say, “It’s innate in beings to strive to be on top and dominate, therefore we are doing nothing wrong.” Well yes, extinction is a natural process, but not at this rate and not under these circumstances. And yes, the realm of nature is based on a hierarchical scheme, but humans are different from most other animals. We have the capability to rationalize, and just because we can does not mean we should. The extinction, or near extinction, of the Ivory-billed woodpecker due to anthropogenic effects reflects the responsibility and special care we must take for Earth and its creatures. Yes the Ivory-bill is just one species, but its one species gone forever, erased from the face of the Earth, and we have no right to make consciously make that decision. We must transform as society from exploiters to caretakers.