For this project we were tasked with identifying an ecological problem and finding a solution for it. We would then proceed to make a presentation and an action plan to help create change. The action plan had to include how humans were impacting said environment and how we were going to make a difference. Our group decided to focus on polar bears and how they are hunted and how their environment is affected by climate change. For this project we had to keep three questions in mind:
1. How do humans have a lasting impact on species or populations and their environment?
Industrial buildings, towns, houses, and cities all take living space away from populations. Other effects include pollution from fossil fuels or other waste products, illegal killing of animals, and integration of exotic animals into the environment. We are taking away resources and habitats from plants and animals.
2. What can we do to minimize human impact on the environment?
We can be more conscientious of waste disposal and can cut back from using fossil fuels or plastics.
3. How do we humans prioritize the solutions to minimize human impact on the environment given social, environmental, and economic factors?
As a country I would say we do a pretty good job, but other countries in Asia and Africa produce massive amounts of waste and they need to be stopped. So as a whole, humans have more work to do.
Solution
Our main problem was that nearly 500 polar bears are killed per day by poachers due to habitat loss and poor anti poaching laws in Canada. Our proposed solution was to raise money to adopt polar bears through the WWF and also to raise awareness for the amount of illegal hunting that goes on in Canada. We also created an Instagram page to spread awareness about the issue.
We created a Document with all of our work in an easy to access format so anybody can view it and laern about polar bears.
After we made the document we had to make a google slides for our presentation. We had to go over topics such as the carbon cycle, independent relationships, cycles of energy, and many more. This is the slide show:
Concepts
Individual: A single living organism Population: species that live in the same habitat
Community: populations of different species interacting together
Ecosystem: how the communities interact with their environment
Biome: group of ecosystems that have the same climate or other similarities
Biosphere: where all life exists in the world Abiotic Factors: Physical rather than biological; not derived from living organisms.
Biotic Factors: The living parts of an environment. Below is a list if both abiotic and biotic factors in the Arctic:
Biotic Factors
Short grasses
Low shrubs
Moose
Hares and caribou
Carnivores
Foxes, polar bears, wolves and walruses
Abiotic Factors
Strong winds
Rainfall
Short summer days
Long and cold winters
Permafrost layers
All these factors affect how much life the arctic can hold, also known as carrying capacity.
While many of the organisms of the arctic are different, they all share some common traits. That being whether they are Autotrophs or Heterotrophs.
Autotrophs: Use energy from environment as food (ie sunlight and chemicals). Autotrophs are typically plants
Heterotrophs: Rely on other organisms for food (includes herbivore, carnivore, and omnivore).
The levels at which all organisms sit are called trophic levels. As energy moves up the levels, only 10% is transferred, this is called the 10% rule.
Symbiosis: Any long term, close relationship between organisms. The four types of symbiosis are:
Mutualism: both of the organisms/individuals benefit. An example of this would be bees and flowers.
Competition: when two or more organisms rely on the same environmental resource. An example of this would be humans and sharks competing for the limited resource of fish.
Parasitism: where one individual benefits and the other is harmed. An example of this would be ring-worms using humans or other organisms as a host.
Commensalism: where one organism benefits greatly and the other is not affected at all. An example of this would be chickens and cows when the chickens eat the bugs the cows walking causes to surface.
Cellular respiration and photosynthesis: Without each other, our planet would die. Cellular respiration creates CO2 for photosynthesis which creates oxygen for cellular respiration.
Cellular respiration: C6H12O6 + 6O2 = 6CO2 + 6H2O
Photosynthesis: 6CO2 + 6H2O —> C6H12O6 + 6O2
Reflection
Overall it was a fun project, I really enjoyed learning about polar bears and how we can help them. My group was fantastic and we always managed to get our work done on time. One of the only hiccups was when it rained and we couldn't go door to door to ask for donations, but we rose past it and continued on. I liked learning that one of the biggest threats to polar bears was hunters and I am glad we did something to prevent the hunters from poaching the bears. Personally I could have worked on staying on task during certain parts of the project where I didn't have to do much work. One thing I would change would be the time frame we worked with. It felt a little rushed to the point where I was confused on deadlines and due dates for certain parts. However, overall it was a great group and project.