Millions of people in over 150 countries, 7000 cities, across 7 continents are getting involved from turning off their lights to many other exciting events and campaigns. According to WWF, it's the largest grassroots environmental movement in the world, which is extraordinary and a very exciting thing to be a part of. Some of the projects occurring today include: a voyage to Antarctica by UAE 17 year-old environmental ambassador, Spiderman is showing that everyone can be a superhero in helping the planet in Japan, Taiwan is holding a 4 km night run and many many more. I am very sad to be missing out on WWF's current panda invasion of Southbank in London! If you're around you should go check it out.
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| As part of the grand finale for #passthepanda, WWF have unleashed 60 pandas along Southbank to help raise awareness for Earth Hour. They’ve been taking selfies with the public and even broke out into a bit of dance! Let them know if you spotted any! |
The UK is doing its bit by donating all of the money raised through Earth Hour UK to support work in the Mau Mara Serengeti, one of the most spectacular places on Earth. The Mau Mara Serengeti’s vast and open grasslands are home to one of the richest collections of wildlife in the world. This incredible landscape also supports the livelihoods of more than one million people - from the many communities who depend on the natural resources around them to the semi-nomadic Maasai, who have long lived in harmony with nature.
Earth Hour is a brilliant reminder that together we can make change happen!
Sign up to be a part of Earth Hour here, and follow today's events here. Do whatever you can to join in, no matter how small! My plans are being in my room with all lights and electronics off, reading an environmentally supportive novel (Wolf Totem by Jiang Rong) by wind-up torchlight. Let me know what you are up to if you are participating later, would be great to hear from you. Good luck!
Hey! It's a really nice blog what you've got here. I really like your motivation and commitment for fighting for a better world. There has to be major changes in our society so that we can reach a sustainable and better future... otherwise, there might not be any future at all. In this regard, I think that sustainability (or however you wanna call it) is not only about saving nature, or what's left of it, it's about saving ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI found your blog because, just like you, I'm pursuing an education in environmental issues and UCL's MSc in Environment, Science and Society is the programme that appeals me the most. I've already looked into the courses included in the brochure and I think they're awesome and interesting. However, I've been looking for opinions on forums and blogs about the programme and this is the only page I have found.
So, would you mind if I ask you some questions about the MSc? :)
Thank you and greetings from Mexico!
Hello, to you from the UK! Thank you for your lovely comment! Sadly, do not have much time to keep my blog updated at the moment because of my MSc, but I'm very glad you like it and share my sentiments about sustainability (and as you suggest, that is a very difficult word to define!)
ReplyDeleteI would be very happy to answer any questions you have about the course, and if I can't answer anything I will ask my coursemates what they think. There is only about 30 of us, so it's quite a small and unique course, but that only serves to make it better. :)
Hey!, Thanks for your answer!
ReplyDeleteSo, firstly, was it really difficult for you to be accepted in the MSc? I'll be graduating this year with a first-class honour and I think I can get two really nice recommendation letters (one from my thesis tutor, who is a UCL alumnus, and another from a current UCL's geography department professor, who has nothing to do with this MSc but is still part of the department's faculty). Do you think I have good chances of being accepted?
Second, what's the academic background of the students in the programme? I ask this because, although I'm a geography major, I'd like the course to have some interdisciplinarity.
Thanks and I'll let you know if I have more questions!
Efraim
You're welcome :)
ReplyDeleteI applied quite late (in August I think) and had a 2.1, and had two academic referees who were not geography related, so I think you will be accepted no problem! Especially as it's usually a small course so they are unlikely to run out of places.
And that's one of the brilliant things about the course, we all have very different backgrounds! I myself did history & law for my degree. The others on my course include journalists, geographers, law, politics, language studies, biology, zoology, international studies, history and development studies. This course was definitely designed for the multidisciplinary, which is what drew me to it. I also put that in my personal statement.
Hey! :) It's been a while since I last asked you a question; the thing is that I've been busy with my dissertation project and I actually had to go out for some days and do some field work. I want to thank you again for your answers and your patience. I hope I'm not being annoying :S
ReplyDeleteSo, I have another question: what makes this course a Geography Msc? I mean, what do you think it makes it different from other similar courses that are offered in Environmental Science departments?
I know I told you that I want the course to be interdisciplinary, but I guess you know by now how we geographers love to boast about our discipline (lol), and I don't want to part ways with geographical theory for good. In this sense, geographers tend to say that we think about and study "space". So, does this course make special emphasis in concepts such as place, territory or region?
I asked my coursemates about this question because I think it does depend on the modules you take, and because my background isn't geography I am less interested or knowledgeable about spatial aspects. I feel it is the human side of geography so less scientific, and one of coursemates suggested that also. I think the science comes from the research projects that we do because it is 'social science'.
ReplyDeleteOne of my coursemates said: 'If she takes Thinking Space in first term then she would get a shit load of spatial theory that integrates those sort of concepts (lots of Massey, Harvey, spatial interpretations of Lefebvre, Marx, Foucault and non-representative thinkers). Although I haven't found the rest of the course to be particularly geographical in comparison to my undergrad I've found that I've applied a lot from that module in my essays to frame my arguments, particularly in terms of redressing non-geographical interpretations of issues that are the focus of disciplines like Science & Technology studies. I think the geographical element of the course is very much what you make of it in that sense- it doesn't have to be there if you don't want it to but you can go really full on if that's what you like!' And another replied that 'All this space nonsense is a result of geographers losing confidence in the much better definition of the discipline which is that it is about exploring the relationship between the physical world and the social. On ESS we have learnt about how the distinction between these two is a false dichotomy (ie Latour etc). You can of course bring space into all of this but you don't necessarily have to.' I like his points, that space isn't necessarily that important but it can be developed further if you individually wish to.