Authors:Jocelyn Chen, Agnes Thornberg Abstract: Dear Readers, We are proud to present Issue XXIV of Consilience: The Journal of Sustainable Development. As we approach the middle of 2021, we reflect on these past six months with a great sense of hope and optimism. The efficient vaccine distribution in the United States has brought back a feeling of normalcy as cases are dropping across the country. Although the COVID-19 pandemic is still very much real and full recovery from the tragedy that it has imposed will require a lot of time and resources, an end to the pandemic feels within reach and we are very inspired by the leadership and research that is paving the way. We recently passed the one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, that sparked conversations and protests against racism across the globe. Racial inequality remains a deeply rooted problem in the United States and we are saddened to see that this spring brought with it further condemnable acts of hatred and violence towards individuals based on race and ethnicity. While we are very delighted to watch as the world has come together to eradicate the COVID-19 virus and distribute the vaccine, it has become clear that these systems are also characterized by inequality. The quest for sustainability is symbiotic with that of equity, we can therefore not look towards a sustainable future without addressing this issue as well. Although the end of the pandemic may be a time for celebration, we have greater challenges ahead of us. The climate crisis is gaining urgency for each day that passes and it is imperative that the world unites and works together to tackle it. In Issue XXIV, we selected a collection of articles that examine the state of the planet and climate change with scientific rigor and objectivity. We open the issue with innovative ideas of applying biofluorescent bacteria to solar concentrators and bamboo for climate change. Then, the issue dives into studies of the potential for Namibian youths in sustainable cooking and groundwater resources in Long Island and Shelter Island. Finally, we close the issue with an opinion piece evaluating renewable energy goals in the state of California. We are immensely proud of the work that has been put into this issue by our team of editors and the authors that have submitted to us. We encourage you to further engage with us and take a look at our Briefings column, which publishes shorter opinion pieces on hot-button topics. You can also subscribe to the Consilience pages on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to stay informed about new articles that are posted, author highlights, events, and other journal news. This spring also saw the launch of our very own newsletter that we invite you to subscribe to here. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact us at consiliencejournal@gmail.com. We hope this issue has instilled you with the same feelings of hope and inspiration that we felt putting it together. Warmly, Agnes Thornberg, Editor-in-Chief Jocelyn Chen, Academic Journal Director PubDate: 2021-06-07
Authors:Smiti Gandhi, Andrew Liu Abstract: To combat pollution, habitat degradation, and waste of limited resources, scientists and environmental activists advocate for renewable energy – cleaner, inexhaustible forms of power. While there are numerous positives to this energy type, it is more expensive, more intermittent, and less efficient than readily available fossil fuels. For example, solar panels are only 15-21% efficient on average. One solution, the solar concentrator, uses reflective properties of glass to concentrate light towards a solar cell. This project investigates the integration of biofluorescent bacteria into concentrator photovoltaics, using visible light produced by these bacteria as an additional source of photons for solar cells. The purpose was to test how much this biofluorescent bacteria-based solar concentrator can enhance the power output of photovoltaic cells. The experiment consisted of 10 trials containing control glass concentrators and concentrators with biofluorescent E. coli, for a total of 1.5 hours under simulated light conditions and 1.5 hours in the dark. The power (wattage) of each recording was calculated at 15-minute test intervals and used to compare the control and bacteria-applied solar cells. On average, application of biofluorescent bacteria resulted in a power output increase of 61.46% in the light simulation and 273.6% in the dark. These findings suggest that the enhancement of photovoltaic cell performance using biofluorescent bacteria on a solar concentrator can allow for greater amounts of energy to be output by real-world solar panels. PubDate: 2021-06-07
Authors:Erica Kirchhof Abstract: According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, conventional agriculture accounts for approximately 19-29 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide—a proportion destined to increase with the rising world population. As a result, it is important to uncover areas where methods of sustainable agriculture can be implemented or improved, and fostering these opportunities in the agricultural communities of developing nations offers great potential for reducing international greenhouse gas emissions. For many areas of the world, one promising strategy can be found in the cultivation of bamboo. A perennial plant within the grass family (Poaceae), bamboo belongs to the subfamily Bambusoideae and consists of over 1500 known species in approximately 119 genera. Although endemic to nearly every continent, the greatest species diversity of bamboo can be found in the subtropical regions of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. This paper aims to examine the cultivation of bamboo in rural communities and developing nations as a strategy of climate change mitigation and land revitalization. The potential of bamboo to be used in international carbon trading schemes is also analyzed. As an agriculturally relevant crop for many remote communities, the cultivation and harvest of bamboo can provide a meaningful source of income to developing areas while also helping nations meet sustainability and emissions reduction goals. PubDate: 2021-06-07
Authors:Samantha Lindgren Abstract: Efficient cooking has long been of interest for its presence in multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including Good Health and Well-Being, Affordable and Clean Energy, Quality Education, Gender Equality, and Climate Action among others. Widespread uptake of an efficient cooking device, such as an “improved” biomass or LPG cookstove, has the potential to contribute to progress on many simultaneous fronts. However, unlike other sustainable development and public health initiatives, few cookstove programs include all household stakeholders, and rarely are youth, the future and current users of cookstoves, purposefully engaged in diffusion efforts. The results of a 2019 stratified survey of 200 households in two rural towns, one serving as a control group, in the Hardap region of Namibia indicate that youth-oriented Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) programming may be an effective means of inspiring changes in energy-related attitudes and behaviors in the home and across the community. Households with children who were past participants of an ESD program in the Namib Desert demonstrated an awareness of, and an openness to, solar energy as an alternative to biomass. This study highlights the importance of broadening the definition of stakeholder in the cookstove and energy development sector to include children, and points to youth-oriented ESD as a potential framework for shifting attitudes and behaviors, generationally at home and across the community. PubDate: 2021-06-07
Authors:Carolanne Boughton Abstract: Climate change is predicted to increase the temperature, precipitation, and sea level in the northeastern United States. For coastal communities, these impacts present challenges to maintaining the necessary quantity and quality of groundwater resources. On Long Island and Shelter Island, groundwater is the main source of freshwater for public supply, industrial uses and agriculture. This groundwater is recharged solely from precipitation that percolates into the unconfined aquifers below the ground. A growing population, increased development and urbanization, an expanding sewer system, and more intense storm events all pose threats to the regional groundwater recharge. Data from the Timescale decomposition tool, developed by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), substantiate a regional trend of warmer temperatures and increased precipitation. Climate change will likely alter the behavior of climate modes, including the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), East Pacific/North Pacific (EP/NP) patterns, and Pacific El Niño that impact the Long Island Sound region. Data from the KNMI Climate Explorer underscore a connection between PDO and land/sea global mean temperature, as well as El Niño and sea surface temperature anomalies. New York State has developed a water conservation policy concerning well-pumping practices and groundwater effluent standards. Long Island counties have also set local water management goals to improve wastewater treatment, enhance aquifer protection, and increase the transparency and availability of pumping records. These goals must be enforced and actualized. This paper recommends that Shelter Island develop a groundwater management plan like those in place throughout Long Island. The islands are advised to consider innovative water storage strategies such as Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR), Artificial Recharge (AR), and rainwater harvesting. These practices, along with land use and urbanization planning, will help promote local resilience and groundwater resource sustainability. Further modeling of local groundwater dynamics and enhanced knowledge of pumping practices are necessary to develop more accurate predictions of the groundwater system under future climate scenarios. PubDate: 2021-06-07
Authors:Hannah Findling Abstract: The intermittency of renewable energy poses challenges for California’s energy stability and reliability as the state pushes towards its goal of reaching 100% renewable electricity by 2045. Electricity generation from solar and wind power is increasing rapidly, but energy storage technology has not yet reached the levels of capacity to enable California to maintain energy stability on its own. California should merge into a regional energy market because this would solve the issues posed by renewable energy’s intermittency, and it would simultaneously enable renewable energy to stimulate the market for the entire region. A regional energy market could accelerate transitions to renewable energy beyond California’s borders and further California’s ultimate goal of mitigating climate change. The western region is already trending towards integration as more states join California’s Energy Imbalance Market every year, and the new federal administration could usher in a new era of climate action. California should capitalize on the current regional and political momentum to pass a bill in the state legislature to merge into a regional energy market. PubDate: 2021-06-07
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