Smart Growth Tools

The center city of Allentown deals with problems of a lack of development because of low income. As shown in figure 1, between 30-50% of households in the center of Allentown have an income that is less than $15,000. Not only does income play a role in development, but the balance of doing good and making money as well. The RenewLV program's goal is to provide smart growth through sustainable practices in farmland preservation, food sustainability, and smart transportation. Transportation is important because many workers in the center city rely on it to get to their jobs. 

Figure 1: Household income less than $15,000. Source: Social Explorer

Figure 2: Use of public transportation for workers. Source: Social Explorer

Presentation Reflections

Similarly to the chapter 10 presentation on metropolitan planning organizations, Allentown has a planning commission, the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission. This commission works on problems of transportation, environment, and community. The goal is to reach equality for the citizens of the Lehigh Valley area through the use of comprehensive planning.

Presentation Reflections

In the presentation on chapter 4, one of the main problems encountered with urban sprawl was civil rights. According to 2010 census data, Allentown is comprised of over 50% of the population white, around 40% Hispanic, and the remaining comprised of mixed races. As Allentown has developed, this has resulted in sprawl.Often the minorities are pushed out of their residential areas to make room for more upscale development. Although this is not the same civil rights issues as found in chapter 4, Allentown is still facing issues of equality in regard to urban sprawl.

Reflections on Advocacy Writing

The Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley, Inc. (CACLV) is an advocacy group who works to reduce poverty and improve equality for all in the Lehigh Valley/Allentown area. One of the ways they do this is through a combination of environmental initiatives. They believe that environmental sustainability can be achieved with an anti-poverty agenda. They speak out for those who are unable to and advocate for inclusive treatment beyond just environmental action. Having an organization that advocates for equality among a wide range of groups, whether economically, racially, or any other number of demographics creates a stronger community in an area. By doing this CACLV hopes to make the Lehigh Valley an inclusive area with equality for all.
For information on specific programs from CACLV, visit their annual program report.

Transportation Programming and Smart Growth

Allentown, Pennsylvania's transportation network focuses on developing to meet the new preferences in transportation with changing demographics, development, and travel patterns over time. The goal is to grow sustainably while improving ease of travel for citizens. The transportation improvement program prioritizes technical evaluation and economic impact. (LVPC). This improvement is to take place while keeping in mind safety, system maintenance, mobility and congestion management, partnerships and shared contribution, and support of the region and performance over time (LVPC). Keeping these ideas in mind, Allentown's infrastructure will help improve the area for residents, commuters, and visitors alike. Many other projects are being implemented as well to improve more than just vehicular transportation. Projects include expanding bicycle and pedestrian paths while increasing parking and vehicle flow. New street layouts are being proposed to increase the combination of transportation in Allentown.

Source: Downtown Allentown: Development and Urban Design Plan

For more information on specific projects, visit the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission website
For more information on development and urban design, visit the City of Allentown website

Environmental Justice

Environmental justice is essentially the fair treatment of people, regardless of economic or social status, race or nationality, and other demographics in regard to environmental problems. Historically, minorities have been marginalized when it comes to environmental actions. It is often simpler for organizations to take advantage of these minorities because they often do not have the power to fight back. By moving something such as a toxic waste dump to these areas, the problem is " not in my backyard" and therefore deemed to be acceptable. Oftentimes these people are unable to defend their homes for fear of losing jobs. This can be seen in coal minors who deal with toxic sludge or lung diseases because they are reliant on the coal industry for their income. These marginalized groups are unfairly treated simply because they have no other option and can be taken advantage of. Environmental justice seeks to remove this inequality and give everyone fair access to a safe and enjoyable environment.

An Inconvenient Truth

When watching an Inconvenient Truth for the second time, I was shocked by the continued prevalence of the issues discussed in the film. Climate films like an Inconvenient Truth, despite being well known, still reach a small audience. Many of the people who watch these films already understand the atrocity that is climate change, as opposed to introducing the concept to naysayers. This creates a problem for tackling climate change. The issues Al Gore covers are still part of the climate debate going on today and little progress has been made. The debate is too heavily centered around politics which prevents anything from being accomplished. Rather than recognizing the systemic problems affecting climate change, it is overshadowed by economic interests. Despite these problems, the film still provides relevant insights to the climate debate whether or not progress is being made.


Source: David, L., Bender, L., & Burns, S. Z. (Producers), & Guggenheim, D. (Director).
(2006). An Inconvenient Truth [Motion Picture]. United States: Paramount Classics.

Urbanization and Sustainability

Currently, about 94% of all Icelanders live in urban settings (UN World Urbanization Prospects Report). These urban settings are divided into a few main cities. Iceland's capital city, Reykjavik, is the country's most urbanized city with nearly 120,000 people residing there which accounts for about 40% of their population. Because the majority of people live in urban settings, this gives Iceland the opportunity to target sustainable growth and development in their urban areas. In Reykjavik, geothermal energy is the main source of energy. This powers the buildings, heats houses, and even powers greenhouses which provide food for the city (Blue and Green Tomorrow). Despite their geothermal energy production, transportation is a problem for the country. Car ownership is among the highest per capita in the world because the public transportation infrastructure is not well developed (Forbes). This is also due to the poor layout among cities in the country. It is not easy to travel from one city to another even though the country is not that large. This leads to increased CO2 emissions. According to 2010 data from the Environment Agency of Iceland, road vehicles are only second to industrial processes in terms of emissions from CO2. Currently, Iceland is working to target and reduce these emissions from vehicles as well as incorporating nature into urban planning.

Source: Environment Agency of Iceland

Food Security in Iceland

Due to Iceland's geography, Icelanders rely on imports for their main sustenance. Over the years Iceland has grown to become increasingly more reliant on imports. This includes the importation of pre-made foodstuffs or ingredients used in domestic production. Regardless, this makes Iceland susceptible to changes in supply and demand globally. This means food security could be at risk if economic recessions, global conflict, or changes to importation laws occur. Most food is held in the private sector and therefore if one of these aforementioned scenarios was to occur, this could be detrimental to the health of lower class households.

For more information on Iceland's food security risk, read "Food Security in Iceland" by Orri Jóhannsson, M.A. International Relations,ECPR, Reykjavik, August 2011

Sustainability and Health

According to the WHO country profile for Iceland, their health statistics remain in good standing in comparison to the WHO region. Overall, Iceland's health has been improving since independence in the mid 1900s and is currently highly rated in most health standards. Despite this, the leading causes of death among both males and females are currently cardiovascular diseases which account for 33% of deaths. Second to cardiovascular diseases is cancer which accounts for 30% of deaths. These are both non-communicable diseases which means prevention and treatment are not as simple as communicable diseases because causes vary. The Icelandic Cancer Society is working to research, inform, and prevent cancer in Iceland. Tobacco use, especially among women is a leading cause of cancer (WHO). Other factors are also to blame for these deaths which are currently being researched more by the Icelandic Cancer Society.

Data from the WHO
This chart shows the proportional mortality in percent of different causes in Iceland

Social Inclusion and Sustainable Development

Despite Iceland's high Gini coefficient, there have still been recent problems of social inclusion. Recently, a new tax policy changed the income threshold, lowering the income level at which people are exempt from paying income tax. Not only has the income tax level changed, but after the 2008 economic collapse, there were significant cuts in pensions and other public expenditures. "In Iceland, the richest 1% of taxpayers own nearly a quarter of all assets, while the richest 10% own nearly three-quarters of all assets. In contrast, 30% of taxpayers owe more than they own" (SGI). This social inclusion problem could either have a positive or a negative effect on sustainability depending on the allocation of the taxes. If the taxes go towards sustainable infrastructure and other sustainable practices, the country has the potential to improve as a whole, but if they do not, this leaves low income families with less of a  chance to contribute to sustainability because of the strain paying taxes puts on their income.

http://www.sgi-network.org/2015/Iceland/Social_Policies

Environmental Constraints

Iceland is on the forefront of the energy revolution and sustainability. Because of their reliance on geothermal power, their CO2 emissions remain relatively low.  As Iceland continues to reduce emissions, their fertility rate is also decreasing below replacement rate. This means consumption could potentially be reduced even further. Having such a small population allows for easier economic growth and transition to sustainable practices. The environmental constraints that Iceland faces are relatively minute in comparison to other larger, less sustainable countries, but there is always room for improvement. Iceland is working hard to further reduce these emissions and therefore improve the environmental constraints associated with energy production.

Sources: FAO Statistics and UN Population Projections

Nordic Economies

When comparing Iceland to the other Nordic countries, there are some striking similarities and differences. Despite being geographically similar and relying on natural resources for the majority of their original economy, there are still differences between origin and sustainability. In the beginning, countries such as Norway were the original colonizers whereas Iceland was the colony. Currently, the Nordic countries share the economic practice of the Nordic Model which is also referred to as Nordic Capitalism or Nordic social democracy. This system helps to provide free market capitalism as well as access to programs such as free education and free healthcare. The Nordic governments are working in conjunction with this system to also promote sustainability. The Nordic countries see sustainability as something that correlates with economic growth even though Norway relies on it's oil reserves. The countries are working to reduce the natural resource industries and increase renewable energy with Iceland leading the Nordic countries with 87% of their total energy supply coming from renewable energy sources. The other countries are lagging behind but still improving.

Sustainability and Economic Development in Iceland

Iceland was not settled at the same time as Western Europe. It took until the late 8^th century for people to spread from Europe and settle the island. Throughout its early years, Iceland was under Norwegian rule, followed by Danish rule. The country only gained its independence on June 17^th, 1944. In this regard, Iceland is a relatively new independent republic (http://www.localhistories.org/iceland.html). Despite gaining their independence, Iceland’s main exports and economic activities have remained centered around the fishing industry. For the most part, Iceland’s economy did not change much due to its reliance on natural resources and the constraints of culture (http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/61/266.html). Animal husbandry was a main means of support in conjunction with fishing. Currently fishing and fish products account for around 50% of foreign currency revenues (http://waterfire.fas.is/Iceland/). Because Iceland’s industry is so heavily focused around natural resources, no fortune 500 companies are located there. The land mass is also inconveniently located for quick trade global trade. All of these factors have helped place Iceland where they are today in terms of sustainability. Because they have to rely so heavily on imports for energy and other materials, it has helped them to become more reliant on renewable energy sources in order to keep more processes domestic. The geographic and natural resource constraints have helped to shape Iceland’s sustainability and way of life.

Development Metrics of Iceland

Below is a table of the demographic, economic, and environmental indicators of Iceland in recent years.

These two graphs also show interesting environmental information about Iceland.

The Age of Sustainable Development

In the first chapter of “The Age of Sustainable Development”, I feel like Sachs does a good job laying out the basic information about sustainability, how to achieve sustainability goals, and how sustainability is connected to other global factors such as economic development. When Sachs establishes Brundtland’s definition of sustainability, I tend to agree with her. Her idea that “sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs,” covers the general idea that globally consumption and other environmental impacts need to be kept in check in order to provide for the world now and in the future. I think this concept is useful normatively. It provides the desirable goal of sustainable development. Without this, there would be no baseline for what wise-use was. Even with this definition though, it allows for a lose interpretation of what is necessary to meet the global needs. The sustainable development goals that Sachs introduces to us in the chapter do help to provide some parameters to this definition. Overall, his chapter provided a useful introduction of sustainability and its interconnectedness globally.

For the research paper, I was thinking about researching either Iceland or Sweden.

Book Reviews of "The Bet"

In the book review of The Bet by Michael R. Greenberg, he begins by first introducing The Bet to the reader, summarizing the main points and giving background information on Ehrlich and Simon. Greenberg goes on to discuss the risk analysis that is seen in the book, pointing out the lack of focus on the aspect of uncertainty taking place in both Ehrlich and Simon's works. Greenberg also critiques the way in which Ehrlich and Simon went about debating their opinions. The review takes the position that their debating was not only unprofessional, but also led to the continued polarization of society on these issues. Overall, Greenberg liked how Sabin wrote the material, but he took a bigger moral picture from the writing than simply a historical view of the bet.
I tend to agree with Greenberg's views in his book review. When Greenberg says the reader learns " the political and personal issues behind the arguments [as well as] the wisdom of using abusive language and tactics in delivering arguments," in conjunction with his previous statement that the extremes can lead to polarizing problems, I think that logically summarizes Sabin's final chapter. Sabin leaves the final conclusion to the reader after providing a neutral basis for learning about Ehrlich and Simon and numerous risk-related debates of the past.

Reactions to the Bet

I felt that the Bet was an interesting way to learn about the environmental debates that went on in the past and how they reflect those that are going on today. While reading the book, it was very easy to see the similarities between ideology then and now, and how these debates set the tone for the political parties today. In the final two chapters, it was clear that the neo-Malthusian ideas of Ehrlich and the economic, technological views of Simon greatly changed how people viewed the environment and essentially split the nation in two. As Sabin wrote, the propaganda and intense opposition between Ehrlich and Simon greatly changed how people viewed these issues. Simon's argument made it seem as though the Earth's environment was magically improving, yet it was people like Ehrlich who were helping to influence those improvements. I thought Sabin eloquently provided both sides to the debate, but still provided his own insight to the situation in the final chapter. Sabin ended the book simply asking what type of world we desired which helped connect the reader to the book. This changed the book from informative to a self-reflection that puts the power in not just two men debating the environment, but the totality of the population.

Environment in the News

In the article, Americans Appear Willing to Pay for a Carbon Tax Policy, published in The New York Times on September 15th, the author Michael Greenstone discusses American's willingness to pay a carbon tax in order to help with carbon and climate mitigation techniques. In this article, Greenstone details that The Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC), which he directs, is the entity who ran the poll. In this poll, 43% of Americans were unwilling to pay a carbon tax while the other 57% were willing to contribute one to fifty dollars a month to the tax. While this strategy could be useful for mitigation purposes, when looking further into the author of the article, this could be considered to not be in the best interest of the public, but the author and his colleagues. Greenstone not only runs EPIC, but he is also director of the International Growth Center's Energy Research Program, as well as a member of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, and a member of the Task Force on the Future of Nuclear Power. Greenstone seems to have self-interests in other forms of energy which a carbon tax could provide funding for. This could also cut down on the competition of other forms of energy and make nuclear power seem like a better option than it has in the past. I cannot argue with Greenstone's statement that politically the major road block, "for confronting climate change has perpetually been the economic challenge," but I also cannot deny the fact that the passing of legislation like this seems like it would greatly benefit Greenstone and the programs he is involved in.

The article "Scientists See Push From Climate Change in Louisiana Flooding", published in the New York Times on September 7th, describes the use of attribution studies in climate modeling. Climate attribution studies are a scientific way of discovering the physical explanations for climatic events. The article takes the position that attribution studies provide sufficient information to deduce whether an event is linked to climate change or not. In regard to the recent flooding in Louisiana, attribution modeling was used to determine a connection to climate change. The warming of the atmosphere and oceans, as stated in the article, contribute to the intensity and length of storms. The scientists who ran this study believe this to be true and their information to be accurate although there are opponents to the idea. The author, as well as the New York Times, takes a liberal view on climate change issues which is reflected in the article's push that climate change was in fact a factor in the flooding. Though I agree with the idea that climate change offers a push in climatic events like the Louisiana Flooding, I do not necessarily agree with the speed at which these attribution studies have been accepted among some in the scientific community. Like most science, there needs to be a period of trial and error before a conclusion can be reached or a method to be proven effective.

Reactions to Malthus

While reading the first two chapters of “The Bet”, which primarily focus on Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon’s respective origins and ideas, I was amazed at the influence their upbringing had on them, as well as by the convincing nature of their arguments either for or against population growth. For Ehrlich specifically, he used his own experiences, such as the overcrowding he witnessed in Delhi as a way to personalize overpopulation (Sabin 2014, p. 22). Reading that excerpt from “The Population Bomb” was rather convincing to me in that densely populated areas, especially in less developed areas, are intimidating and often not seen as the most civilized or most hygienic. Once Ehrlich had introduced the idea of overpopulation, he could then use it as leverage to promote his own agenda in terms of population control. Not only does Ehrlich talk about “the need for action”, but he also acted on those thoughts (Sabin 2014, p.36). Representing a typical Malthusian idea, Ehrlich suggested the organization aptly named “Zero Population Growth”. This quickly became a neo-Malthusian idea when he began to target the population through birth control and limits on reproduction (Sabin 2014, p. 37).  Ehrlich urged anything that would limit population growth, whether it was through traditional birth control, abortion, vasectomies, or even the hypothetical proposal of “mandatory sterilizations, or temporary infertility imposed through pills or public drinking water” (Sabin 2014, p. 38/40). I agree to some extent with the Malthusian ideas, but not to the extremes that Ehrlich takes it. From a biological standpoint, every species has a certain carrying capacity in their habitat and an equilibrium which they will reach to live comfortably. I agree with the idea that genetically modifying crops, using pesticides, and assorted other technologies will only delay the inevitable, but I also find it to be extreme to use neo-Malthusian tactics. There needs to be a middle ground in this debate. Extreme consumption and overpopulation is a problem for our environment, but invoking harsh regulation on reproduction and aid to countries that cannot support themselves in unnecessary.

For more information about Paul Ehrlich's neo-Malthusian views, click here.

For a brief summary of the bet between Julian Simon and Paul Ehrlich, click here.

Sabin, Paul. 2014. The Bet: Paul Ehrlich, Julian Simon, and Our Gamble over Earth’s Future. New Haven: Yale UP.

In the Washington Post article, Jeff Tittel made interesting points about the EPA's intended clean up of the eight mile stretch of the Passaic River. Despite the validity of his statements, I do not believe the EPA should postpone cleaning the area. Just because the EPA's proposed plan does not completely eliminate the problems caused by years of contamination does not mean the residents of Newark should be forced to live in an area with carcinogenic waterways. In my opinion, the only way for the entire problem to be taken care of is to work towards the goal in small steps which is exactly what the EPA is beginning to do. For more information on what the EPA is intending to do on a larger scale, click here.