Introduction
Climate change, environmental impact, and sustainable development are critical areas that have received attention from various researchers and agencies. Humans live in an era where science has provided knowledge on most phenomena. However, they do not understand some things and have questions that may impact their quality of life in the future. Individuals have written numerous articles to explain the current happenings in the world. Therefore, people need to identify the materials that provide the needed information or appeal to their emotions. In this essay, a critical evaluation of the similarities and differences between three different articles on sustainable development, the environment, and climate change is discussed. Although the articles in question might seem to address completely different topics, they are bound by the same theme of pursuing sustainability on personal, statewide, and global levels.
Analysis: Similarities and Differences
“I’m a young environmentalist battling climate change through tiny actions” by Elliot Freeman is an article that gives a little life history of Kevin Patel and describes how he began advocating for the protection of the environment. The second article, “Why is California still drilling for oil despite its ambitious climate goals?” written by Alejandra Borunda, provides details of the spills in California and their effects on the state. Lastly, Deland Chan’s “Sustainable Communities for Whom: Cultural Tactics in the Pursuit of Ecological Sustainability” explains the significance of developing sustainable plans while considering the communities. The three articles have varying writing styles that make them appropriate for their audiences, contexts, and purposes.
One similarity between the articles is that the authors provide data and statistics shared by international organizations to prove their credibility. On the contrary, they have used different writing formats due to the difference in their purposes and readers. Freeman’s writing style is persuasive as he presents his biases and opinions to the audience. The aim of Elliot’s article is to persuade individuals to take part in combating climate change. In addition, he includes arguments and justifications to convince his readers to accept the idea of participating in combating climate change and environmental problems. The author explains how Patel saw the environmental inaction and started protesting, petitioning political officials, and demanding climate justice from everyone to initiate change (Freeman 3). Giving his story and the accomplishments of Kevin’s effort makes him a role model for others to emulate. In a broader sense, both articles address the concept of sustainability and the means of reinforcing its significance in the context of modern global society to prevent further deterioration of the environment from happening.
Freeman, in his commentary, talks about the organization Patel has set up to encourage marginalized youths to improve their surroundings. The author explains that Patel was diagnosed with arrhythmia, which made him start to research the condition’s cause. According to Elliot, Patel’s neighborhood was classified as “sacrifice zones” as they were near oil wells and factories that caused the prevalence of the disease. Freeman justifies Patel’s actions by saying, “That’s where environmental inaction and damage have resulted in arrhythmia-stoking levels of smog,” which warranted an action (2). Kevin asserts that change can happen if the communities in crisis are at the frontline of fighting against environmental degradation. Thus, Kevin’s article shares the same sentiment of introducing sustainable measures of mitigating the current outcomes of industries on the environment, thus, improving the ecosystem and minimizing hazards to people’s health and the existence of multiple species.
“Why is California still drilling for oil despite its ambitious climate goals?” is an expository article, meaning that it focuses on describing the issue and examining its nature. The article provides factual information on oil drills in California and explains why California’s actions contradict its climate goals. Alejandra focuses on a specific topic and gives relevant facts and descriptions. He has highlighted figures and research in the article and cited accurate sources to enhance his validity. According to Borunda, the Ocean ad Coastal Policy Center director, Charles Lester, believes that stopping oil extraction will not protect human health and coastal life because oil extraction, refining, and production will continue to endanger them (3). By giving accurate figures, he ensures efficient presentation for better understanding. Borunda mentions the recent underwater pipeline leak in Southern California that has covered the coastal areas to introduce the audience to his ideas (3). She has arranged his information logically and sequentially to show his flow of thoughts.
Furthermore, Borunda asserts her knowledge to the readers by providing a long history of spills in California and their effects on the environment. He goes back to 1969 when over four million oil gallons spilled near Santa Barbara and spread over thirty-five miles along the coastline, killing numerous birds (Borunda 13). She also mentions the 1990 tanker accident that dumped about four hundred thousand gallons of oil along thirty-five miles of coastline of three beaches, causing three thousand four hundred birds’ deaths (Borunda 15). Another spill happened in the north of Santa Barbara in 2015. One hundred and forty-three thousand oil gallons poured into the ocean, washing up on Refugio Beach and killing over one hundred six marine mammals and two hundred birds (Borunda 16). Highlighting these events creates a historical context in his writing that deepens the readers’ understanding of the text. The author has provided the period of the specific oil spills to set the stage for the tone of his writing and create an understanding of the severe impacts of California’s oil activities.
In contrast to the previous two papers, which can be described as mostly expository in nature, the author of “Sustainable Communities for Whom: Cultural Tactics in the Pursuit of Ecological Sustainability” uses an argumentative writing style to suggest alternative ways of increasing sustainable development in the community. Deland says that authorities need to have a holistic approach toward sustainability if they want it to be effective. When drafting the strategies, they should consider the community’s cultural values, practices, and norms that govern their sustainability tactics. He analyzes two cases of the Los Angeles Little Tokyo Cultural Ecodistrict Plan and the San Francisco Sustainable Chinatown Plan to convince his audience to side with him (Chan 4). Deland argues that the current measures to promote sustainability, such as PlaNYC are inadequate. According to Chan, PlaNYC measures are highly technical and do not resonate with people’s daily lives, presenting the likelihood of tensions (3). Further, these policies offer a general approach to sustainability that aggravates inequality as governments use environmental strategies to benefit privileged societal members.
Chan believes that the case studies developed neighborhood sustainability plans by confronting gentrification. They formulated policies that uphold culturally-relevant definitions and consider cultural heritage, which positively impacted their sustainability goals. The author reviews past literature, explaining that policies to reduce carbon emissions and improve the planet’s ecology fail to materialize if they are not socially or culturally acceptable. He highlights a few examples, including Mexico City, where strategies to promote a healthy environment backfired. Chan gives factual evidence by highlighting how Little Tokyo Cultural Ecodistrict and Sustainable Chinatown have achieved tremendous success in their sustainability goals by recognizing the communities’ heritage and cultural values (13). Deland aims to persuade policymakers to reconcile community-led and citywide sustainability initiatives to promote sustainable development. He states that citywide plans are essential as they provide funding and collaboration between different city agencies. These plans should complement community-led tactics that prioritize peoples’ needs to tackle ecological sustainability.
Conclusion
Though the aforementioned articles have utilized different writing techniques to communicate to their audiences, they still render a similar idea regarding the promotion of sustainability and the focus on collaboration on multiple levels in order to address the key concerns. Elliot Freeman uses a persuasive format that highlights efforts of Patel to protect the environment. He persuasively invokes a sense of responsibility in the readers to take action. On the other hand, Alejandra’s commentary is an expository article that provides insights into the adverse effects of oil extraction, production, and refinement on California’s coastline. The author highlights the three major oil spill accidents that resulted in the death of birds and marine life to influence individuals’ understanding of his text. Finally, Deland Chan shows the significance of involving communities in formulating sustainability plans by using an argumentative tone. He argues that policymakers should consult communities and elevate their cultural considerations when designing ecological sustainability strategies to ensure positive outcomes. All the authors incorporated specific writing styles to bridge the gap between them and their audience and improve individuals’ comprehension of the text, preventing miscommunication.
Works Cited
Borunda, Alxexandra. “Why is California still drilling for oil despite its ambitious climate goals?” National Geographic, Web.
Chan, Deland. “Sustainable Communities for Whom: Cultural Tactics in the Pursuit of Ecological.” AAPR, Web.
Freeman, Elliot. “I’m a Young Environmentalist Battling Climate Change through Tiny Actions.” Web.