We begin the ESS course with an examination of the perspectives or viewpoints people have about environmental issues – the historical events and experiences that influence the way people think about the natural world and our role in it.
Then we look at systems thinking – how the inputs and outputs of every process are connected, whether it’s a natural ecosystem or a social system in human society.
The final part of the Foundations topic is the concept of sustainability – what it is, how it can be measured, and how it connects with questions of ethics and justice.
You can find resources for each subtopic by following the links below.
1.1 Perspectives
- How do different perspectives develop?
- How do perspectives affect the decisions we make concerning environmental issues?
1.2 Systems
- How can the systems approach be used to model environmental issues at different levels of complexity and scale?
1.3 Sustainability
- What is sustainability and how can it be measured?
- To what extent are challenges of sustainable development also ones of environmental justice?
Click here for a set of Quizlet flashcards for ESS Topic 1 Foundations.
Connections to other ESS topics
The Foundations topic links to every other topic within the ESS syllabus because the way people perceive and respond to environmental issues influences the solutions proposed for all other topics.
- Foundations: perspectives, systems, and sustainability
- Ecology: how ecosystems function
- Biodiversity and conservation: evolution, threats, conservation measures
- Water: systems, access, pollution, water security*
- Land: soil, agriculture, forestry
- Atmosphere and climate change: causes, mitigation, adaptation
- Natural resources: use, choices, impact, waste
- Human populations & urban systems: sustainability, urban environments, air pollution*
- Higher Level ESS:
- HL.a Environmental law: rules for resource use, sustainability and justice
- HL.b Environmental economics: ecological economics, perspectives and sustainability
- HL.c Environmental ethics: moral responsibility toward the environment
Pages for the current ESS syllabus will remain active through the last exams scheduled for 2025.
Happy learning!
MrKremerScience.com 