Defining human geography -

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Human Geography
Name:
Institution:
Course number and name:
Instructor’s name:
10th February 2020

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Human Geography
Introduction
Sustainability can be defined as the ability to maintain certain conditions. The optimum
conditions of the environment and the world are preferred. Sustainability is the way to go with
some of the current challenges to the environment. With the world growing continuously, the
conventional energy forms are changing into something else as they are becoming extinct with
time. Looking at these forms of energy it is possible to see that they are contributing to other
dangerous effects on the world such as global warming and the greenhouse effect. Innovation is,
therefore, proving to be the real deal to counter these negative effects. The unconventional
energy sources once employed can improve everything quicker and easier. Wastes can be used to
generate heat and electricity through the process termed as energy from waste (EFW) (Adeniran,
Nubi, & Adelopo, 2017). The various suitable technologies are used in these methods to
compress as well as disposal of the wastes. Every time the millions of tons of wastes that are
produced only serve two purposes which are either contributing to the landmass or are shipped to
the third world countries. The environmental impacts are very great from these practices and it
can be seen that the ecosystem is damaged in terms of the wildlife and human beings as their
health are endangered. The new plants that have been developed to treat wastes have designed
better ways of using landfill wastes in generating energy. There are various forms of
technologies that are used to convert wastes into energy and they can be either thermal or non-
thermal. The renewable sources of energy once used has very little impact on the environment.

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Literature review
Place
University students are well aware of their environment. The environmental
consciousness by university students sees them as a champion for sustainability. Generally, a
university is a place where a lot of research works are being conducted. For this purpose, we see
the factors of sustainability and environmental degradation being discussed heavily. University
students are also leading drives to improve on environmental conservation. A positive thing to
note among campus students is that the engagement in natural area stewardship allows activities
that teach students to be mindful of their surroundings (Antonsich, 2010). Such a learning
environment with nature at its beauty best can foster a sense of place and learn among the
students. Scholars have further proven that the engagement of students in the natural area on
campus can contribute positively to the broader sustainability goals. The sustainability goals can
be fostered and implemented much easily in the students’ groups in a campus natural
environment.
Behaviours and place
Campus students have always demonstrated a positive behavior regarding the
environmental setup that they are exposed to. Scholars have proven that a sense of place can
develop due to the environmental exposures. The open stewardship learning allows the students
to interact with the natural environment and get to enjoy experiences such as tree shades. The
clean fresh air from the environment and a serene nature brings about a balance in the view of
the environment (Chatterton, 2010). Hence, students are able to appreciate the natural processes
going around them. The issues to do with sustainability largely depend on behaviors. A bad
behavior while interacting with the environment limits the sustainability efforts. Any discussion

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regarding environmental sustainability is dependent on the behavior of people in the
environment.
Identity - students
Concerned efforts with a reductionist approach towards sustainability can significantly
improve the case. Campus sustainability policies have always paid less attention to the students
in terms of their relationship with nature. Hence, the students are unable to develop a significant
relationship with nature. The predicament takes place regardless of the fact that healthy human
development is improved by spending more time in nature. The duration can predict the
environmental behaviors and attitudes strongly (Chatterton, 2010). Through helping the
development of stewarding nature and the well-being of the students help support the student
initiatives to sustainability. The important initiatives by campus students bordering on
sustainability are useful to discuss issues such as the reduction greenhouse gases as well as
consumption. Scholars have also presented cases regarding the “Biopic University” whose
efforts restores the emotional affinity of people with the environment. There needs to be holistic
alternatives to the mechanistic and the reductionist sustainability cognitive maps. These maps are
guided by reporting from assessment (Gusti, 2016). The initiatives to aesthetic principles on
campus sustainability also include wellness and emotions of the campus students. Researchers
have also proven that the sense of place is similar to an emotional attachment to the environment
whereby individuals feel attached to their surroundings. The same individuals feel a sense of
responsibility in that they want to protect their environments.
The Biophilia University can potentially lead to a paradigm shift regarding the current
practices in matters pertaining to the environment. The Biophilic University is metaphorically
related to organizations with the potential to improve environmental conservation efforts. Hence,

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the environment will forever remain sustainable due to the integrative notion on campus
sustainability (Heidari, et.al, 2018). The Biophilic University can lead to the development of
campus sustainability notions that encompass the ecological consciousness. Contemplating on
the spaces and having a reflexive dialogue using different disciplines such as humanities and
sciences are also some of the benefits of the Biophilic University to students. A quick study of
human characters reveal that they take care of the things that they love. For a person to love a
certain thing, they must have an emotional attachment towards it (Holton, & Riley, 2013). The
emotional attachment allows the campus students to work on how best to improve the
environment. The potential strategy of the Biophilic University is the connectedness of students
with nature. The environmental stewardship around the campus allows the students to realize the
responsibility that they have on nature. Thus, as long as there is a repeated exposure of the
students to the environment, they will always perform their level best to conserve the
environment for the broader contribution to sustainability.
Education - knowledge gap
There have been various issues regarding sustainability due to the structure of the
education system. The natural area in campus and the open space stewardship have been lacking
in terms of the sustainability initiatives. The education system has to be revamped in this regard
so that students are trained more on matters sustainability (Kolodziejski, 2014). It would be a
great idea if the campuses incorporate studies regarding sustainability in most of their curricula
activities. In doing so, people will start practicing responsible lifestyles that allows them to be
mindful of their environment.
The notion of “trends” amongst young people

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Young people are always trendy in terms of the things they do and love. The Biophilic
University can take advantage of this idea and cultivate a popular culture that allow the young
people to engage in open spaces (Syed, & Akhter, 2018). The open spaces and the natural areas
have to be restore and maintained in their original condition. The term “stewardship” can defined
as the physical work in a group that seeks to maintain environmental sustainability. Urban green
spaces stewardship has also fostered the connection to natural areas by people. Hence, the sense
of space I easily developed by these practices of stewardship. There are also other measures that
include the relationships between the nature and humans. Nature relatedness are some of these
critical measures. A sense of place can effectively predict the environmental behaviors by people
(Wee, Ariffin, Ng, & Shabudin, 2017). There is a great link between the wellness and well-being
of people with their sense of space and environment. Pro-environmental behaviors have to be
well instilled in students to assist them in loving their environments. University sustainability is
part of the holistic approach to conserve the nature. The integration of sustainability to the
scholarly and educational activities is paramount to the student’s responsibility towards nature
and the environment.
Trends affecting behavior
The trends affecting the behavior of university students include stewardship in open
places. Notions such as going green cultivate a sense of place (Keles, 2017). Several scholars
have established that a green appearance and fresh atmosphere make people healthier. Moreover,
people are happier when they are exposed to nature as opposed to altered unsustainable natural
conditions.
Thinking about the stakeholders

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The stakeholders in any sustainability practices talks include students, universities, and
the property owners. The universities are responsible for fostering conducive learning
environment for students. The university can also device curricula that also include open space
stewardship and environmental sustainability practices (Stephens, Hernandez, Román, Graham,
& Scholz, 2008). These environmental sustainability practices ensure that the students are able to
sync with their natural environment. Hence, the said stakeholders can work together to promote
environmentally sustainable practices.
Social impacts
Several scholars are also in agreement on matters pertaining to sustainability.
Sustainability concepts largely border on the behaviors of people. There will be less people
affected by health issues due to poor conservation practices. The peer networks and the sense of
place play a significant role in the sustainability practices by people (Kuhlman, & Farrington,
2010). The wellbeing of students and their community is important to the sustainability efforts.
Healthy students are happier and will interact better in a learning environment. Thus, the students
will learn better in the campus and they will enjoy getting involve in the sustainability practices.
Behavioral changes are also some of the social impacts of the sustainability measures being
taken. Especially by the Biophilic University.
Conclusion
In conclusion, University students are well aware of their environment. The
environmental consciousness by university students sees them champion for sustainability.
Generally, a university is a place where a lot of research works are being conducted. The sense
of space by university students can be developed at the university. The sense of space has great
ramifications on the environment and the community as a whole. There are several fields that can

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benefit from the sense of space by university students especially when they conserve the
environment. Also, the Biophilic University can lead to the development of campus
sustainability notions that encompass the ecological consciousness. Contemplating on the spaces
and having a reflexive dialogue using different disciplines such as humanities and sciences are
also some of the benefits of the Biophilic University to students. A quick study of human
characters reveal that they take care of the things that they love.

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References
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Antonsich, M. (2010). Meanings of place and aspects of the Self: an interdisciplinary and
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Chatterton, P. (2010). The student city: an ongoing story of neoliberalism, gentrification, and
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Gusti, A. (2016). The relationship of knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions of
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Stephens, J. C., Hernandez, M. E., Román, M., Graham, A. C., & Scholz, R. W. (2008). Higher
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