State of the World Presentations

Today’s presentations for the State of the World 2010 textbook were very insightful and informational! When I first started reading the chapter titles outlined in the beginning of the book, I thought to myself “What do these topics have to do with sustainability?” After listening to everybody’s presentation, the topics really clicked. Religions, Education, the Media, and the Government all affect the way people think and function in everyday life. One of the hot topics which really hit home for me was religion, as a Christian, I can see how sometimes messages delivered by pastors can be misconstrued by the audience. Or worse, people may understand the principles of their religion, yet, they still act upon materialistic customs. I really liked the quote the professor introduced during the class discussion, “What would Jesus drive?” I thought this was a clever statement because it reminds people that Jesus was not materialistic, so if you want to be more like him, live within your means and nothing more. As well, focus on helping others and not yourself.