I think
that many of the actors involved in the management of invasive species are
strong. The actors that I talked about are the South Eastern Wisconsin Invasive
Species Consortium (SEWISC) and Invasive Plants Association of Wisconsin
(IPAW.) They have a lot of support with and from the government to perform the
things they need to get done. And both groups work with many regular citizens
and volunteers to achieve their goals. I think that citizen involvement is one
of the most important things when it comes to tackling a bigger problem such as
that of invasive species. I think that citizen education and involvement can
get a lot of things done. As there are plenty of regular citizens who really do
care about the world in which they live in. I think that these two actors I
chose being NGOs helps them as well. Because while they do work with the
government on projects, they are not effected by things like state budget cuts.
And most NGO groups are less about the money and more about the changes they
are making. I always think that any cause citizens get behind and take interest
in have a great chance of actually being worked on. The power of the people is
so important.
I
talked about the Invasive Species Identification, Classification, and Control
Rule- Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter NR40. I think that this is a really
important one because it sets up a guideline for not just state run actors, but
the NGO groups like the one’s I talked about as well. People and groups use
rules such as this as a guideline for themselves. They work off of it and
strive to abide by what it says and help the cause through the work that they
do. With that being said though I feel as though a lot more can be done when it
comes to how the government is involved. There could be more funding done. And
certainly more education. One of J.P Evans hypotheses was that “governments
matter” and it really does. They have so much power to get things done it’s
just a matter of finding the ways to do so.
Evans
also says that “governance is about learning.” As it should be. There is so
much that needs to be done when it comes to the environmental problems we face
today. Be that finding more strict laws for invasive species. Or finding better
ways to not allow foreign species into the area so easily. Yes there are laws,
but if the laws aren’t often cracked down upon or highlighted how much change
can there be? I can say I have never heard of someone getting in trouble for
holding an invasive species in their possession, even though it is illegal. I
feel as though these sorts of things need to be made more public and shown
more. Education is so important. And I think education is a big key in solving
a lot of the problems our environment is facing, especially when it comes to
invasive species.
Nicholas DuBois 2013 Invasive Species Awareness Month Poster winner (http://dnr.wi.gov/news/features/feature.asp?id=10&article=1)
Hello Melissa,
ReplyDeleteYour focus on citizen involvement, additional funding, increased education, better enforcement of current laws, and creating stricter laws paralleled my viewpoints regarding wetlands. Increased education in primary school is something I feel very strongly about due to the current trend of funding being slashed at every corner. Learning about invasive species or any of the other topics covered in our blog projects should not be limited to higher education, but instead instilled at a young age to help inform our children of the issues we face now. For a very long time now, I’ve felt that news channels should offer a segment related to environmental issues providing tips on how an average, everyday citizen can implement change on a small scale which would eventually lead to substantial local change. For example, here in Milwaukee when weather forecasts predict large amounts of rain for several days in a row, it would be helpful if they suggested to the public that they reduce or eliminate washing laundry to help ease the flow of excess water into the deep tunnel system to avoid dumping into Lake Michigan.
Yes!!! I feel so strongly about educating younger children in environmental problems. I know as a kid I was always so interested about what was going on in nature. I am currently working on a project for the Friends of the Monarch Trail group in Wauwatosa and one of the most important suggestion in my opinion for them was to get schools and scout groups involved in their volunteer efforts. Getting kids educated and involved is just so beneficial for everyone. And to me I think environmentally a better future is lying within the younger populations. It's just a matter of getting the word out.
DeleteI was working on aquatic invasive species and I couldn't agree with you more that while there are good laws and regulations out there, the thing that I thought that was going to make the most difference was education. We can only regulate so much but if we can start really teaching them I think it'll have a much bigger and more positive impact.
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