There has been what is called a “catastrophe” in a self-governing Palestinian country, called the Gaza Strip. Ever since 1967, there has been an impending problem with the security of their needs in the community. A group called Hamas, which is considered as a terrorist group to countries including the United States, has kept the people of Gaza hostage. The group governs the country, and they have been keeping their hundreds of millions of dollars for international aid, and used it to carry out acts of terrorism. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees was notified in January, that the United States was not contributing their already discussed $65 million towards an installment in aims to help them. This has created a huge problem for the people of Gaza, and they are not able to require basic needs to live. 1.2 million of the residents of the country do not have access to clean water. And for the ones who do have access, almost all of the water is not suitable for drinking. Pollution of sewage and salt has taken over the waters, and it can’t be reversed because the country’s water purifier comes from salt in the seawater. The lack of water that the country is facing, is contributing to increasing fatality and unemployment rates. There have been many cases of diarrhea and other waterborne disease in the area. In response to this issue, there is no one to help, because of the countries circumstances. Due to the shortage of drinking water, hospitals closed down, and doctors have been forced to quit doing surgeries. Population growth is another factor that has been making the country suffer even more, because there are not enough resources to meet the needs of the country. Climate change has increased as well, and the rainfall is consistently decreasing per year. There have been plans proposed to the country, but Gaza cannot upkeep them, because they do not have enough resources such as electricity to run them. It is said that the answer to this crisis is to rebuild a robust sewer and drainage system. It is not a simple solution however, because the country is not able to control their money because of the Hama organization, and the country will not be receiving the expected help from the United States from the United Nations relief efforts. Political and governmental issues also discouraged improvement when President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capitol of Palestine, because the Palestinian President Abbas wanted to push for Gaza to become independent from Palestine. It is crucial for the country to secure clean water and resources, to stop the fatality rate and to increase the well being of the community. It has not gotten any better in over 50 years, and the country has reached an extremely bad state of affairs. Because of the United States major withdrawal from the UNRWA, the people of Gaza will continue to suffer, and the water crisis will increase. This report relates to our class, because we have discussed the effects of population growth and population.

Lederer, Edith M. “UN Gets Report on What Palestinians Say Is Gaza Catastrophe.” CTVNews, 15 Feb. 2018, www.ctvnews.ca/world/un-gets-report-on-what-palestinians-say-is-gaza-catastrophe-1.3804086.

Schmale, Matthias. “Restoring U.S. Aid Crucial to Avoid a Water Catastrophe in Gaza.” – Global Issues, 21 Mar. 2018, www.globalissues.org/news/2018/03/21/24040.

In an article publish by reputable news source The Guardian on Monday, reporter Gabrielle Canon discusses the controversy surrounding the opening of a “hidden Starbucks” in Yosemite National Park. Canon describes that outside of the typical urban feel of the Starbucks, consumers and park visitors can hear the beautiful, natural sounds of Yosemite falls. Despite any signage for the new Starbucks location, park visitors have managed to find the 27,000-franchise strong coffee shop. While many people are outraged at the installation of a commercial coffee giant, other park visitors have enjoyed a hot coffee or tea during their cold or rainy visit to Yosemite.

David Freireich, who is a spokesperson for Yosemite Hospitality, the group that works to provide upgrades for “concessions and facilities” at the national park, described to Canon that his group was responding to park visitor requests for a facility such as Starbucks, and that it is the responsibility of Yosemite Hospitality to meet visitor needs and requests. He described that the installation of the Starbucks was part of a recent and ongoing upgrade project to the infrastructure of Yosemite, which includes concessions options and availability. According to Freireich, these updates were long overdue.

Photo taken from the article.

Photo taken from the article.

In response to the planned opening of the Starbucks, former Yosemite National Park tour guide Freddy Brewster organized a petition to try and stop it from happening. He was able to gather more than 25,000 signatures on his petition. While the opening of the Starbucks still happened as planned, Brewster and his colleagues are still working tirelessly to protect the purity of Yosemite and to prevent any more infrastructure and commercial changes to the National Park.

I thought this article was very interesting, and it relates to many of the topics that we have been discussing in our class this semester. The opening of a Starbucks franchise in Yosemite National Park represents the challenge between government (which includes big business) and the environment. As Brewster mentioned in the article, “The government is increasingly dependent on major corporations. Time and time again.”. This serves as another example of big business infiltrating the preservation and purity of there natural settings we are so fortunate to have in the United States, such as Yosemite. Furthermore, when looking at the chain of consumption, pollution will be brought into the national park as deliveries come to the Starbucks, bringing coffee, processed foods and syrups, and coffee cups. These coffee cups are not recyclable, and contribute to the disposal arrow of the linear chain. More trash is introduced into the park, resulting in the ultimate degradation of the natural setting, even if not intentional by consumers and park visitors. Many people do not see how the small action of getting a coffee at Starbucks contributes to the pollution and degradation of the environment.

Thinking about the nutrition lecture that we had in class today, the Yosemite Hospitality group could have decided upon a healthier alternative to have in the national park rather than a Starbucks. Starbucks sells many processed, fat and sugar heavy food products that can lead to the development of chronic disease. In a national park where visitors come to experience nature and get exercise, healthier foods, such as whole, plant based foods, should be those offered to park visitors.

If the Yosemite Hospitality group still found it necessary to have a coffee shop as part of the concessions offerings at the park, they could have instead chose a local coffee business, that would have then contributed to the stimulation and sustainability of the local economy.

I believe that this battle between big business and the environment will be one that continues to cause problems and controversy until everyone realizes the importance of conserving the beautiful natural world.