July 3rd, 2013
What is your definition of “the environment"?
I was asked this question during a mock job interview in graduate school. My answer was less than favorable to the interview panel.
My definition went something like this: We often think of “the environment" as something that is out there, away from us. It is an “other" thing that is not in our daily lives. But in reality, the environment is everything around us. The air we breathe, the plants in our garden, and everything in this room. The products we use are made from something, create emissions, and will return to the earth at some point.
The interview panel advised me that they did not like my definition, and I should consider revising it. To which I politely responded that I understood, I would consider tweaking the wording, but it was inspired by a former professor and I was attached. They laughed and responded “ok, fair enough."
My definition is an adaptation of some important lessons I received from a crop science professor, Dr. Bob Patterson, as an undergraduate student. Dr. Patterson’s classes created a paradigm shift in my thinking from the environment as something “out there" to something that is integrated in our daily lives with products, packaging, air quality, natural disasters, and food.
What is your definition of “the environment"?