I live in Alexandria, Virginia that was established in 1749. Today, Alexandria has become a major urban city. Alexandria has been recognized for a culturally diverse community. According to the 2000 Census, over half (53%) of the City is white. Twenty-two percent of the population is African American and fifteen percent is Hispanic. Six percent of the population is Asian, while four percent are of other races. (http://www.visitalexandriava.com/plan/about/history/) In order to identify the major environmental concerns a survey was conducted in 2003- 2004 wherein 475 Alexandria residents served as representative of the general population.
Water Quality was rated as the area of greatest concern by the community survey.
Drinking water is the source to waterborne pathogens and toxins for most members of the community. Almost everybody in Alexandria drinks from the same water source so it can affect the health
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More disturbing, however, is that 21.0% of students in graders 9-12 and 6.0% of students in grades 6-8 smoke. The American Lung Association estimates that every year in Alexandria there are 893 cases of lung cancer being diagnosed. In 2003, 7.6% of Virginia’s adults and 8.3% of Virginia’s children had an active asthma condition. Air pollutants such as CO, oxides of nitrogen , PM, and SO2 can cause long-term injury to the lungs and breathing passages, nerve and brain damage and also birth defects. (https://alexandriava.gov/uploadedFiles/health/info)
The EPA classified the Metropolitan Washington, D.C. region (including Alexandria) as a severe non-attainment area for the 1-hour ozone standard. Particulate matter that remains suspended in the air and consists of solid particles or liquid droplets. PM emissions include everything from carbon to dust. The greatest threat to public health are those particles small enough (PM2.5) to be inhaled into the deepest parts of the lung. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1448005/
The loss of public housing and the expanse of the wealth gap throughout the state of Rhode Island has been a rising issue between the critics and supporters of gentrification, in both urban areas such as Providence and wealthy areas such as the island of Newport, among other examples. With the cities under a monopoly headed by the wealth of each neighborhood, one is left to wonder how such a system is fair to all groups. Relatively speaking, it isn’t, and the only ones who benefit from such a system are white-skinned. With the deterioration of the economic status of Rhode Island, and especially in the city of Providence, more and more educated Caucasians are leaving to seek a more fertile economic environment.
Wise, T. (2012). Dear white America: Letter to a new minority. San Francisco, CA: City
Pratt, R. A. (1992). In The Color of Their Skin: Eduation and Race in Richmond Virgina 1954 - 1989 (p. 4). Charlottesville: The University Press of Virigina.
The town I grew up in is Show Low, Arizona. Surrounding Show Low are many small neighboring towns. These towns all come together to form the White Mountains. Most of the citizens of my community are of a Caucasian background. There are also some different minority groups that come from different background that also live there. The majority of the non-Caucasian residents are of Native Americans decent and Mexican decent. There are Native Americans because of the Apache Reservation that lies to the East, and the Mexicans have immigrated because of the vast amount of construction jobs. The mixture of these different groups has caused many different problems with in the community of the White Mountains. There lies within the community old roots of prejudice and discrimination towards people of different cultures. Not only does prejudice still run high, but has also been a hindrance to the progress of the community, which has not just affected the progress of the community, but most likely the traditions will be passed down of prejudice and discrimination to the children of Show Low and the rest of the White Mountains.
A 2000 census report confirms that we continue to live in a segregated society. This study used an index that ranged from 0 to 100, where 0 indicated blacks and whites are evenly distributed in neighborhoods and 100 means that blacks and whites share no neighborhood in common.
Landes, Alison, et al. Minorities - A Changing Role in America. Wylie, Texas: Information Plus, 1994. 93-111.
The World Health Organization defines domestic water as being “water used for all usual domestic purposes including consumption, bathing and food preparation” (World Health Organization, 2003). Ample supplies of clean domestic water are essential for drinking, cooking, hygiene, and various amenities. Most importantly, water is critical to human life as it supports the digestion of food, absorption, transportation and use of nutrients and the elimination of toxins and wastes from the body (Kleiner,1999). In the United States, the average male should consume a minimum 2.9 liters or water per day while the average female should consume 2.2 liters (New York Times, 2009). Inadequate water intake can lead to dehydration and other health issues. Studies have correlated inadequate water intake with coronary heart disease, and complications associated with childbearing. Other studies have indicated decreased risks of colonic and breast cancer with increased fluid intake (1999).
... environmental quality leading health indicators are air quality index exceeding 100 and children of ages 3 to 11 exposed to secondhand smoke. Poor water quality can lead to gastrointestinal illness, neurological problems and cancer. Poor air quality can cause cardiovascular disease, cancers, and asthma. Certain chemicals found in homes and workplaces can contribute to severe poisonings and other toxic serious effects.
Identify the population and provide a description and background of the population including potential cultural identifiers, stereotypes, and traditions.
No matter what, where, or who you are, water is a necessary component to keeping any organism alive. Although water is essential for life, in many places, clean drinking water is hard to find. There are many consequences to drinking contaminated water. Every year, three to five million people are attacked by water-borne diseases and over 100,000 of them die. One fatal disease that can kill within hours is cholera.
An experience that significantly stood out to me was when I moved to a different quadrant of the city, which was mainly composed of white communities. Prior to moving to this new quadrant, my family and I resided
Through public education, most elementary school kids can understand that smoking is bad for them and that cigarettes are additive. Cigarettes are addictive due to nicotine, a drug found in tobacco (“Quitting Smoking”, 2015). According to Schneider (2016), some of the greatest health problems associated with smoking include: lung cancer, other cancers, coronary heart disease, other heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, other vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia, influenza, tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), prenatal conditions, and sudden infant death syndrome. As stated by the Authority of the American Lung Association in an article titled “Health
Over the years, many cities, particularly large cities, around the world have had tremendous problems and had suffered massively from the huge number of population in that city. One of those massive cities is Mexico City. Mexico City, being very popular in Mexico, is unbelievably overpopulated. Several factors caused this overpopulation. This over population affects the people in many various ways negatively. It affects the geography and climate of the city, causes pollution, and a housing crisis.
Asthmatic children are especially at risk. Exposure to secondhand smoke increases the number of episodes and severity of symptoms in hundreds of thousands of asthmatic children. Between 200,000 and 1,000,000 asthmatic children have their condition worsened by secondhand smoke.
Air pollution is caused by many things such as car fumes, burning of fossil fuels,