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Environmental Timbre in, Hurt by Cash
Environmental Timbre in, “Hurt “by Cash
The rendition of the song “Hurt “by Cash tends to bypass the original version meaning by NiN. He does all this by using an acoustic guitar together with his plaintive voice, which are evident through the powerful signifiers in relation to vulnerability as well as nostalgia that is evoked form the song. In “Hurt,” the frailness of Cash’s voice, which was once like an authoritative baritone and an acoustic guitar playing, tends to represents a fad rather than a discrepancy. In the song, significant vulnerability markers are revealed in relation to the lyrics. The situation is evident in the first line when John sings the first line, “I hurt myself today.” It is evident that it sounds like a dying man who seems lost to introspection. The grain and bodily presence, in relation to the voice is apparent because of reduced arrangement of instrumental careful selection of microphones to allow him record every creak. He is able to attain an intimacy degree, which achieve and transcends the live performance. The environmental timbre in relation to the song, “Hurt,” by Johny Cash is evident through his voice and usage of acoustic guitar.
The harmonic analysis of the song “Hurt” shows that the verses comprise of three minor chords, as the choruses are transformed to major chords. There is a darker mode, which is characteristically of the verses because of the harmonic progression structured in time. The vocal line begins with a C-chord, which releases the preceding tension. The chorus begins on Am again immediately after a two-bar pause apparent on a G-chord. The major lighter sensibility in terms of the major tonal area can be interpreted as giving some hope, although it remains slightly complicated in comparison to a shift from minor to major. It is evident that this song rendition takes advantage of the built-inharmonic tensions as well as ambiguities.
In “Hurt,” the production aesthetics purposely devotes to Johnny Cash’s voice and the acoustic guitar’s sound. The objective is to deliver the strongest probable notion of an old man with his guitar as other musical elements seem to strengthen the narrative. “Hurt” being like many other pop songs, it is built on a straightforward structure, which has an intro-verse 1, a chorus, verse 2 and lastly, a double chorus. At the same time, the harmonic progression tends to respond to the structure. This is evident from a musical moment in the song, which illustrate the interaction. In the first verse of second half, Cash begins the song on a C-major as the guitars build up toward a “landing” on Am once more; hence, giving the impact of an exhale. Conversely, the words explain the narrator’s present situation but allude past, which might be the potential reason for the numbness he presently suffers.
The song singing style is solemn and plain with the production being close and cherished. In addition, there is a grand entrance of grand piano with minor thirds evident on the first beat of each measure. The song seems propelled, given its distinct poignancy and significance by a certain musical arrangement associated with the song’s many freighted images. Cash is a performer uniquely available to this representation form as it is a soundtrack of his life. The location of the song’s general harmonic underpinning in terms of the acoustic guitar as well as piano tends to heighten the song’s expectations. The acoustic guitar in the song tends to stands out as a sonic sign of honesty, as Johnny Cash’s rich but aging voice, invites a type of intimacy with the listeners. The song “Hurt,” has evident interactions aspects such as image, lyrics as well as identity that make the recording to be an evocative performance. In the song, it is apparent that the vocal performance together with sonic production version have worked together to highlight the biographical existence of the singer being an author.
Conclusion
The main sonic marker in the song remains Cash’s voice, which is the primary symbol of his biographical existence. Its shivery susceptibility shows that that time has caught up with Johnny Cash and encourages the listeners to think about their lives while comparing with his life. At the same time, the harmonic progression, as well as the guitar arrangement begins gently but climaxes in the choruses with the quickening of the song’s “breathing”. The video image exploits the tension as well as release while reinforcing the age, which is audible in Cash’s voice. It is obvious that the song,” Hurt” by Johnny Cash is grounded in the factual convenience of the studio production with the naked arrangements founded on the acoustic guitars. This is against Cash’s biographical existence in the song that remains manifested in the close vocals. At the same time, the acoustic guitars turn to become sonic markers, which seem to boost a sense of susceptibility and nostalgia. The situation is helpful in encouraging the listeners to change their perception about Cash, even though he comes out as flawed, or perhaps broken.
Environmental Sustainability in Social Work
Environmental Sustainability in Social Work
Abstract
Environmental sustainability is a concept that seeks to achieve a balance between the needs of today and those of the future by implementing policies that contribute towards economic development and social justice and promoting and safeguarding the environment in all its forms. Remarkable, many governments are now committed to enhancing environmental sustainability in order to safeguard the environment to sustain societies and to support economies. As well, the role of social workers has become increasingly important in assisting to address the challenges faced in addressing the aforementioned issue. This paper addresses the issue of environmental sustainability particularly in relation to the problem of carbon emissions. First, the paper gives an overview of the different initiatives taken by governments in Saudi Arabia and Australia in enhancing environmental sustainability. Further, it gives a description of social work and how it contributes to carbon emissions. An explanation of carbon reduction strategies in employed in social work is also given. Finally, the paper analyses and evaluates these strategies as employed in social work.
Introduction
Environmental sustainability is accepted as an urgent and a serious issue which is facing all countries and affects a wide range of citizens in all areas of life. There is broad agreement that there has been constant change in climate which is attributed to human activities, including activities that lead to carbon emissions to the atmosphere. The changes in climate pose a threat to our long-term prosperity and wellbeing (Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, 2011). As such, many governments around the world have come up with a carbon emission trading scheme (ETS) or a carbon tax. This has raised the need for organisations and institutions to plan how to reduce their carbon emissions and lower their carbon “footprint.” As well, this has raised the need for intervention of social workers whose view is that effective action on carbon emissions is not just about guarding against the long-term environmental dangers. Rather, social workers argue that there is need for improved production and consumption of energy sources (Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, 2011). This paper addresses the contribution of social work to carbon emissions. It further explains analysis and evaluates some of the strategies employed in social work to reduce these emissions. But first, it compares the initiatives taken by Saudi Arabian and Australian governments in enhancing environmental sustainability.
Comparison of Government initiatives in Saudi Arabia and Australia
According to the Oxford Business Group (2010), oil accounts for approximately 90% of Saudi Arabia’s revenue and 60% of its total GDP. Being the world’s largest producer of oil, Saudi Arabia has recorded a notable increase in level of carbon emissions in the past, as shown in the following figure:
Figure 1.0 CO2 Emissions from Saudi Arabia
Source: Boden, Marland and Andres (2011)
Thus environmental sustainability initiatives meant to replace fossil fuels may appear to be against the country’s economic interests. However, a new attitude has emerged in Saudi Arabia and the country’s government has recently taken significant initiatives designed to diversify the energy mix in the country as well as to adopt more sustainable environmental practices. To start with, Saudi Arabia is a signatory to numerous international environmental agreements on hazardous wastes, marine life and greenhouse effects. In 2005, it signed the Kyoto Protocol and according to the Oxford Business Group (2010), there are plans for the country to join the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). It hosted the first Gulf Environmental Forum in March 2010. At the local level, the Saudi government has taken new initiatives to enhance environmental sustainability awareness among the citizens, especially targeting women and children. This has been promoted through training and advisory services as well as operational support in the country focusing on the environment. The government has also come up with policies that focus on ensuring environmental protection and improvement, which are part of the country’s basic law (Fatani, 2010).
As well, Australia government has undertaken various initiatives to reduce carbon emissions. Similar to Saudi Arabia, the Australian government has signed numerous international environmental agreements on hazardous wastes, marine life and greenhouse effects. There are several measures undertaken by Australian government which are unique from those undertaken by Saudi Arabian government. First, according to the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (2011), there has been a significant increase in investments in clean energy production. For instance, the federal government of Australia invested $94 million in 50,000 Green Skills Training Places and in New Green Jobs. In addition, the government has introduced a carbon pollution reduction scheme which targets a range of 5 to 15 per cent reduction in emissions below 2000 levels by 2020 and 60% by 2050 (Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, 2011). The following data illustrates the projected reduction in carbon emissions in Australia from 1990 up to 2020:
Figure 2.0: Australia’s emissions trends, 1990 – 2020
Source: Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (2011)
The federal government of Australia has also established a National Climate Strategy aimed at transforming the country into a green economy while promoting technologies that could be exported globally. The Australian government has also been supporting a range of complementary and supporting measures for households and industries such as energy efficiency audit programs reduce energy consumption.
The following figure gives a summary of the quarterly increase in the national inventory, the seasonally adjusted growth rates and quarterly change since June 2005.
Figure 3.0 National inventory, seasonally adjusted emissions growth rates, quarterly change.
Source: Department of climate change and energy efficiency (2011)
Description of social work and how it contributes to carbon emissions
Social work is a discipline or a profession which is rooted in the notions of formal caring and popular ideologies about informal caring for others and it originally focused primarily on kinship relationships. Non-government agencies such as Oxfam, Red Cross and Save the Children are civil society organizations that engage in social work practices on various issues such as poverty, disasters and health matters (Dominelli’s, 2010). Just like in other professions, various activities undertaken in social work lead to release of carbon emissions in the atmosphere. To start with the profession contributes to carbon emissions especially during transportation. Currently, almost all of the energy used during transportation in social work activities is petroleum based, including diesel, gasoline and jet fuel. Some of the sources of the transportation emissions are cars, freight trucks, trains, aircrafts and boats used by individuals and organizations engaged in social work practices. As well, social workers contribute indirectly to carbon emissions by the use of printers and papers consumed during printing (Dominelli’s, 2010). Carbon emissions are released during the production of electricity used by printers and in paper factories during production of the printing papers.
Explanation of carbon reduction strategies in social work
In the past, environmental issues have rarely been discussed or addressed in the mainstream of social work, as Dominelli’s (2010) notes. However, recently, the discipline has gained much importance in helping to address environmental problems that people wish to solve, taking into account the strategies advanced to solve the problems associated with the traditional lifestyles and customs of the people. With regard to carbon emissions reduction, the social workers help people to understand environmental issues and the impact of their actions and guide them on how to solve the problem of carbon emissions problem. One of the measures they employ is to mobilise people to protect their futures by promoting sustainable energy production (Dominelli’s, 2011). As well, social workers encourage people to adopt sustainable energy consumption trends by encouraging them to adopt the use of energy sources that release zero or near-to-zero carbon emissions. Finally, social workers propose various solutions to offset carbon emissions pollution.
Analysis and evaluation of the carbon reduction strategies in social work
As noted earlier, one of the carbon reduction strategies in social work is to mobilize people to protect the environment by promoting sustainable energy production. According to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) (2009), fossil fuels such as coal natural gas and oil generate approximately two-thirds of the world’s electricity and produce one-third of the global carbon emissions. It is expected that the global prices of these resources will rise in future owing to the continued growth in demand and the rise in marginal extraction cost over time, which will further push up commodity prices as demonstrated in the following chart:
Chart 4.0 Energy commodity price assumptions
Source: Australian Government (2011)
Thus, social workers are continuously involved in encouraging the application of more advanced technology options which are more sustainable and will help to reduce carbon emissions from the use of fossil fuels. One of the options is fuel substitution by adopting the use of natural gas to produce electricity instead of coal. This would help to reduce carbon emissions per kilowatt-hour of electricity produced by a half. Second, social workers encourage efficiency improvement in carbon capture and storage, which according to ASME (2009), can translate directly into lower carbon emissions per kilowatt of electricity produced.
Social workers also encourage people to adopt sustainable energy consumption trends and reduce consumption of energy sources that release high levels of carbon emissions (ASME, 2009). They discourage the consumption of fossil fuels and promote the use of renewable energy technologies with far lower or near-zero emissions such as wind, solar, hydropower, geothermal and waste-to-energy sources. There are higher set up costs associated with some of these energy sources (ASME, 2009). However, there is certainty that with persistent efforts, goals for replacing high-carbon with low-carbon energy sources can be achieved with low costs in the long-run. Therefore, social workers are continuously encouraging people to increase the use of the renewable sources of energy.
Social workers also propose various solutions to offset carbon emissions. They encourage the implementation of technologies that will enhance economic growth and enable reduction in carbon emissions. The view of social workers is that businesses with less flexibility at the source should offset the impact by funding equivalent emission reduction technology such as energy efficiency, sequestration, or biomass and supporting policy recommendations elsewhere.
Conclusion
In conclusion, social work is a profession or a discipline that plays a leading role in addressing the issue of climate change and enhancing environmental sustainability. Social work activities such as transportation and printing contribute to carbon emissions. As noted, social workers play a great role in reducing carbon emissions pollution by implementing strategies such as mobilising people to protect the environment by promoting sustainable energy production and consumption and encouraging the implementation of available strategies to offset greenhouse gas emissions. The governments of Saudi Arabia and Australia have implemented various initiatives in enhancing environmental sustainability as demonstrated in the essay. These include being signatories to numerous international environment agreements which promote environmental sustainability and enhancing awareness of the need for environmental sustainability among citizens. The Saudi Arabian government has come up with various environmental sustainability policies which are part of the country’s basic law. On the other hand, the Australian government has introduced a carbon pollution reduction scheme, established a strategy to promote renewable energy consumption and has been supporting a range of complementary and supporting measures for households and industries meant to reduce energy consumption.
Glossary
Carbon “footprint” – The sum of all greenhouse gas emissions caused by person, product, an organization or an event
Carbon emission – the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as a result of burning fossil fuels such as oil, gas or coal
Carbon tax – An environmental duty levied on the carbon constituent of fuels
Environmental sustainability – Development that achieves the requirements of the present generation without adversely affecting the capacity of future generations to attain their own requirements
GDP – Gross domestic product
Kyoto Protocol – A global agreement associated with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Marine life – Plants and animals in the sea
Social work – A discipline or a profession which is rooted in the notions of formal caring and popular ideologies about informal caring for others
Annotated bibliography
Dominelli’s, L. (2011). Climate change: social workers’ roles and contributions to policy debates and interventions, International Journal of Social Welfare, 20(4): 430–438.
This article argues that the social work profession has an important role to play in: helping people understand the issues; promoting sustainable energy production and consumption; mobilising people to protect their futures through community social work; and proposing solutions to greenhouse gas emissions as indicated in two case studies, one based on a community initiative in the Global South, and the other in the Global North. The article also demonstrates that social workers can foster climate change endeavours that are equitable for all, for example the Equitable Carbon Sharing Scheme.
Dominelli’s, L. (2010). Social Work in a Globalizing World, Cambridge: Polity.
“Social Work in a Globalizing World” is a book by ‘Lena Dominelli’s which sets an ambitious agenda for social work and calls for international cooperation, alliances and action alongside local efforts. Only then can its optimistic message of a viable end to the degradation of human beings and their physical environment be achieved.
References
ASME (2009). ‘Technology and policy recommendations and goals for reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the energy sector.’ Retrieved 30 December 011 from, HYPERLINK “http://files.asme.org/asmeorg/NewsPublicPolicy/GovRelations/PositionStatements/17971.pdf” http://files.asme.org/asmeorg/NewsPublicPolicy/GovRelations/PositionStatements/17971.pdf
Australian Government (2011). ‘Australia’s low pollution future.’ Retrieved 30 December 2011, from, HYPERLINK “http://www.treasury.gov.au/lowpollutionfuture/report/html/09_AnnexB.asp” http://www.treasury.gov.au/lowpollutionfuture/report/html/09_AnnexB.asp
Boden, T.A., Marland, G., & Andres, R.J., (2011). ‘Global, Regional, and National Fossil-Fuel
CO2 Emissions’ available from, http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/emis/tre_sau.html
Department of climate change and energy efficiency, (2011), ‘Tackling the challenge of climate change’ Australian Government, Barton, ACT, Available from, http://www.climatechange.gov.au/default.aspx
Dominelli’s, L. (2010). Social Work in a Globalizing World, Cambridge: Polity.
Dominelli’s, L. (2011). ‘Climate change: Social workers’ roles and contributions to policy debates and interventions.’ International Journal of Social Welfare, 20(4), pp. 430–438.
Fatani, R. (2010). ‘ICTs and Environmental Sustainability Report,’ Retrieved 30 December 2010 from, http://www.giswatch.org/country-report/2010-icts-and-environmental-sustainability/saudi-arabia
Oxford Business Group (2010). ‘Environment overview’ The Report: Saudi Arabia 2010. Riyadh: Oxford Business Group
Environmental Studies and Forestry Questions
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Environmental Studies and Forestry Questions
When will global population growth likely plateau and why?
Global population is likely to plateau at 9 billion people approximately by the middle of this century. The factors that will significantly fuel the deceleration include affluence, which translates to high purchasing power and food consumption. Thus, the demand for food and processed products increases adding pressure to the food supply system that will curtail the population growth.
Why do we need to do something different (as compared to the past) to produce more food?
The global population has increased rampantly, and the composition changed to that of affluent individuals in the past decades. Thus, there is increased demand for food by both poor and rich populations. Therefore, food production should be executed in a socially and environmentally sustainable way in order to meet the demand, and ensure that even the poorest populations have enough food.
What is the yield gap? Why does it matter?
Yield gap is the disparity between actual productivity and the expected yield holding factors such as available management, technology, and genetic material constant. Optimal productivity is feasible when farmers have sufficient seed, water, knowledge, nutrients, pest management, soil, biodiversity during the production period. Closing the yield gap is necessary in determining appropriate measures to take in order to increase production as it ought to be depending on the climate, existing technology and management skills.
What are some of the environmental challenges we face with increasing agricultural output?
Increased production and transportation of food because of globalization accelerates greenhouse effects such as gas emissions to the environment. It also causes disruption of the ecosystem due to overfishing, and pollution due to run-off of nutrients. Other environmental effects of increased production include loss of biodiversity and soil degradation through conversion of land and unsuitable management skills, and water shortage because of overexploitation.
How the food waste problem is fundamentally different in developed vs. developing countries?
In developing nations, food wastage mainly occurs due to lack of proper storage and a dysfunctional food-chain infrastructure. Lack of cold storage facilities for fresh and perishable products will cause wastage since the food will go bad before reaching the market. Conversely, in developed countries, food wastage mainly occurs at the retail and service stage especially due to commercial pressures. Lack of knowledge on food safety forces customers to purchase food based on the expiry date causing wastage of the expired food.
What has led to the substantial increase in goats, sheep, cattle, chicken, and pigs over the last 50 years? Why shouldn’t we all be vegetarians?
Over the past 50 years, consumers have become wealthy, increasing demand for meat and dairy products particularly in India and China. Increased demand for the meat and dairy protein has led to the increased population of animals. We should not all be vegetarians because meat is an essential source of minerals and vitamins suitable for proper growth especially in young children. Being vegetarians denies us these essential minerals and vitamins derived from meat.