Director's Commentary

Ecosystem services are resources and processes, such as the water cycle, oxygen production, and pollination,that are provided by functioning ecosystems and are vital to everyday human life. Although we all are aware that we receive valuable services from the environment, we often take them for granted and forget about the priceless ways in which our planet helps us survive (85). For example, bees and other animals pollinate plants, which produce oxygen and food for humans. If pollination were to cease, humans would lose these vital resources and the whole population would be facing serious problems.
Humans need to learn to be more appreciative of the ecosystem services that our planet provides us and realize that our actions directly affect the health of the ecosystems surrounding us: “ignorance of nature’s services and the environmental costs of pollution present major obstacles to developing ecological economics…” (87). We need to decrease our negative impacts on the Earth, such as erosion and pollution, so that ecological systems can function as efficiently as possible; healthy ecosystems result in increased ecosystem services.
Initially, we were unsure on how to make this video. We didn’t know how to properly explain ecosystem services to the average student when some of us weren’t even sure as to what it meant. It was then that we decided to interview people and ask them what they thought ecosystem services were. We wanted to know what the perception of ecosystem services were so that we could first show the ignorance of the average person and secondly better understand how to explain what they really are. If we were going to show how little people understood the concept, we had to then properly explain it with more than just a definition. Jake then thought of asking a professor for an “expert” opinion on the subject. Jake then contacted Dr. Eric Wiseman, a professor in Urban Forestry here at Virginia Tech, and he agreed to the interview. With these two parts of our video determined, we needed to put our definition in and get the video flowing. We also wanted to mention Biosphere 2 since Dr. Hull referenced it multiple times in class. For the interviews, we simply asked our peers what they believed ecosystem services were. We got some interesting responses, as was expected. After the interviews, our definition of ecosystem services was given. We wanted people to start thinking about what they thought ecosystem services were and then have it defined for them. By doing this we hope to get people to realize that they too do not understand it well. Dr. Wiseman then gave his opinion on the definition. Surprisingly, his was similar to ours without him being told what ours was. This gave us more confidence in our definition considering we researched what it was and then formed our own.
Dr. Wiseman then spoke on his professional experience with ecosystem services in the urban forest. This provides insight into a real world application of the true value of ecosystem services. We then asked Dr. Wiseman to discuss how he goes about estimating the value of ecosystem services. He was able to give some examples on how this is accomplished but was still able to convey the difficulty in making such an estimate. We then discussed the possibility of losing some of the services that we take for granted. This is where we implanted referencing Biosphere 2 as it was a failed attempt to recreate the biosphere we live in now. This demonstrates how little we know about the ecosystems we occupy and how difficult and expensive it would be to recreate them. This is the main point of our video. We want to stress that it is important we realize what we receive for little to nothing and that the services need to be conserved and protected. Lastly, Dr. Wiseman summed up his interview with his thoughts on the importance of understanding these services so that we can attempt to engineer new solutions. We hope this video will get students thinking about ecosystem services and their real importance to us.
There are five main points that our video and Infinite Nature focus on. The first point is that the average person does not know what ecosystem services are. This is especially focused on in the video interviews because it shows that people are not aware of just how much the environment provides for us. If people are not aware of these services, then they cannot do anything to prolong them for use in the future. The book briefly discusses how ignorance of nature’s services will negatively affect us in the long run(87). We use so many ecological services every day, but cannot define them.
The second focus is defining ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are resources and processes, such as the water cycle, oxygen production, and pollination,that are provided by functioning ecosystems and are vital to everyday human life. Infinite Nature explains them by stating that “nature” is like humanity’s landlord, and everything that nature provides can be compared to “rent and utilities (85).” People use all of the environment’s free services without paying a cost. Defining ecosystem services is a focus because the definition in itself explains just how important they are to life.
The importance of ecosystem services is the third focus. New York City and its drinking water as an example to explain the importance of ecosystem services. It details exactly what New York does to ensure that they are able to drink clean water. Our video focuses on importance by interviewing Dr. Wiseman for his opinion on the subject. The video also asks what would happen if one or more ecosystem services were no longer available to us. Even without one service, the impact is tremendous. The focus is that without ecosystem services, we would not be able to survive. We are dependent on them.
Our dependence on ecosystem services introduces the fourth focus.Infinite Nature and our video both discuss whether it would be realistic or even possible for humans to recreate or repair these services if something was to happen to them. Biosphere 2, a failed attempt to recreate a second functioning biosphere (or environment), shows that our technology cannot replace what the environment provides for us (86). We might be able to use technology as a good attempt to repair a service, but we are not capable of replacing all of them. The book states, “The more we learn about nature’s services, the more we realize we lack the means to replicate them" (85).
The final focus of our video and the book describes our responsibility as “tenants” of planet Earth to keep ecosystems functioning at the most efficient level possible. Our video places an emphasis on this topic by interviewing Dr. Wiseman on what people can do to help prolong what our environment naturally provides for free. The book on the other hand, discusses options such as “government pollution prevention programs” that would help to protect services (86). Both our video and the book support the fact that educating people about ecological services is the best way to ensure that they are not damaged or destroyed.
Five references we utilized:
1. http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/educators/lesson_plans/partners_in_pollination/index.html
This source focuses on the ecosystem service of pollination. It explains exactly how pollination occurs, why it is important, and how plants are specifically designed for optimal pollination by position of reproductive parts and physical attractiveness to pollinators.
2. http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11139
This online book source focuses on humans’ dependence and effects on ecosystem services. It also discusses in depth the economic importance of ecosystem services.
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7B39MLVeIc
This is a 16-minute-long video on YouTube that discusses Biosphere 2. It discusses the activities of the people who lived inside this recreated environment and the intricate assembly of this expirament. We also used an image from this video in our video: a chart that compares Biosphere 1 (our Earth) with Biosphere 2.
4. http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/bio3/2000projects/carroll_d_walker_e/whatwentwrong.html
This site also offered us important information on Biosphere 2, in particular how and why it did not succeed.
5. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycle.html
This site is by the U.S. Geological Survey and explains the water cycle. Specific parts of the water cycle, including ground-water storage, runoff, and evapotranspiration, are defined and discussed as well.