European Elections

Greece and France are undergoing elections right now. The voters state that austerity measures will actually in fact do the opposite of helping the economy. Austerity measures is a policy of deficit cuts by lowering spending often through a reduction in the amount of benefits and public services. This in fact will not help the economy. It will lower the income of the economy and lower the capital value of the economy. If they were to cut spending on services then that will make the economy contract and lose money in the long run. Especially for Greece this will in fact not help the economy debt crisis If they default this will cause a ripple effect on other countries around the world. This "solution" would really not benefit the European Union, but especially these two countries due to the debt and trouble they are in. France cannot afford this risk because of the controversy about their human rights already. This would just add more fuel to the fire because this would be taking away more rights for their citizens. If they were to accept these austerity measures it could cause a catastrophic effect, so bad it could cause the euro zone to fail.

How Will I Make A Change?

As I move on to the next phase in my life, I wish to become more involved with helping children. I want to feel the accomplishment of at least making a few children's lives that much better. Even though I may not be able to actually help globally I can start locally. I'm hoping that maybe I can volunteer at a recreation center or a shelter for teenagers so that I can make their lives better and keep them safe. Even when I was in middle school I always helped out in the kindergarten classrooms because I enjoyed teaching younger kids. I hope that with all my volunteering experience I have at least affected one child's life. I want to be that person to make a change and help that one kid stay on the right path and become successful. when teaching a kid something new and they get to that finishing point where they understand it, it's the most rewarding feeling in the world. I can't wait to make a change and help kids stay out of trouble.

Biggest Threat in the Next 50 Years For Canada

I think that in the next 50 years the biggest threat Canada will be facing is environmental issues. What I mean by this is that because we consume so much of our resources that we will have a shortage and have to find alternative resources. I think that a main concern would be deforestation because even though we are realizing that we can't cut down a mass amount of trees each time, we are still doing it.

Though we have realized what we are doing wrong our population is still being greedy. We have come to realize and know that what we are doing is causing a problem in the long run but we choose to ignore this and still clearcut our forests. Canada is known for our forests and beautiful nature sights but our desire for more is killing these beautiful sights and habitats for our biodiversity. Not only are we going to have a period where we cannot cut down our trees for products because we used so much now but we will also lose many species. We are taking their natural habitat away and therefore they will become endangered because they are not able to survive or migrate somewhere else and we will lose that biodiversity.

What Have I Learned About Myself?

Throughout the course we learned about many different issues and I really found out a lot about myself. I learned that in the end I really wasn't aware of the extent of some of the issues but I also learned that I want to make a change to help children. I found out that even though I'm confident voicing my opinion in a group of friends when it comes to speaking in class discussions or debates I'm very shy and self-conscious of what people with think when I say my piece. I also learned that when presenting I get very nervous but now that the year is coming to an end I have become more confident, especially if I have an interest and knowledge on the topic. I also learned that I really care about the rights of children in other countries and that I want to do something to help them have better lives. At the end of this year I have realized that I just need to speak my mind if I truly believe my opinion and just let people say what they want as long as I stick to my opinion.

3 Important Issues

Now that the course is coming to an end I think back and realize that I have learned about so many different global issues in such a short span of time. In my opinion the 3 most important issues that I've learned about are:

1. The first issue that I believe is important is the Arab-Israeli Conflict. It was a huge chunk of our curriculum because we had to do a simulation. It was an experience in itself to learn about it but to actually experience it by going through this simulation really set in reality. After finding out what countries had to go through to fight for what they want but to also try and keep peace it was very difficult to manage. It just showed how stressful and serious this conflict is.
2. The next issue that in my opinion is important is racism. After discussing it I realized how much racism there is in my daily life. That was when I realized how much of an issue it was, I didn't even realize some of it was racism because it was said as a joke. People don't think of the consequences and how what they're saying can affect others. This is a serious issue that needs to be stopped because for generations to come it will be seen as okay to make fun of people by their appearance but it can also cause even more conflict between ethnic groups because of a silly joke.
3. My last important issue is education. Even though it wasn't technically an "issue" that we discussed it was a solution for everything. In the end a lot of issues are not resolved because of peoples lack of education. More programs need to be implemented to educate not only third world countries but also for the younger generations to help prevent more tragedies because of disease. 

CARE Model

The C.A.R.E. Model can be found in our Take More Action textbook, it can be used as a guide to become more aware and a better global citizen. Each letter describes the key components of being a better global citizen.

C:ompassion

• Try to relate with others and see their perspective on a situation. Try to take into account the other parties feelings, needs, and motives. It is important to what the other person involved is thinking because it can change the reaction and solution.

A:ction

• You need to show leadership and initiative to be able to make a change. Showing that leadership will prove that you are ready to make a change in the world. You need to have courage and hope to believe that change is possible. You need to be able to separate right from wrong, even if right is the unpopular choice. You need to be able to control your fear and hold it back to make that change.

R:esponsibility

• You have to take ownership for your actions and not blame someone else if it goes wrong. People need to be able to trust you and your decisions and be able to come to you and count on you being there. You need to be able to make a promise and go through with it.

E:quality

• Everyone needs to be equal and work as one instead of being individuals. You need to consider the individuals feelings and needs to come up with the best possible solution that benefits everyone. Treat everyone the same so that you don't favour anyone and listen to others ideas.

The C.A.R.E. Model is very important to becoming the best global citizen you can be. Each letter is important and one is not effective without the other. Ultimately, the most important component is all of them because each element links to the other.

ISU Reflection

We just finished ISU presentations in my world issues class and it was an eye opener to learn about so many different topics and to hear my classmates views on the subject. After learning about these topics it really shows me how opinionated people are and how some issues might never be resolved. But they also showed me how horrible and judgemental the world can be. The presentation that I found the most interesting was Abortion and Child Slavery.

Now I've had debates and done research on abortion so I knew the facts but what I found interesting was the discussion. I learned other facts about abortion that I hadn't known before but to hear my peers opinions was very interesting. There were so many different opinions in my class that a heated discussion actually arose because of difference of opinion. It was intriguing to hear people evidence on how they back up their opinion and how it was easily countered by the opposition.

The presentation on child slavery was one that I found concerning and almost disturbing. It was horrible to find out about the statistics of child slaves and to know the actual definition of child slavery. It was devastating to find out about the amount of children who are taken from their families and forced to working horrible and demoralizing conditions. It makes me wonder how people can just let this happen and how more needs to be done to stop this.