Time and time again the media reminds us of
how big of a problem the contamination and lack of fresh water is across the
world. What might not be as commonly known is that this problem is not
exclusive to developing countries, but in fact affects, amongst others, the
USA. Changes are needed in order to solve this global issue, and the movie
“Last Call at the Oasis” displays these very well. When looking at the globe
from outer space you might laugh at people claiming we must conserve the water
we consume in such a massive degree, however only one per cent of this water is
fresh water.
Conflicting interests often come in the way
of progress. The needs of the few might cloud our vision, and prevent us from
moving and looking forward. Farmers in Midland, Texas, don’t see how the
extinction of an “insignificant” species of fish will affect anyone in the long
run. They spray their crops with chemicals and fresh water that spreads in the
ground water and affects ecosystems. Humans have built cities in desserts, like
Las Vegas, and consume the fresh water sources a lot faster than they
regenerate. We didn’t anticipate this happening before, but now we know and
risk being out of fresh water some places. The amount of water on planet earth
is constant, but when we pollute and consume such amounts of pure and fresh
water by watering the lawn, breeding kettle for steaks, and filling our pools, we
will face a shortage of fresh water somewhere down the road.
If we can´t see past our own needs, how
will our grandchildren have their covered? Finding new sources of fresh water
and consuming them at the same pace as before will not last long, so how about
recycling the water we´ve already used? Desaltation of water is very expensive,
but there are several examples of sewage water being “recycled” and used again.
The problem may be that people are repelled by the fact that the water has been
used before, and after seeing the sewage treatment plant in New York, I realize
why. Nevertheless, I believe in recycled water, or “future water” as it is
campaigned.
For the last month or two we’ve been doing a
collaboration project with an Alaskan class about World War 2. It’s my first
time doing something like this, and it’s been a new experience. We worked in
groups of 4-6 and made a text, narrated video or presentation for the Alaskan
students, who invited us to do this collaboration project for their history
class. To get to know each other we made videos introducing our school and
ourselves, and they replied with a similar video.
The big difference between this project and any other
school assignment, I think was the fact that we did this to educate someone
else. Usually these projects are to be handed in to the teacher who evaluates
them, but this time we actually taught someone. I think the project is relevant
to both our international English course and the Alaskan history class, seeing
as we interact with international English speakers and they get an insight to
our view on WW2.
Whether or not Norwegian
students know more about WW2, I don’t know. From what the Alaskan students
answered on our questions, it seems they know a fair bit about it. However,
since Norway geographically was so much closer to the center of the war, it’s
unheard of for anyone to not know the history.
The collaboration did
exceed the topic of WW2. What I have come to realize is that very few people
outside of Scandinavia are familiar with Norway, our politics and customs.
Norway is a great country to live in, and we Norwegians are very proud of that.
I feel I have a good grasp of how it is to live in America, but it doesn’t seem
to be mutual regarding how the Alaskans perceive Norway.
In 1999 the
English actor and filmmaker Jeremy
Gilley foundedPeace One Day. This is a
non-profit organization with a clear objective; creating awareness around theInternational Day of Peace. 21st of
September every year is a day of non-violence, conflict resolution and safe
ways for UN and other organizations to go into areas of conflict and carry out
help.
After
getting a unique presentation by Jeremy Gilley himself
over Skype this morning, I´ve gotten a better idea of just what the intention
behind this day of peace is. Throughout the year Peace One Day primarily
works on making the global community and as many individuals as possible aware
of the 21st of September. There are numerous benefits to this. Obviously a day of piece is a great act of
humanity, but the movement itself
causes an increased focus on peace and empathy that is profound. Even though
there is only one day of piece a year, the result is an overall reduced amount
of violence, bullying and so on.
Jeremy Gilley compares Peace One Day to a
formula 1 car. It´s the commercial and sponsors on the side of the vehicle that
keeps moving forward, and the same goes for Peace One Day. Together
we move forward, thus we come closer to our goal of peace. You might ask yourself why the EU and Barack
Obama receive the Nobel Peace Prize after reading about Jeremy Gilley and Peace One Day.
I speak two
languages fluently, Norwegian and English. I know most of what there is to know
about Norwegian culture, and quite a bit about the variety of English-speaking
world as well. By the time I graduate from a university I hope to speak a third language fluently, and I am in the
process of learning. Nearly 500 million people speak Spanish; imagine how many
people I could communicate with if I spoke their language properly!
There are
several aspects to learning a language. I learn Spanish- and English grammar in
school, but I think my knowledge and understanding of Spanish- and
English-speaking cultures and history is equally important. I feel my knowledge
of the English-speaking world is adequate, but as for Spanish, it could
definitely be better. How did Spanish become such a huge and widely spoken
language? By taking a look back in time, I hope to clarify this, as well as
presenting the modern state of the Spanish-speaking world. You can read all about this in my upcoming in-depth project for International English.
English is
one of four official languages in Singapore, and Singapore English is divided
into two different sub-forms, Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Singapore
Colloquial English. Singapore was a British Colony from 1819-1965, and like in many
of the other nations that were British colonies in the past, English has
maintained a firm ground. English was the administrative language of the
British colonial government, and the Singaporean government chose to keep
English as their main language, when they gained self-government in 1959 and
independence in 1965. This decision to keep English was made in order to
maximize the economical prosperity of Singapore, as well as being a lingua
franca for the various different ethnicities and cultures of Singapore.
Standard
Singapore English resembles British English in its’ grammar and way of writing,
but differs in the pronunciation. Unlike SSE, Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish)
includes linguistic features from Malay, Mandarin and Hokkien. Singlish is not
commonly used in formal speech or writing, due to it´s reputation of being a
low-prestige form of English. Wikipedia states, on based on various sources,
that 71% of Singapore´s population in 2010 spoke English as their native or
second language. These are quite a few Singaporeans!
This video displays some Singlish charateristics.
South Africa (by Jørgen F.)
In
South-Africa there was apartheid for 46 years, from 1948 to 1994. The white European descendants controlled South Africa, and used apartheid to suppress
the natives/ black people. Because of this, the South-African English today is heavily influenced by the British English.
English is only one of the eleven official languages in South-Africa. That also
means that The South-African English not only is influenced by the British, but
also by the ten other languages in the country.
What
characterizes the South-African English depends on the form. In South-Africa there are three different forms of English, often referred to as “The Great Trichotomy”, or just three groupings. The three different forms have are much affected by the social varieties. The most formal and "finest" of the three forms is the Cultivated. This type of English
is often associated with the upper class. The second type is called General, and is a social indicator of
the middle class. The third type of English is called Broad, this form of speaking is mostly associated with the working
class. It is also in many ways similar to the other official language Afrikaans. In other words, the more formal the setting, the more British
English they talk in South-Africa, and the more informal the occasions are,
the more influenced by the other official languages the English is.
A scene taken from the film Invictus, South African accent.
India (by Sindre G.)
The British
first arrived in India in the early 1600s and they established trading posts in
a number of cities under the control of The East India Company. Over the next
hundred years, the British influence grew to a much greater extent, and English
became the administrative language. The British did not force their language on
the Indian population, but it was slowly accepted as the language of the
government, the national press and the social elite. India became a British
colony in 1858, and it stayed so until 1947. The intentions of the Indian
government after they gained their independence, was that English gradually
would be phased out as the administrative language. The government had problems
finding a language to replace English, due to the fact that there are many
different languages, so choosing one as the national language became almost
impossible. Even Gandhi, who was a proponent of a native variety as a national
language, expressed that his message was most widely understood when he used English.
Therefore, English stayed as a strong language in India, widely used in the
media, the government and higher education. Recent studies shows that nearly 4%
of the Indian population speak English as their main language. This equals to
approximately 35 million speakers. India is the largest English speaking
country in the world, apart from America and the UK.
English is
mostly taught as a second language. Many Indians are therefore strongly
influenced by the linguistic habits of their first language. Because there are
large diversities in the Indian language and culture, there are also different
accents depending on where in India, and the social background of the speaker. Some
Indians speak English with an accent very close to a Standard British accent,
while others lean towards a more vernacular accent. The diversity is so large
that some words can even have different meanings in different parts of India.
The grammar, such as the accents, is influenced by the native language of the
speaker. Indians tend to often use idioms literal translated from their own
native language, although this is less common amongst the proficient speakers,
who also tend to use grammar closer to standard British.
A sampling of different Indian English Accents.
Comparison
All of the countries above were British colonies, and bear linguistic traits from the colonial times. Local languages and others have influenced the further development of the English, differentiating the varieties today. They serve to some degree as a lingua franca in the Singapore, South Africa and India, but aren´t necessarily the mother tong of the majority of the population. By looking at some characteristics for these English varieties they can be recognized.
This post was written as collaboration post with two of my fellow students. Links to their blogs:
If we can´t see past our own needs, how
will our grandchildren have their covered? Finding new sources of fresh water
and consuming them at the same pace as before will not last long, so how about
recycling the water we´ve already used? Desaltation of water is very expensive,
but there are several examples of sewage water being “recycled” and used again.
The problem may be that people are repelled by the fact that the water has been
used before, and after seeing the sewage treatment plant in New York, I realize
why. Nevertheless, I believe in recycled water, or “future water” as it is
campaigned. 
