Jacob Baradi

UNST 421

5 / 11 / 2025

For this week’s topic on community, I researched and watched a TED Talk on ‘How forgiveness can create a more just legal system’ by Martha Minow on the idea of restorative justice. Within the legal system of the United States, its laws dealing with criminals and juveniles impose more punishment and deal with consequences rather than having them sit, reflect, and giving them a reset in their lives. Explained by Martha Minow, the act of forgiveness is present in all religions and philosophies, but as a government, it has not been exercised. If a person has done a heinous act, a lot of people would assume that the person would receive a punishment for how severe it was. But this creates disparities among the population, especially those who are in the minority, or even young youth who in the United States are able to be tried as an adult. Furthermore, within the TED talk, she tells a story about Mercedes, a girl going to school in California, who would always get suspended, but eventually, the principal put her and a couple of others who got involved in a fight with Mercedes, into a circle, which put her upfront with the situation, and led to her to express her true feelings within the issue and her personal situation which caused the issue in the first place. The two others forgave with a reason provided, and basically were given a reset button to become better people. This stuck out to me because being suspended or being in juvenile detention to sit for a prolonged period of time to privately reflect is not always the best solution, and punishment should not be the way for people to understand the consequences. Those people need to be heard, both sides of the story, because right in that moment, they are reflecting, expressing themselves, giving reasons, with no biases.

Source:
https://www.ted.com/talks/martha_minow_how_forgiveness_can_create_a_more_just_legal_system

I understand why people enjoy long showers—standing under warm water can be relaxing. However, it’s easy to lose track of time and end up spending 30 minutes in the shower without realizing it. I’ve been working to resist that urge. To help keep my showers short, I play a song in the background, usually around 3–4 minutes long, which serves as a reminder to wrap things up when the song ends.

In addition to saving water, I’ve also been mindful of the energy used to heat water. Hot showers require more energy, which can raise utility bills. To cut down on energy use and save money, I often take lukewarm or cold showers. Not only is this more sustainable, but it also has health benefits—prolonged exposure to hot water can dry out your skin, while cooler water is gentler and may help boost circulation and support the immune system.

Overall, I really enjoyed this eco-challenge and plan to continue incorporating these water- and energy-saving habits into my daily routine.

It is sad to see agriculture dying in favor of fast food production, and it entirely erases what we humans have been doing for centuries. Without manual labor, we lose our sense, touch, and connection with the land, plants, and animals. That practice of being with the land brings communities together, and what's more, it provides people with jobs. The philosophy of being with nature is also seen within native and tribal communities, which have worked with nature and are not against it. We must be “human beings” rather than “human doings”, being with the land and being more in touch with nature, rather than doing what is efficient only for us.

Every year, people worldwide gather at the annual Cluj-Napoca, Romania, for the second Nyéléni Europe Forum for food sovereignty. They share struggles, protest, and share current solutions that others are doing in their own countries to fight against industrialization. It is a joy to see the diverse crowd gathering, all sharing ideas and the culture of food sovereignty.

Source:
https://friendsoftheearth.eu/news/watch-new-documentary-on-food-sovereignty/

The climate and location of these wind turbines are significantly more flexible than land turbines because the ocean provides a lot more space and is not restricted to worrying about private properties. This means that size can also be increased, thus able to harvest and provide more renewable energy, hence why they are a lot more efficient than land turbines. The common size of offshore wind turbines is taller than the Statue of Liberty for comparison, which is nearly 400 feet tall, and the blades each span about 330 feet.

Offshore wind turbines are also going to need some sort of structure and stabilization to stand up right in the rough waters. Depending on the depth and typography of the seabed, anywhere shallower than 60 meters will be fixed to the ground with a large pole called fixed-bottom offshore turbines. Anywhere deeper than 60 meters, turbines will have to stay buoyant, and large cable ropes will be tied and anchored to the seabed.
Though they are able to be set out pretty far off shore away from the coast, some issues arise. One of them are minimizing impact of aquatic wildlife and ecosystems especially larger animals like whale may be caught up in the cable wires supporting the turbine. Another is being able to support those local communities receiving the renewable energy and stabilizing a positive relationship.

According to Energy.gov by the US Department of Energy’s Wind Vision Report, “the benefits from up to 22 gigawatts of installed offshore wind by 2030 and 86 gigawatts by 2050. In fact, the Wind Vision scenarios show that by 2050, offshore wind energy could be available in all coastal regions nationwide.” It clearly shows that these types of renewable energies are a lot more efficient and will provide a broader range of options to produce clean, renewable energy.

Sources:
https://windexchange.energy.gov/markets/offshore
https://www.nationalgrid.com/stories/energy-explained/what-offshore-wind-power