Paper Example on Balancing Economic Growth & Environmental Sustainability

Economic growth is one of the key elements of a country's development agenda. Even as countries plan and implement measures to grow their economy, one issue that continues to take center stage is how to balance economic growth and environmental sustainability. Striking this balance has proved to be quite challenging. In the United States, for instance, in as much as our economy thrives owing to its diversification, sustainable development from an environmental perspective is still elusive. It puzzles me that even as the US boasts of currently being the world's largest economy, the country ranks at position 35 globally with regards to the sustainable development index. Air pollution due to carbon dioxide emissions and the increased amount of electronic waste discarded in landfills greatly jeopardize the country's environmental conservation efforts and derail its plans to achieve most of the sustainable development goals. This disparity in economic and environmental sustainability in the US intrigues me and sparks my interest in pursuing the Master's program in Environmental Studies.

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Having studied Communications and Electronics Engineering at the undergraduate level, I am conversant with the design and production of digital and electronic systems that have a wide range of applications in areas such as schools, hospitals, the financial sector, agriculture, transport and manufacturing. I appreciate the breakthroughs achieved so far in designing electronics such as computers and mobile phones that continue to define the trajectory in technology use in the above settings. However, I am also aware of the undesirable ecological impact that these electronic gadgets pose, especially with regards to our disposal mechanisms after deeming them obsolete. The US leads in the production of electronic waste with an estimated 9.4million tons disposed of in landfills annually. The effect of heavy metals such as lithium, copper and mercury released from these landfills on groundwater resources, soil biodiversity and the air is a topic that I aim at understanding thus further pushing my desire for the Environmental Studies program.

After enrolling in the program, my short-term goal is to supplement my Communications and Electronics Engineering knowledge with skills on environmental impact analysis and waste management systems. For environmental impact analysis, I intend to learn how to identify, assess, predict and mitigate the effects of various projects such as electronic systems and electrical infrastructure on the environment. Knowledge of this analysis will help in informing the design of electronics to ensure minimal damage to the environment. I also intend to learn about waste management systems to gain an understanding of integrated approaches to handling waste material, which embrace five key aspects namely generating, reducing, collecting, recycling and discarding waste. This understanding will enable me to advise people on proper and safe disposal mechanisms for their used electronic devices rather than landfills which discharge toxins into the environment.

In the long-term, after completing the Master's program, I hope to enroll in a Doctorate program in solid waste management. After getting the Doctorate, I will be able to coach environmental science students, electronic engineers on the mechanisms of disposing of electronic wastes that least affect the environment. Additionally, I will be able to advise companies that manufacture electronic devices on how to identify, evaluate and minimize the effect of radiations that are likely to be emitted by the devices. Through such advice, these companies will be able to balance their economic growth targets and environmental conservation and thereby contribute towards the achievement of the country's sustainable development goals.