As a nation, we are facing many different problems with our environment.  Two of the most important focuses are conserving our water supply and protecting the ozone layer.  These two conditions are statistically the most threatening.  Water, one of the necessary components for life on Earth, is being consumed at an extreme rate.  I recently discovered that one cheeseburger takes more than 700 gallons of water to produce (includes water consumed by cows, water used to irrigate the cornfields that feed the cows, and the water used to produce the beef and cheese).  When considering the millions of cheeseburgers that are consumed worldwide everyday, it is evident that the earth’s water supply is declining rapidly.  Due to air pollution, the ozone layer is also being consumed at an extreme rate.  Its arch nemesis is the various fumes from cars and factories.  Scientists estimate that  each 1% drop in ozone levels causes a 3 to 6% rise in skin cancer cases.  Since the ozone layer prevents most ultraviolet and other high-energy radiation from penetrating to the earth’s surface, this is a crisis that has to be rectified.  The ozone’s depletion has dropped to a level so thin that if we brought it down to Earth, it would only be as deep as the thickness of three dimes.  The only positive outlook concerning this matter is that the ozone has the ability to reconstruct itself when UV-C rays break the bond of O2. Single oxygen atoms combine with O2 to form ozone (UV-B rays limit this process still yet).  This evidence shows that the world is in dire need of an environmental resurrection.  In order for this to occur and be successful, it would require an effort by every individual nation of our world.

 My resolution requires that The University of South Carolina add a mandatory environmental appreciation class to its yearly curriculum.  This plan of action would add the class to the schedule of every student attending the university, during the first year of its existence.  After the first year of operation, only incoming freshmen would be obligated to attend the class.  The students would be required to attend the class one Sunday out of each month during the semester.  The class would last for 2 hours and thirty minutes and would inform the students of the most useful methods to improve and maintain the environment.  The most accredited professors from the school of the environment would teach the course and it would count as two credit hours for every student at the conclusion of the semester.
 This course would equip students with the knowledge to aid in the crucial task of conserving our limited resources.  With the course being mandatory, it would create a sense of urgency that would influence individuals of the University as well as their family and friends.  This would establish a powerful foundation for environmental conservation in South Carolina.  If successful, it could stage an environmental revolution across the world. 

 I truly believe that the decline of our environment is a matter that will soon arise as an extremely intense matter on a world front.  We should all begin taking steps towards conserving our environment, which is mandatory if we wish to conserve a future for our children.  Mother Nature is the greatest individual the world has ever seen and it is our job to keep her that way.