Family Environmental History
May 25, 2022 By: XUECHUN YAN
From my grandparents, parents, and ourselves, my family members have lived in different environments and had diverse experiences. It is acknowledgeable that environmental situations have changed immensely from my grandparents’ time to the way they are today.[1] The following section traces such changes, focusing on how each generation, starting from my grandparents on my mother’s side, my parents, and I have interacted with the environment. My grandparents have lived in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China, all their lives. They were born in the colonial era of Chinese history. Before the devastating effects, my grandfather recalls that they used to live in a small house, where he had to share a bed with his six siblings. Despite living in impoverished conditions, the family cultivated kales around the house, saving much on vegetable costs. Besides, they grew rice like other people in their neighborhood. My grandparents also recall how the mountains and sea views in the area gave them a therapeutic effect. They point out that buildings have replaced most of the land that was open during their earlier years.
My grandparents had rough and traumatizing experiences when Japan invaded China as they were still young. For example, my grandmother once narrated to me how she witnessed her parents die. After the war ended in 1945, my grandparents met and married and started living in a small house near where my grandfather’s family lived before the event. They continued their previous economic practice of growing rice and rearing cattle. However, the political landscape influenced land division as the authority demanded people to produce more yields. As a result, my grandparents spent their earlier and middle years in rice fields.
My parents had relatively better experiences growing up as they did not encounter international and political conflicts. Nevertheless, they had to engage in extensive farming activities as the authority demanded. Notably, my mother and father are from Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China. As a result, my parents spent most of their childhood years in the countryside, helping their respective families in rice production. As the years passed, people discovered effective and more efficient farming methods, which allowed minimal water wastage and farm input, like fertilizer, to increase yields. However, while productivity increased, the farming approaches devastated nature through the fertilizer and pesticide residues contaminating water bodies. My parents recall when they viewed dead fish in rivers. Such aspects made my father develop an interest in nature conservation by ensuring that each family member interacted with it responsibly. Nevertheless, the individuals enjoyed the countryside life, especially the mountainous views and unpolluted air.
My parents moved to the city when they got employed. While their resident had many buildings, they ensured that they cultivated kales and planted flowers around the house. As a result, there was always fresh and clean air. Moreover, my parents encouraged us to save water, such as washing utensils in a basin rather than using running water and conserving energy by switching off lights during the day. Such practices and guidelines continued when my parents and I immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, when I was in senior high school. The effective nature conservation policies in BC facilitated my parents to continue protecting the environment. Such aspects instilled in me the essence of protecting nature.
I spent most of my childhood in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China. Growing up, I can recall the mountainous landscape and the sea view. My school was in a raised location, allowing a person to have a more comprehensive view of natural and artificial features. For instance, we could see the sea with ships coming in and others docking, vehicles moving on the road, and landscapes across the region. Like my father, I also developed a deep interest in conserving nature from an earlier age. For instance, I became concerned about the excessive fumes and exhaust gases from manufacturing industries and motor vehicles. As a result, I took my parents’ directives to save energy and natural resources seriously. It was heartbreaking to see that Fuzhou reserved most land for commercial and residential purposes, with only a few Banyan trees along the roads.
After relocating to Kamloops, I noticed many differences that the region had from Fuzhou. For example, the part has more effective zoning, where there are distinct areas for residential buildings, commercial structures, and vegetation.[2] As a result, the air is less polluted, and the environment is calmer. I do not necessarily find environmental conservation challenging, considering that my parents made it appear natural and outright obligation to curb the destruction of nature. For example, I apply all the necessary approaches to conserve water and save energy. Moreover, I engage in adding vegetation by growing different edible plants and flowers in my backyard. Additionally, I contribute to the goals and objectives of Kamloops and BC regarding suppressing greenhouse gases emission. For example, I apply electricity to cook rather than other methods that would involve emitting carbon dioxide excessively.