Ever since I took an Environmental Science class, I’ve been intrigued by the topic of climate change. After that class. I a few steps to reduce my impact on the planet, including not using plastic water bottles and trying to walk instead of drive when possible; however, that all changed when the IPCC report came out earlier in the year. Hearing that the events we’ve been fearing are going to happen sooner than predicted lead me to become an even more environmentally friendly person. This research paper allowed me to explore my passion and discuss a topic I don’t believe is discussed enough, the auto industry.
When I first looked into topics, I had ideas that ranged from melting land ice all the way to algal blooms. However, after looking into Tesla, I had a lot of interest in the electric car business. So, when I first started looking into the industry, I was planning on writing about how electric cars have benefited the planet. Then, after going more in-depth in my research I realized that was not the case and changed my topic to what the auto industry was not doing about climate change.
My research was primarily from ProQuest as I found it abundant and easy to navigate, but then I started looking at environmental science databases and found more relevant and detailed sources. Reading the first few sources was relatively difficult as it discussed complex terms and ideas. Then, I began to read complex sources by first reading through the abstract, then defining complex terms/ideas, and then finally slowly going through the paragraphs. This gave me a fuller understanding of what I was reading.
With regards to rhetorical strategies, I used a lot of facts and data to be informative. In addition, I used antithesis to connect ideas and emphasize the contrast between gasoline-powered and electric cars. For my next paper, I would love to learn about how to be more persuasive using rhetorical strategies in formal papers, as they tend to be less lively and engaging.
The audience for my essay was anyone in the auto industry or even any consumers of the auto industry. It is important that the people in the industry are motivated to innovate and that the consumers are educated before they decide which vehicle to purchase. My tone of voice in this paper was informative. In addition, I tried to add in a fear aspect to my paper to emphasize the idea that climate change is happening and happening fast.
In the past, I have had a tough time with clarity and flow of ideas, so for this paper, I used outlines to help guide and organize my ideas. I began by doing some research and after I got a good idea about where my paper was going I diagrammed out how I wanted my paper to be structured. Afterward, I based my research on that diagram by looking for areas where I was short on information. Then, I made an outline and carefully added in data that would strengthen my argument. This definitely helped me keep my research and ideas organized throughout the writing process.
In my process of writing this paper, I definitely learned about the importance of keeping my ideas organized. Good outlines are extremely important, especially in long research papers. I also learned how to incorporate valuable data in effective ways such as through sandwiching, instead of just placing in a quotation. In addition, I learned about the importance of a purpose/motive in a paper because without one your reader won’t continue to read your paper. In the future, I hope to use a similar method of writing as I did for this paper because I found it successful. I also hope to take my new research skills and apply it to other papers I write in any class!
(The photograph used is my own)
Climate Change 