Closed, Open, and Isolated Thermodynamic Systems
Let's open this discussion with some definitions.
A system, from a thermodynamics perspective is "a body of matter and/or radiation, confined in space by walls, with defined permeabilities, which separate it from its surroundings." Systems are classified as open, closed, or isolated.
An open system is defined as "a material system in which mass or energy can be lost to or gained from the environment."
A closed system is "a physical system that does not allow transfer of matter in or out of the system, although — in contexts such as physics, chemistry or engineering — the transfer of energy is allowed."
An isolated system is "In physical science, an isolated system is either of the following: a physical system so far removed from other systems that it does not interact with them. a thermodynamic system enclosed by rigid immovable walls through which neither mass nor energy can pass."
Now, there's a lot of resources available online that provide some clarity on this concept. I'm not writing here as a professional, but as a mad person on a mission to get people to understand that we do not live in isolated systems, and that means that the choices we make impact the world around us. If you want to understand more about this from a thermodynamics perspective, maybe I'll get around to writing a creative resource that delves more into the math/science, but for now, this is a conceptually based scathing moral indictment on people who think that they're making the world better by transferring problems out of their line of sight.
Just by existing in any capacity in the developed world, we contribute to its ultimate destruction. I've written a short and depressing rant about microplastics, and I am soon to write a rant about the water cycle, but what's important to state here is that none of us live in a vacuum.
Our households are open systems, energy and matter flowing in an out. How often do we consider where our trash goes? Our neighborhoods are open systems, our nations even. Importing and exporting goods and services, matter and energy. So much of what we base our lives on, we take for granted.
Some other examples of things we take for granted that are really destroying the world around us:
Using commercial laundry detergent or fabric softener. Fun fact, detergents also contain microplastics.
Using exfoliating products that contain plastic microbeads.
Using plastic bags, at all, ever.
Owning, wearing, or washing synthetic clothes, stretchy clothes, leggings.
Participating in fast fashion.
Pushing pleather over leather. Again, plastics.
Eating anything, at all, whether you farmed it yourself or not.
Existing as a person who doesn't immediately jettison themselves off the planet.