Alyssa Troy

Brenden Hawkins

ENC 2135- 0009

28 November 2017

Statement of Goals and Choices:

audiences. In my multi-genre project, I wish to address the topic of overfishing, specifically to

spread awareness to the public. Throughout this project I stepped into the shoes of an

environmental activist to effectively conduct research to fuel my three appeals to action. Within

this project, I have a letter to congress, a city council speech, and a social media post for a

campaign.

As an environmental activist, I wanted to reach all spheres of influence: the constituents,

local government, and national legislatures. As each of these spheres are different, different

modes of information are necessary. For my national audience, the national legislature, I wrote a

letter to congress. This specifies the audience to one person, my representative. Why I wrote to

my House representative instead of my senator is because of the topic itself. The house would

have more power to actively write a resolution for or within a respective committee. Therefore, I

wrote to Representative Buchanan who I am a constituent of. Then, in the next sphere, I opted to

direct my efforts for community involvement to the city council. I drafted a local resolution for

which I would give an authorship speech for. This would be the most efficient way to get the

local government involved in the debate. Then finally, my last audience is geared towards the

constituents, or anyone within the public. This is a campaign post on Instagram to spread
awareness and ask for support through a specific organization. I posed as a supporter of the

organization Oceana and created a post using my photos and research.

To reach my first audience, I researched the genre of letters, specifically ones to

congress. Through this process I found out that there is a set structure that these letters must

follow. To be successful within the genre would translate into being successful in my efforts to

spread awareness to the effects of overfishing. Therefore, I decided to follow the strict outline. I

started with a brief description of who I am followed by an introduction of the research Ive done

to prove an action should take place. The next section is strictly a bullet-point list of important

research, with no citations, as you would not want to take focus away from the important points.

Finally, the letter ends with a thank you and an offer for further communication and access to

research. To appear in the most professional way, I only appealed to logos and ethos. These

rhetorical techniques are instrumental for this genre. Therefore, I made sure that within my bullet

pointed list of logical statements, I introduced the author that conducted the research I presented.

This solidified the ethos to the logos presented. Overall, I believed I presented myself in a

professional manner by using the outlines given for this genre.

The second audience is a little less structured than the previous, with the same sorts of

formality. While there are aspects that are expected to be met when conducting a speech, there is

more fluidity when deciding how to perform it. Following Roberts Rules of Order, there is an

introduction where you present the side of the topic you are on and your contentions along with

it. I decided to start with my most logically set contention: the effects of the economy. Then

followed by my more obvious and well-known contention: the environment. I wrapped-up

speech with my last contention which was the most emotional, seeing as it could affect every
person around the world. In high school, I had a lot of experience within this genre being on the

debate team and found that this order of contentions is the most effective. I concluded with one

last resounding piece of evidence and a list of rhetorical, leading questions to leave the audience

thinking in my point of view. Personally, I have used this technique in one of my speeches

before and it had a lasting effect on the judges as it was one of my higher scored performances. I

chose to apply this to my 2nd genre as it has worked so well in the past.

To reach the general masses, I decided the best approach would be a social media page. I

chose to work with Instagram because I am most familiar with it and it could display the

information in the best way. First, I decided to be an advocate for an organization called Oceana,

who are one of the leaders in the fight against overfishing. I created an account using the handle

@Oceana.2017 where I posted an album of photos I took as well as a blurb about overfishing.

The photos I took were of dead sea creatures that have washed up on the beach by the most

visited fishing pier in Saint Pete. These photos follow the aesthetic norms in the terms of social

photography. Social photographical norms follow a simplistic following with clear cut, color-

popping pictures that follow the rule of thirds. Enticing pictures that catch peoples eyes are what

would bring the viewer to swipe to the next picture and wonder why. The viewer then can

answer their own question by reading the short blurb in the caption. In order for my pictures to

be seen by many, I included the organizations hashtag, #STOPOVERFISHING to allow the post

to be more accessible. One more parameter within the genre of social media is short and sweet.

Basically, the caption shouldnt be longer than a few sentences and definitely not longer than

your phones screen. Viewers on social media do not usually go on to read a lengthy report on the

negative effects overfishing has on the world, they go on to see pleasing, shocking, or funny
posts that are instant and obtainable. To fit this, I used a lower diction and wrote in the

vernacular to create a short and sweet blurb.

Overall, I found when an author wants to persuade an audience of a certain view, it is

most effective to follow the parameters within a genre. This allows for the audience to clearly

follow the information that you are trying to present and be intrigued by your points. I believed

that I have followed these parameters and have therefore succeeded in my efforts write within

the genre.
Genre 1: Letter to Congress (Physical Copy Handed-in)
Envelope:
The Honorable Vern Buchanan

2104 Rayburn House Office Building

United States House of Representatives

Washington, DC 20515

Letter:
Dear Representative Buchanan:

As an activist and a constituent, I urge you to support or create a resolution or bill to limit

overfishing. This legislation should advocate for stricter regulations where limitations should be

enforced on the fishing industry. As there has been minimal progress with the given legislation,

there needs to be an update to protect our oceans, and ultimately ourselves. Through extensive

research, the below points are paramount for defining the reasons to restructure our legislation.

Economics:

a. Overfishing threatens coastal nations down to the local level, devastating

communities whose chief source of labor and revenue hinges on healthy, plentiful

stocks of fish

b. Written by Kent Strauss is a Manager at the Environmental Defense Fund

approximately 5.4 million jobs in 2010 were supported by fishing with their total

contribution estimated at 633 billion dollars

c. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations stated that the

United States is the fifth leading producer of fish after China, Peru, India and

Indonesia
Environment:

d. Overfishing distorts the entire food chain in the oceans. If the food chain breaks,

the consequences will ripple up and down to all the living organisms that are in

the chain.

e. According to Canadian Dr. Boris Worm, the amplified growth of algae results in

the increase of CO2 levels [meaning] the ocean would become more acidic, less

oxygenated, lower in phytoplankton, there would simply be less life in the ocean

f. Ultimately our oceans would become stagnant leading to much bigger problems

than a decrease in our economy.

Food Industry:

g. Sylvie Earle, a marine biologist, explorer, author, and lecturer, once said: By the

end of the 20th century, up to 90 percent of the sharks, tuna, swordfish, marlins,

groupers, turtles, whales, and many other large creatures that prospered in the

Gulf for millions of years had been depleted by overfishing.

Thank you for your consideration and please feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss

this issue further, and have access to the studies that fueled my research.

Sincerely,

Alyssa Troy | [email protected]

1707 Mellon Way Sarasota, Florida, 34232

WHEREAS, The fishing industry has been overextending themselves and therefore

overfishing; and

WHEREAS, The product of overfishing has led to a rapid decrease in the availability of fish;

and

WHEREAS, The global fish supply is becoming endangered and harming communities and

economies around the world; and

WHEREAS, Stricter regulations and limitations should be enforced on the fishing industry;

now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the Congress here assembled enforce stricter regulations on the fishing

industry to limit overfishing.

Respectfully submitted,

Alyssa Troy

Citizen of Florida

Affirmative Speech:
As National Geographic grimly predicts, if fishing rates continue apace, all the world's

fisheries will have collapsed by the year 2048. Without the assurance of fish as a global food

supply, our future is all but bleak. As defined by C. Michael Hogan, an expert in environmental

science, overfishing is the human act of extracting aquatic... fauna from natural water bodies at
a rate greater than the reproductive and recruitment functions can replace that extraction. This

means that fisherman are catching fish at a faster rate than they can reproduce which is

threatening the fish supply. With this in mind, we must affirm for three reasons: Economy,

Environment, and Protein.

Principally, overfishing has led to a threat on the U.S. economy. As explained by Ocean

Conservancy, The ocean-dependent economygenerated more than $222 billion in 2009. And

every year, commercial and recreational fisheries nationwide employ 1.9 million workers,

making the fishing industry vital to the economy. The UN food and agriculture organization has

estimated that 70 percent of the fish population is fully used, overused or in crisis. According to

the World Wildlife Fund, A lack of management oversight, government regulations, and

traceability of fishing activities has long been a problem in the fishing industry. Current rules and

regulations are not strong enough to limit fishing capacity to a sustainable level. Without

limiting fishing capacity, the problem will only get worse. Another threat presented is illegal

fishing. The WWF furthers, Illegal fishing accounts for an estimated 20% of catch. The costs of

illegal fishing are significant, with the value of pirate fish products estimated at between $10-

23.5 billion annually. Unless regulations are enforced in a stricter fashion, this revenue will be

permanently lost for U.S. gain.

Moreover, the environmental aspect of overfishing is astounding. Overfishing distorts the

entire food chain in the oceans. If the food chain breaks, the consequences will ripple up and

down to all the living organisms that are in the chain. According to Canadian Dr. Boris Worm,

the amplified growth of algae results in the increase of CO2 levels [meaning] the ocean would

become more acidic, less oxygenated, lower in phytoplankton, there would simply be less life in
the ocean. Ultimately our oceans would become stagnant leading to much bigger problems than

a decrease in our economy.

Furthermore, overfishing has led to an elimination of a vital source of protein. As stated

by the World Wildlife Fund, For centuries, our seas and oceans have been considered a limitless

bounty of food. However, increasing fishing efforts over the last 50 years as well as

unsustainable fishing practices are pushing many fish stocks to the point of collapse. The

elimination of fish is catastrophic for the people living on the coast. According to the Marine

Stewardship Council, Coastal communities around the world depend on fish as their primary

source of protein. Overfishing threatens their long-term food security. To expand, Fish are a

main protein source for a third of us humans, but we are wiping them out. Seeing as this is the

case, it is crucial we acknowledge the dangers of overfishing immediately.

Ultimately, overfishing had led a U.S. and global crisis which is endangering not only our

economy but our lives. Sylvie Earle, a marine biologist once said: By the end of the 20th

century, up to 90 percent of the sharks, tuna, swordfish, marlins, groupers, turtles, whales, and

many other large creatures that prospered in the Gulf for millions of years had been depleted by

overfishing. Now, I ask you with just 10% of these creatures left, who gets them? Do we as a

technologically advanced country scoop them up? Could South Africa, a nation in dire need of

an alternate protein source, possibly be able to catch them? And lastly where could we even find

them? Unless we pass this legislation, we are endangering the U.S. and in turn the world. With

this in mind, we must affirm.

Blurb:

Overfishing occurs when fish are being caught faster than the population replace itself. Catching

as many fish as possible seems profitable, but it has serious consequences. For centuries, seas

and oceans have been considered a limitless bounty of food, but now, more than 85% of fish

stocks have been pushed to the limits and are in desperate need of restoration.

#STOPOVERFISHING by visiting and donating to the link below: http://eu.oceana.org/en/home

talks/dan_barber_how_i_fell_in_love_with_a_fish/transcript?language=en

Barica, Rhaydz. Oxygen depletion causes massive fish kill in Lake Buhi. Philippines News

Agency, 18 Oct. 2015, http://www.buhiforum.wordpress.com/2015/10/18/oxygen-

depletion-causes-massive-fish-kill-in-lake-buhisays-govt-fisheries-agency/. Web.

Ending Overfishing. OCEAN2012, 2 Oct. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?

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