Journal Entry 20- Colloquium Difficulties

Colloquium Difficulties

The high points in colloquium were the many connections with nearly all facets of society since it is the environment that sustains life and all that life demands.  Making the connections between what was the best for the environment and society.  Then examining the political and economical feasibility of the ideas presented.  I thrive off of the debate fostered in class since true learning comes not from accepting the bias presented to you, but rather receiving multiple sources of bias and facts to draw your own conclusions.  Debate brings up areas of weakness in arguments and many other influences into thinking.  I also enjoyed the freedom of our final project and in choosing our service learning opportunity.  I developed a leadership role in order to attain the service learning objective which proved useful to further my management skills and abilities and to become a leader promoting environmental sustainability.  I was able to choose a project that has always interested me.  Sustainable city planning was able to incorporate the knowledge and research gained throughout the course and the project and kept that material interesting to me.   It was difficult to study in depth the articles especially when they were not interesting to me.  I also struggled with the biased movies presenting political sides rather than addressing the environmental problems with solutions which we needed.  Being able to apply knowledge and facts to back up my position will allow me to make stronger arguments for my personal and business practices in the future. 

Journal Entry 19- The Meaning of Colloquium

The Meaning of Colloquium

The largest challenge in education aside from learning the material is the proper application and use of that knowledge.  My personal standpoints and beliefs are based off of the facts and knowledge I’ve gained.  University Colloquium in that sense has attempted force me to conform the ideology suggesting a personal and cultural change along with a sense of urgency to change behavior to avoid an already inevitable environmental disaster.  I did gain valuable knowledge on the inter-connected human activity and the effects on the environment.  The knowledge applied to my personal life allows me to make small behavioral adjustments to ease my own personal impact (demand for energy and resources) without a major lifestyle or standard of living adjustment.  Common sense solutions to become environmental friendly should be promoted to achieve sustainability.  Academically the course is a graduation requirement and does not specifically benefit me aside from a renewed sense of environmental awareness similar to that of other classes.  University Colloquium doesn’t directly apply to my degree being a Business Management Major.  I would have preferred a Colloquium class customized to benefit the major colleges which would concentrate focus on a more direct connection to my career pursuit.  There was related information which will prove useful in the business environment because business involves human capital (influenced by social factors), resources (both energy and ecological), as well as economics (also influenced by the other factors).  Business opportunities will appear when environmental changes create demand; similarly business operation must be sustainable to provide for long term strategic planning. 

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Journal Entry 18- The Human Impact

Surviving the Human Impact

The overall human impact is vastly underestimated by many.  The behavior and impacts of a single individual may be so small, but people do not realize the vast quantities of humans.  Every ecosystem has a set carrying capacity.  The same is true for the earth and humans.  The colonies here can only sustain a set number of demands on the ecosystems before destruction will naturally occur.  This destruction can take place with the loss of natural resources that sustain plants and animals, and/or through natural disasters such as fires caused by drought (water overconsumption), or other naturally occurring disasters exemplified by human impacts on the earth’s resources.  The global populations numbering in the billions are barely sustainable since the vast majority of humans live in poverty in proportions vastly below the American standard of living.  Efforts to make necessary changes are definitely attainable however saving humanity as a whole and the standard of living of modernized humans is not possible, especially with the exponentially expanding size of populations.  Thus creates the moral dilemma and the ever present philosophy that the fittest survive.  The modernized nations are able to utilize education and technology to make life sustainable without compromising living standards.  This will not be true for underdeveloped and struggling nations simply because the resources are not plentiful enough to be sustained in higher levels.  Nations currently under development including developing markets should be trained in resource responsibility so the majority of populations (those with the current resource advantages) are sustained with the better lifestyle.  To make these changes are also possible through government and cultural policy making. 

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Journal Entry 17- The Nature of the Everglades Reflection

The Nature of the Everglades Reflection

The Everglades, unique to the world, holds diversity and many forms of life.  The name Everglades is derived from an English chart maker that overtime the word River Glades was changed to Ever Glades.  The Indians most accurately called the Everglades: Grassy Water.  The Everglades is formed by the overflowing Lake Okeechobee.  Its location extends from the east and west sides of Lake Okeechobee to the very southern tip of Florida.  The river and grass combination provides the perfect environment for life.  This area covers over 3500 square miles.  The sheer size and importance of the Everglades in terms of biodiversity is genuine and crucial to the surrounding ecosystems because everything is linked.  The importance of the coastline becomes apparent especially for the mangroves as they hold back the sea, thus protecting the mainland.  The seasons of wet and dry that apply to Southwest Florida should be noted as the ecology adapts to the moderately changing seasons.  Marjory Stoneman Douglas did a remarkable job unlocking the secrets of the Everglades.  The many natural functions the Everglades provides to ecology and in turn humans, become evident when it is understood.  The Caloosahatchee River explanation is a special reminder of the closeness to nature especially since living in the rural area of LaBelle for years, that river also plays a vital role in the community there.  Recognizing the connection between the Everglades value to community and to the value of nature, The Everglades serves rewards to humans and ecology alike. 

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Journal Entry 12- The Ecological Footprint

The Ecological Footprint

Energy Consumption can be reduced simply by making some behavioral or lifestyle changes.  Often times these changes will not have a drastic or even significant impact on the current human way of life, but will benefit the environment.  Some changes I could make to reduce my ecological footprint and promote conservation would be first to reduce my transportation impacts.  Using a smaller vehicle, carpooling more, and use alternative transportation means is a few solutions.  Using energy efficient appliances, living in homes with better insulation, and if possible buying a tank-less water heater would cut power usage significantly.  Unplugging electronics and using power bars will cut wasted electricity usage.  Modifying my eating habits will reduce my ecological footprint as well.  Purchasing local foods and organic when possible or when in season reduces impacts.   If possible, planting a garden would be the best food source.  Consuming less meat would contribute to cutting greenhouse gas emissions.  In housing, the use of drought tolerant plants will cut water usage and the energy associated with it.   Taking less frequent and shorter showers will also achieve the same goal.  Constantly repairing leaks and avoiding activities that demand high water usage makes a big difference.  This includes rarely washing the vehicle, using commercial car-washes, and not power-washing.  Adopting a combination of these behavioral changes will over time create a significant difference so reducing my ecological footprint now, and encouraging others to adopt a similar lifestyle, will provide a long lasting environmental benefit. 

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Journal Entry 9- Exempt

Journal Entry 14- Reflection on Service Learning Experience (part 2)

Communication between the Green Team Leadership was essential in providing direction and progress reports throughout the planning of the event.  To further market the event I used the popular social networking utility Facebook to target the FGCU student and faculty market segment.  The Facebook friend Green Eagles also provides a supportive environment to learn about not only The Green Team, its mission and events, but also has become a link between all conscientious students with concern for practical sustainability living behaviors.   It also allows people to become a more responsible citizen or a proactive supporter for environmental sustainability.   Already this utility has gained around 80 friends and is rapidly being sought by students and faculty alike to become friends and then become involved.  The Sustainability Coordinator at FGCU has learned of this organization through Green Eagles and has specifically requested to be involved and even offered support for our future initiatives.   Green Eagle Festival in particular teamed up with university departments such as the Office of Housing and Residence Life, Student Government and The Office of Student Involvement but also attracted numerous environmentally conscience student organizations including Eco-Action.  Overwhelming response from the our Florida Gulf Coast University Community and organizations/businesses in our surrounding community has made the countless hours spent ensuring the success of the event by our leadership and volunteers was made worthwhile.  Future programs and initiates will continue to shape culture in a direction where people adopt practical sustainability solutions. 

Journal Entry 13- Reflection on Service Learning Experience

Journal Entry 13- Reflection on Service Learning Experience (part 1)

Green Team is a student organization supported by the Office of Housing and Residence Life.  The mission of The Green Team is to promote sustainable living standards in housing.  This mission supports environmental initiatives and recognizes the ecological importance of our environment.  Education is the first step to creating a responsible culture and starting at home with simple knowledge is practical and highly effective. 

As a staff member of the Office of Housing and Residence Life I was also able to maximize the potential of our efforts by doubling this Florida Gulf Coast University campus event as a specific housing program to increase attendance so that residents along with all students were able to benefit as much as possible from the event.  Green Team was looking for volunteers to help plan and execute their new Green Eagle Festival.  I choose to be proactively involved throughout the entire event and became named the Green Eagle Event Coordinator.  Leadership comes from being proactive and seizing the opportunities that are always presenting themselves.  The Green Team Sponsor is Deidra Cassella, a Housing GA.  The initial duties of the position required coordinating the outside organizations that planned on participating to improve the overall success of the event.  Participation included managing paperwork between housing and the Campus Reservations Department.  Communication and organization was key to fulfilling the duties and responsibilities awarded by the position.  To set up communications I opened a new email address greeneagleevents@live.com.