Hello Everyone,
I know we are not great at blogging on a regular basis at CEC - we are working on it. If you would ever like to be a guest blogger - let Stephanie know - s.hays@copeenvironmental.org
Here is our latest post from guest blogger Shannon Herbert - you too can get ready for our Fall Foliage 5K on October 22 - register now at www.copeenvironmental.org
Adventures in Healthy Living: Being Active
As a college student, I can often be heard cursing inanimate objects with all the intensity of a Shakespearean villain:
“Oh, homework, why must you torment me so?”
“Curse you, empty wallet!”
“Laundry, methinks thou art a general offence, and every man should beat thee.”*
(*This may be a bit of an exaggeration. Just a bit, though.)
While it may seem to the unknowing that I am attacking said object, what I’m really lamenting is the need to put in effort. Homework, laundry, and a lack of money are all things that metaphorically shove me out of bed and into action, and there is nothing that a college student dislikes more than having to get out of bed.
However, I have recently come to the realization that effort is needed for a happy, active life, and as a result I have made the decision to be more physically active this year, rather than continuing my past Dorito-and-nap-filled existence.
My first stop in my quest to be active is, as you might have guessed, Cope Environmental Center, where there are many opportunities to move about and do things. The event that immediately caught my attention was the Fall Foliage 5K Run/Walk on October 22.
Let me just say, I have never considered myself a 5K kind of person. In fact, I remember being eight-years-old and laughing at the “get out, get healthy” commercials while drinking my over-sweetened Kool-Aid. However, if there’s anything that motivates me to put in effort, it’s a goal and a deadline. So ever since I heard about this upcoming event about a month ago, I have been taking steps to get myself ready to partially run (but probably mostly walk) this 5K.
If you too would like to become more active – or if you’re already active and would just like to laugh at me – come to Fall Foliage 5K, where you can either run or walk through the beautiful trails of Cope. From now until October 18, registration is only $15, and it is $20 after that. So, in the interest of saving money and not cursing your empty wallet like I am, be sure to register now.
In future posts I will include tips on being healthy and active, so look forward to that. I expect to see you all at the event. I’ll be the one with the Doritos.
What else would you like to hear from us?????
Showing posts with label Cope Environmental Center. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cope Environmental Center. Show all posts
Friday, September 30, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Proper Disposal of Medications
You take your own bags to the grocery, you use your reusable water bottle and coffee cup, you garden and compost, you ride your bike or walk, and you recycle. You do your part in a variety of ways to conserve our resources. You wouldn’t dare toss or dump anything into the street drain or local river, stream, or lake. But have you ever thought about what the best way to dispose of your over-the-counter and prescription medicines. Throw them away or flush them? That is the proper disposal, right? In recent years, it has been brought to the forefront that excess drugs being disposed on in these manners may be creating issues in our waterways. While our wastewater is all treated and sent down stream and then treated again to become potable water again, our treatment methods do not focus in on these types of chemicals that come from our medicine cabinet. The landfill is also not the best destination for medications because the medications can end up in the leachate of landfills which is dealt with in a variety of ways, one of which is to send it through the local wastewater treatment plant, which does not typically remove chemicals found in medications.
Various concentrations of different drugs are being found in our water ways. Some of this is due to the natural processing and disposal method which our bodies utilize these medicines and some of it may be due to the direct disposal of unused medication through flushing down toilets or sinks and into our municipal water ways. Evidence of adverse affects of these chemicals is being observed in fish, mollusks, and other aquatic life in our freshwaters within our borders and in the oceans surrounding the countries. This has led to in depth studies of the affects of medicines on wildlife. While the amounts of medicines being found in waterways is considered to be a small amount, it has been enough to already warrant concern in the observed affects in aquatic life. If there is exposure to the frogs, fish, and other animals living in the water, it will eventually make its way into our drinking water and food chain. This leads to humans ending up with medicines in our systems that were not prescribed.
The other issue to consider is the “cocktail” of medicines along with other chemicals that are finding their way to our soil and water ways. There are thousands of possible combinations of chemicals and drugs being disposed of daily. Scientists do not know the affect of these “chemical cocktails” on wildlife or humans.
Proper disposal of unused medications also keeps them out of the hands of curious teenagers. Pharmaceutical drug use is growing among teens in the United States. In a survey by the Partnership for a Drug Free America conducted in 2005, 19% of teens had taken a prescription medication to get high. Unused drugs in medicine cabinets are easy to get and some even fetch a pretty penny on the street.
The great news is that there are ways for you to easily and properly dispose of you unwanted medicines and prevent them from being part of the problem!
Check in your community for a Drug Take Back Program. Make sure that the programs is one that sends the drugs away for proper disposal. Most programs send drugs to be incinerated. Pharmacies that have Drug Take Back programs do not take back narcotic or controlled substances such as many pain medications etc. These can be taken back to your local police or law enforcement office.
Phillips Drugs in Richmond takes back unused medication at all of their locations and properly sends them away to be properly disposed. They also are not able to take controlled substances at this time. Again, Richmond Police Department is equipped to take back controlled substances, such as narcotic pain medications, etc. In April of this year, Phillips Drugs and the Richmond Police Department partnered to host a Drug Take Back Event. The Event brought in 993 pounds of medications including controlled substances. That is a large amount of medications that are no longer available to teenagers or that will have the potential to wind up in our delicate waterways.
Phillips Drugs accepts unused medications at all three locations in Richmond
1626 East Main, Richmond
631 East Main Street, Richmond
1390 National Rd West, Richmond
You may also contact them at 765-966-5544 or via email Peter@phillipsdrugs.com
Various concentrations of different drugs are being found in our water ways. Some of this is due to the natural processing and disposal method which our bodies utilize these medicines and some of it may be due to the direct disposal of unused medication through flushing down toilets or sinks and into our municipal water ways. Evidence of adverse affects of these chemicals is being observed in fish, mollusks, and other aquatic life in our freshwaters within our borders and in the oceans surrounding the countries. This has led to in depth studies of the affects of medicines on wildlife. While the amounts of medicines being found in waterways is considered to be a small amount, it has been enough to already warrant concern in the observed affects in aquatic life. If there is exposure to the frogs, fish, and other animals living in the water, it will eventually make its way into our drinking water and food chain. This leads to humans ending up with medicines in our systems that were not prescribed.
The other issue to consider is the “cocktail” of medicines along with other chemicals that are finding their way to our soil and water ways. There are thousands of possible combinations of chemicals and drugs being disposed of daily. Scientists do not know the affect of these “chemical cocktails” on wildlife or humans.
Proper disposal of unused medications also keeps them out of the hands of curious teenagers. Pharmaceutical drug use is growing among teens in the United States. In a survey by the Partnership for a Drug Free America conducted in 2005, 19% of teens had taken a prescription medication to get high. Unused drugs in medicine cabinets are easy to get and some even fetch a pretty penny on the street.
The great news is that there are ways for you to easily and properly dispose of you unwanted medicines and prevent them from being part of the problem!
Check in your community for a Drug Take Back Program. Make sure that the programs is one that sends the drugs away for proper disposal. Most programs send drugs to be incinerated. Pharmacies that have Drug Take Back programs do not take back narcotic or controlled substances such as many pain medications etc. These can be taken back to your local police or law enforcement office.
Phillips Drugs in Richmond takes back unused medication at all of their locations and properly sends them away to be properly disposed. They also are not able to take controlled substances at this time. Again, Richmond Police Department is equipped to take back controlled substances, such as narcotic pain medications, etc. In April of this year, Phillips Drugs and the Richmond Police Department partnered to host a Drug Take Back Event. The Event brought in 993 pounds of medications including controlled substances. That is a large amount of medications that are no longer available to teenagers or that will have the potential to wind up in our delicate waterways.
Phillips Drugs accepts unused medications at all three locations in Richmond
1626 East Main, Richmond
631 East Main Street, Richmond
1390 National Rd West, Richmond
You may also contact them at 765-966-5544 or via email Peter@phillipsdrugs.com
Friday, March 4, 2011
Another one from guest Blogger Shannon Herbert. With gardening and all the joys of spring right around the corner, now is a great time to start or revive your compost pile! Read Shannon's blog - any questions? call 855-3188, Facebook your question at
http://www.facebook.com/#!/copeenvironmentalcenter
email s.hays@copeenvironmental.org
We can answer questions to help guide you in starting a compost pile that will fit your needs!
Adventures in Sustainability: The “What is that?”
Now that I have made a commitment to attempt a green lifestyle, I feel like my eyes have been opened to an entirely new world. It’s similar to when I saw Inception for this first time and started looking everywhere for signs that I was dreaming. (“Do I really remember how I got here? I don’t think that’s what that building looks like. I could have sworn it was a darker grey.”)
Because I’ve started looking for “green” things, I no longer walk right past them as I once did. I now see the sticker that says my notebook is made from 100% recycled material, the bottles of all-organic (and surprisingly delicious) apple juice, and the numerous recycling bins on campus. With this new perspective—my “green vision,” if you will—I have begun to look deeper into the environmental efforts on campus, starting with the one I am faced with every day: composting.
In Earlham’s cafeteria, there are three trash cans in the area where students drop off their plates. One of these is used for regular trash (aka the barbeque pizza that looked good but really wasn’t), and the other two are designated for composting. Before coming to Earlham, my knowledge regarding composting could be summed up with, “…It’s something to do with rotten food, right?” However, after receiving withering looks from people upon dropping a piece of cake into the composting bin, I have been forced to learn a bit more.
For those who are unfamiliar, composting is the controlled decomposition of organic matter, which is then applied to a garden to improve the soil. Or, in more comprehensible terms, things such as vegetables, fruits, lawn clippings, et cetera are put in a container and left to rot until they become an effective fertilizer. Seeing as I’m a lifelong city dweller, my knowledge of gardening is fairly limited, so I decided to contact my grandma, the only person I know with a garden, for more information on composting. Here is the basic run-through on one method of composting used by my grandma. (I assure you that her garden looks very nice.)
1. Take an old 50 gallon oil drum and drill holes in it—sides and bottom.
2. Inside the drum, put/layer anything organic (i.e. grass clippings, weeds, potato peels, carrot tops, clippings from everything, et cetera).
3. Between the layers, pour a special “composting tea" that consists of hot water, old tea from used tea bags and old coffee grounds.
4. Let it sit and then take a pitchfork and turn it. It will smell a little as it rots.
5. When it has decayed enough, empty it into the garden, spread it and work it into the soil.
There are many books and websites devoted to composting and several different approaches to it. I know it’s an added effort, but the environmental effects are significant. Composting reduces the amount of trash sent to landfills and puts it to better use. Also, it creates a thriving garden that can be used to grow all kinds of food that one would otherwise have to buy. All and all, I believe it is a very worthwhile endeavor and something I will surely try (once I’m out of this dorm).
If you’re thinking about trying your hand at composting, check out these helpful websites that will get you started and provide information on what not to do:
http://www.howtocompost.org/
http://www.thegardenofoz.org/composting101.asp
http://www.facebook.com/#!/copeenvironmentalcenter
email s.hays@copeenvironmental.org
We can answer questions to help guide you in starting a compost pile that will fit your needs!
Adventures in Sustainability: The “What is that?”
Now that I have made a commitment to attempt a green lifestyle, I feel like my eyes have been opened to an entirely new world. It’s similar to when I saw Inception for this first time and started looking everywhere for signs that I was dreaming. (“Do I really remember how I got here? I don’t think that’s what that building looks like. I could have sworn it was a darker grey.”)
Because I’ve started looking for “green” things, I no longer walk right past them as I once did. I now see the sticker that says my notebook is made from 100% recycled material, the bottles of all-organic (and surprisingly delicious) apple juice, and the numerous recycling bins on campus. With this new perspective—my “green vision,” if you will—I have begun to look deeper into the environmental efforts on campus, starting with the one I am faced with every day: composting.
In Earlham’s cafeteria, there are three trash cans in the area where students drop off their plates. One of these is used for regular trash (aka the barbeque pizza that looked good but really wasn’t), and the other two are designated for composting. Before coming to Earlham, my knowledge regarding composting could be summed up with, “…It’s something to do with rotten food, right?” However, after receiving withering looks from people upon dropping a piece of cake into the composting bin, I have been forced to learn a bit more.
For those who are unfamiliar, composting is the controlled decomposition of organic matter, which is then applied to a garden to improve the soil. Or, in more comprehensible terms, things such as vegetables, fruits, lawn clippings, et cetera are put in a container and left to rot until they become an effective fertilizer. Seeing as I’m a lifelong city dweller, my knowledge of gardening is fairly limited, so I decided to contact my grandma, the only person I know with a garden, for more information on composting. Here is the basic run-through on one method of composting used by my grandma. (I assure you that her garden looks very nice.)
1. Take an old 50 gallon oil drum and drill holes in it—sides and bottom.
2. Inside the drum, put/layer anything organic (i.e. grass clippings, weeds, potato peels, carrot tops, clippings from everything, et cetera).
3. Between the layers, pour a special “composting tea" that consists of hot water, old tea from used tea bags and old coffee grounds.
4. Let it sit and then take a pitchfork and turn it. It will smell a little as it rots.
5. When it has decayed enough, empty it into the garden, spread it and work it into the soil.
There are many books and websites devoted to composting and several different approaches to it. I know it’s an added effort, but the environmental effects are significant. Composting reduces the amount of trash sent to landfills and puts it to better use. Also, it creates a thriving garden that can be used to grow all kinds of food that one would otherwise have to buy. All and all, I believe it is a very worthwhile endeavor and something I will surely try (once I’m out of this dorm).
If you’re thinking about trying your hand at composting, check out these helpful websites that will get you started and provide information on what not to do:
http://www.howtocompost.org/
http://www.thegardenofoz.org/composting101.asp
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Hello Everyone,
Another Cope Environmental Center blog from guest blogger Shannon Herbert! She is getting started in being more environmentally responsible. What tips do you have to share with her and others? Starting with low-hanging fruit and working up to more challenging choices, actions, and decisions is a great way to dive in!
Stephanie
Adventures in Sustainability: The What
Now that I have made the commitment to go green, I have to face one really important fact: I have no idea what I’m doing. I’ve made enough New Year’s resolutions to know that it’s very easy to decide to do something and quite difficult to actually do it. I remember one year I decided to take a vow of silence, but that was swiftly abandoned at 12:13 AM with the phrase, “Get me a coke.” Noting my poor track record with sticking to things, I have decided to take a more tactical approach to sustainability.
My first step is taking stock of all I know about environmentalism:
1. Reduce, reuse, and recycle (aka the bare minimum after an elementary school education)
2. Global warming (courtesy of Al Gore)
3. Umm…That’s about it…
After coming to terms with my complete and utter ignorance in regards to environmentalism, I have decided that the first step is educating myself. And, of course, I went to the first place every teenager goes in order to find information: Google.
While perusing Google with various environment-related search terms, I happened upon many sites giving advice on the “First Steps to Going Green.” Here are five of the most common suggestions and what I immediately thought of them.
1. Turn the lights off when not in the room, and unplug unused appliances.
As your average poor person, I have spent my entire childhood hearing about saving money on the electric bill. If saving money coincides with being eco-friendly, I’m all for it.
2. Use reusable shopping bags.
I know for a fact that everyone in my family—including me—has dozens of those plastic shopping bags around the house. Sure, they’re occasionally used as miniature trash bags or to transport leftovers to hungry relatives, but mostly they just take up space. If using my free “You’re a library champion” tote bag saves me clutter and helps the environment, I have no complaints.
3. For shorter trips, walk or bike instead of driving.
Again, as your average poor person, I have no money for a car, so I have no problem doing this one. Also, seeing as I’m fairly pitiful as all sports other than checkers (it’s a sport, I swear), walking is about the only exercise I get all day. So if I can go green while simultaneously maintaining the same pant size, I’m up for it.
4. Drink from the tap and not single-use water bottles.
Personally, I’ve always thought that bottled water tastes like old carrots, so I’ve been filling up a reusable water bottle since the 9th grade. Also, despite my dismal knowledge of the environment, I’m aware that the overwhelming majority of those bottles don’t get recycled. So this is another thing I can check on my eco-friendly/convenient list.
5. Shop at the local farmer’s market to save on fuel used to transport and store food.
I don’t shop very much, but when I do I usually go with my grandma who lives in a small rural town not too far from Richmond. She always goes to local farms and gets delicious things such as fresh berries, honey, and better looking vegetables than you could ever hope to see in a chain store. Seeing as I’m a lover of good food and my grandma’s cooking, I can support this tip 100%.
So, as it turns out, I have unintentionally been doing some green things for a long time now. I used to think that going green was synonymous with abandoning convenience, but I’m surprised to find that a lot the green alternatives are suited to my way of living. Of course, these are just some of the preliminary steps for sustainability, but I know that I’m making progress.
Another Cope Environmental Center blog from guest blogger Shannon Herbert! She is getting started in being more environmentally responsible. What tips do you have to share with her and others? Starting with low-hanging fruit and working up to more challenging choices, actions, and decisions is a great way to dive in!
Stephanie
Adventures in Sustainability: The What
Now that I have made the commitment to go green, I have to face one really important fact: I have no idea what I’m doing. I’ve made enough New Year’s resolutions to know that it’s very easy to decide to do something and quite difficult to actually do it. I remember one year I decided to take a vow of silence, but that was swiftly abandoned at 12:13 AM with the phrase, “Get me a coke.” Noting my poor track record with sticking to things, I have decided to take a more tactical approach to sustainability.
My first step is taking stock of all I know about environmentalism:
1. Reduce, reuse, and recycle (aka the bare minimum after an elementary school education)
2. Global warming (courtesy of Al Gore)
3. Umm…That’s about it…
After coming to terms with my complete and utter ignorance in regards to environmentalism, I have decided that the first step is educating myself. And, of course, I went to the first place every teenager goes in order to find information: Google.
While perusing Google with various environment-related search terms, I happened upon many sites giving advice on the “First Steps to Going Green.” Here are five of the most common suggestions and what I immediately thought of them.
1. Turn the lights off when not in the room, and unplug unused appliances.
As your average poor person, I have spent my entire childhood hearing about saving money on the electric bill. If saving money coincides with being eco-friendly, I’m all for it.
2. Use reusable shopping bags.
I know for a fact that everyone in my family—including me—has dozens of those plastic shopping bags around the house. Sure, they’re occasionally used as miniature trash bags or to transport leftovers to hungry relatives, but mostly they just take up space. If using my free “You’re a library champion” tote bag saves me clutter and helps the environment, I have no complaints.
3. For shorter trips, walk or bike instead of driving.
Again, as your average poor person, I have no money for a car, so I have no problem doing this one. Also, seeing as I’m fairly pitiful as all sports other than checkers (it’s a sport, I swear), walking is about the only exercise I get all day. So if I can go green while simultaneously maintaining the same pant size, I’m up for it.
4. Drink from the tap and not single-use water bottles.
Personally, I’ve always thought that bottled water tastes like old carrots, so I’ve been filling up a reusable water bottle since the 9th grade. Also, despite my dismal knowledge of the environment, I’m aware that the overwhelming majority of those bottles don’t get recycled. So this is another thing I can check on my eco-friendly/convenient list.
5. Shop at the local farmer’s market to save on fuel used to transport and store food.
I don’t shop very much, but when I do I usually go with my grandma who lives in a small rural town not too far from Richmond. She always goes to local farms and gets delicious things such as fresh berries, honey, and better looking vegetables than you could ever hope to see in a chain store. Seeing as I’m a lover of good food and my grandma’s cooking, I can support this tip 100%.
So, as it turns out, I have unintentionally been doing some green things for a long time now. I used to think that going green was synonymous with abandoning convenience, but I’m surprised to find that a lot the green alternatives are suited to my way of living. Of course, these are just some of the preliminary steps for sustainability, but I know that I’m making progress.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Hi Everyone,
We are excited to welcome Earlham student Zack Byam to our volunteer corps. He will be working on some short YouTube videos to post on line to keep the public informed about what is going on at CEC!
Here is one of his videos!
Stephanie
Meet our newest staff member - Emily!
A chat with Jeremy - Facilities and Grounds Director
Stephanie Hays-Mussoni - Executive Director
Alison Zajdel - Development Director
Coming soon - Aubrey Blue!
We are excited to welcome Earlham student Zack Byam to our volunteer corps. He will be working on some short YouTube videos to post on line to keep the public informed about what is going on at CEC!
Here is one of his videos!
Stephanie
Meet our newest staff member - Emily!
A chat with Jeremy - Facilities and Grounds Director
Stephanie Hays-Mussoni - Executive Director
Alison Zajdel - Development Director
Coming soon - Aubrey Blue!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Cope Environmental Center is thrilled to welcome guest blogger Shannon Herbert. Shannon is an Earlham Bonner Scholar who will blog about a variety of environmental issues and ways to help others incorporate environmentally responsible habits in their daily lives.
Adventures in Sustainability: The Why
Every child has some irrational fear. For my brother, it was the toy clown that sat in the living room (the one the mysteriously appeared in the trashcan one evening), and for my dad it was spiders. For me—and for no one else as far as I know—my all-encompassing childhood fear was global warming. I don’t know if I saw one too many commercials featuring sad polar bears walking across melted snow, but I remember staying up well into the night staring wide-eyed at my ceiling, fearing for the future.
At some point, my fear grew to a level where I started taking Sharpies and writing random encouraging slogans on the walls and furniture. (“Save the Earth! The bears need us!” or “I like snow! Stop global warming!”) Deciding that this had gone too far, my dad took me aside one evening and tried to set me straight.
“Missy,” he said, “I know you’re a really caring girl, but you can’t keep doing this.”
“Why not?” I pleaded with him.
“Because global warming isn’t something that you’ve got to worry about. That’s something that people in the future have to take care of. It’s not your problem.”
With that piece of advice, my dad achieved his goal of calming me down. However, his speech had the added effect of minimizing environmental concerns in my mind. With him serving as my example, I accepted that living green was a needless waste of time and energy, and I never gave it a second thought. Until now, that is.
During my time at Earlham, I have been forced to reevaluate a lot of the ideas that I once held sacred, my dismissal of the environment being one of them. More times than I care to admit, I have scolded by my peers for putting paper (a lot of paper) into the trashcan right next to the recycling bin, and that’s only one action on a long list of environmental offenses. Before coming to Earlham, I would have easily dismissed any criticism of my behavior, but now I find myself asking, “Well, why don’t I make the extra effort at living responsibly?”
I couldn’t figure out the answer to my question until I attended a presentation by Mary Jones, an environmental studies major at Earlham. Over the summer, Mary ran a program at the Townsend Center in which children of low-income families would help create a garden. Mary noticed that the children initially were not excited about the project, but over the course of the summer—through Mary’s positive influence—they began to sincerely take an interest in it.
After hearing about Mary’s experience, I understood for the first time why I was able to abandon the environmental fervor of my childhood and make the transition to apathy; I was following the example of the people around me. Without anyone around me to care about the environment (quite the opposite, in fact) I adapted to that kind of mindset.
Left on my own now, I’m beginning to rethink things and draw different conclusions. That’s not to say I have become an environmentalist overnight, far from it. But now I feel that I can do research on my own and start to explore the world of sustainability. From here on, I am beginning my Adventures in Sustainability, fumbling through the green lifestyle one day at a time.
Adventures in Sustainability: The Why
Every child has some irrational fear. For my brother, it was the toy clown that sat in the living room (the one the mysteriously appeared in the trashcan one evening), and for my dad it was spiders. For me—and for no one else as far as I know—my all-encompassing childhood fear was global warming. I don’t know if I saw one too many commercials featuring sad polar bears walking across melted snow, but I remember staying up well into the night staring wide-eyed at my ceiling, fearing for the future.
At some point, my fear grew to a level where I started taking Sharpies and writing random encouraging slogans on the walls and furniture. (“Save the Earth! The bears need us!” or “I like snow! Stop global warming!”) Deciding that this had gone too far, my dad took me aside one evening and tried to set me straight.
“Missy,” he said, “I know you’re a really caring girl, but you can’t keep doing this.”
“Why not?” I pleaded with him.
“Because global warming isn’t something that you’ve got to worry about. That’s something that people in the future have to take care of. It’s not your problem.”
With that piece of advice, my dad achieved his goal of calming me down. However, his speech had the added effect of minimizing environmental concerns in my mind. With him serving as my example, I accepted that living green was a needless waste of time and energy, and I never gave it a second thought. Until now, that is.
During my time at Earlham, I have been forced to reevaluate a lot of the ideas that I once held sacred, my dismissal of the environment being one of them. More times than I care to admit, I have scolded by my peers for putting paper (a lot of paper) into the trashcan right next to the recycling bin, and that’s only one action on a long list of environmental offenses. Before coming to Earlham, I would have easily dismissed any criticism of my behavior, but now I find myself asking, “Well, why don’t I make the extra effort at living responsibly?”
I couldn’t figure out the answer to my question until I attended a presentation by Mary Jones, an environmental studies major at Earlham. Over the summer, Mary ran a program at the Townsend Center in which children of low-income families would help create a garden. Mary noticed that the children initially were not excited about the project, but over the course of the summer—through Mary’s positive influence—they began to sincerely take an interest in it.
After hearing about Mary’s experience, I understood for the first time why I was able to abandon the environmental fervor of my childhood and make the transition to apathy; I was following the example of the people around me. Without anyone around me to care about the environment (quite the opposite, in fact) I adapted to that kind of mindset.
Left on my own now, I’m beginning to rethink things and draw different conclusions. That’s not to say I have become an environmentalist overnight, far from it. But now I feel that I can do research on my own and start to explore the world of sustainability. From here on, I am beginning my Adventures in Sustainability, fumbling through the green lifestyle one day at a time.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Biking to work at CEC
I’m Katrina Cohoe, and I’ve been working in the Cope garden since the beginning of the 2009-10 school year. Groups from Girls, Inc. and Meridian services have been working away on their plots, and they look wonderful! Lettuce, radishes, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, and one cucumber have been harvested, and many more vegetables are on their way. While I could talk off your ear off about the garden, I wanted to write instead about something I’ve been thinking about while commuting to work: bicycles.
I’ve talked with a lot of people about the reasons why they bike, and I have sometimes felt disconnected from biking communities that I have interacted with. Sure, it’s healthy, but I’m no health nut. There can be an air of competition surrounding bicycle knowledge and the quality of your bike and gear. The biggest reason I could come up with for riding is that I don’t have the money for a car, and that’s not an inherently positive thought.
I ride my bike to work most of the time when it is nice outside (about 5.5 miles one-way), and while riding, I have had a lot of time to think about bikes. A couple days ago I began to smile as I was riding because I became amazed at how fast I could move with a machine powered by my own muscles. Think about it: bicycles are the fastest commuting machine that’s commercially available that requires no external power source. It's a great thing you can do for the environment, and for me, it is so empowering!
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