My SMART goal: I will read/watch 2 environmentally related articles/videos each week. They will be from a variety of reliable sources.
I think I was successful in my goal this week. This time I had two topics in mind that I wanted to look up, instead of just looking around until something caught my interest.
Something that helped me be successful for my first topic was that it is currently happening, so there is a lot of information out there for it.
My feelings fluctuated depending on what I was reading, but my feelings about my change are positive. I'm excited to be more "in-the-loop" on current, past and future topics that could be effecting me or people I know.
What I learned #1:
I've been hearing a lot about "Occupy Wallstreet" in the past few days - a few high school friends are there protesting for the week, and a couple others are participating in OccupyMN. So I started a Google search for Occupy Wallstreet first, since that seemed to be the main event.
First, just so I knew what it was, I went here.
Then, I read a couple articles about what has been happening, from different sources and different views.
This started on September 17th, and is currently in day 26.
The basic jist is that people are occupying Manhattan's Zuccotti Park in peaceful protest, pushing for a separation of money and government. What started as an idea by an activist group spread across the country, and is happening all over (including Minneapolis, MN).
The continuous message I saw was "We are the 99%" - this is saying that we are the majority, and in this case, we don't have the money or the power. One author, Demetria Irwin, wonders in her Huff Post article (here) if this is America's revolution - following Egypt and other countries this year. She mentions a poll taken, who's results revealed that the majority of the protesters are twenty-somethings: "they aren't anti-capitalism, but they are anti-getting run over by policies that favor the wealthiest one percent" -Demetria Irwin.
There is a ton more information and topics - from police brutality to Millionaire March - and I plan to keep up-to-date on the subject. It is current, ongoing and constantly changing, and more importantly, it is effecting us right now. Personally, I think it's a great movement, and I hope some peaceful and intelligent changes can sprout from it. Here is the movement's official website if you want to read more and continue to know what is happening. Also this site is good.
What I learned #2:
So after watching the video "The Future of Food" in class on Monday, I was very disgusted and freaked out by genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This page from the World Health Organization gives a short definition of GM foods, along with some frequently asked questions about them.
I had heard of GM foods before, but didn't know much about them, how they were created, or what awful things their "owners" are doing to small farmers. In brief, genetically changing a plant to that it doesn't die as easily, or produces more food sounds great! But what most people don't know (including me until Monday) is how they make that happen. As I found out in the video, a common practice is to use viruses and bacteria as hosts to insert a new gene into a cell. I don't know about you, but I typically try to keep viruses and bacteria out of my body. They also mention that these new species are often tagged with "antibiotic resistance genes" so they can be followed later. This raises the question of the possibility of those genes transferring to the people who eat them, thus making them more resistant to some antibiotics.
To make matters worse, GM foods do more require labeling. So when you go to the grocery store and buy a tomato or corn flakes, you have no way of knowing if it was grown from something genetically modified.
I personally plan on starting a new, non-class related lifestyle change by trying my best to reduce my GM food intake (shopping at co-ops, looking for foods labeled as "not GM", buying local).
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
Eye Opener: CSPI
I chose to do the Eating Green Calculator for this assignment. I was interested first of all to find out my estimated impact, but also about how I could improve my diet. It was a little difficult to enter my weekly servings of each food (beef, chicken, eggs, milk...) since it usually varies from week-to-week. So I tried to kind of enter servings on average (I put zero servings for eggs since I rarely use them - it doesn't mean I never do).
I think I'm happy with my impact, however it is hard to tell what is "good". I also liked that they provided the nutritional information!
Then I clicked on the tab to learn how to improve my diet AND protect the environment: I didn't change much. Since I had already entered such small amounts of servings, it was hard to reduce them by much without totally replacing them - and I don't want to go vegetarian. I think, for me personally at least, getting some meat and dairy during the week is important. It helps me feel healthier, gives me protein, and aids me in making other healthy food options (milk in my oatmeal).
I did not take the pledge, because I think that I am already doing good on my animal product levels.
In summary, I do think it is important to be conscious of the amount of animal products you eat, but I think it is even more important to consider where you get them/how they are raised. A large majority of the beef I make at home comes from my boyfriend's uncle who raises cows in Michigan. And when I buy chicken I try my best to buy local if available, and free-range. This calculator doesn't take any of that into account when giving you your results.
I think I'm happy with my impact, however it is hard to tell what is "good". I also liked that they provided the nutritional information!
Then I clicked on the tab to learn how to improve my diet AND protect the environment: I didn't change much. Since I had already entered such small amounts of servings, it was hard to reduce them by much without totally replacing them - and I don't want to go vegetarian. I think, for me personally at least, getting some meat and dairy during the week is important. It helps me feel healthier, gives me protein, and aids me in making other healthy food options (milk in my oatmeal).
I did not take the pledge, because I think that I am already doing good on my animal product levels.
In summary, I do think it is important to be conscious of the amount of animal products you eat, but I think it is even more important to consider where you get them/how they are raised. A large majority of the beef I make at home comes from my boyfriend's uncle who raises cows in Michigan. And when I buy chicken I try my best to buy local if available, and free-range. This calculator doesn't take any of that into account when giving you your results.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Lifestyle Change Update: Week 2
My SMART goal: I will read/watch 2 environmentally related articles/videos each week. They will be from a variety of reliable sources.
It was a little tough to remember about doing my goal, or to find the time when I could just sit down and look-up and read. But once I did, I got pretty into it, and almost excited about finding more. Next week I will probably do the same thing, except maybe a little earlier in the week. Also, I did modify my change a little - I went from 3 articles/videos down to 2. I wanted to make sure that I would meet my goal, and then if I do go beyond that.. Great!
What I learned:
This week, I started off by reading this article that I found on MSN.com.
The title is: "Cantaloup toll rises to 100 sick and 18 dead, CDC says"
I'd heard just a little bit about this subject previously, and then it was brought up in a conversation with a fellow student on Monday, so I decided to get more educated about what was happening.
The sicknesses and deaths are being caused by a listeria outbreak in contaminated cantaloupes, and has spread to 20 states - the cause of contamination is still unknown. 300,000 cases of whole fruits were recalled on September 14th, but people can become sick with listeria weeks or even months after coming in contact with it, says the article.
The thing that really struck my heartstrings: "Two of the victims in the outbreak are pregnant, and the outcome of the pregnancies is being monitored."
In the linked webpage above with the definition and information about listeria says that the elderly, pregnant women, and newborns are the most effected...
It is very scary to think that any food we buy from a store could harm us. I know I rarely, if ever, think twice about the fresh or packaged foods I purchase - beyond the obvious warning signs. This outbreak is a perfect example of why I am choosing this goal for my lifestyle change. Granted, I don't eat cantaloup, but it would be very important information to know about if I did, or if someone I know had purchased it recently.
What else I learned:
My friend Ethan "liked" this video on his Facebook, and it popped up on my home feed.
How AWESOME!! Such a cool idea, so much fun, and all around the world! I was sad when I quickly realized that I'd missed the day, but went to http://moving-planet.org/ to learn more about the movement.
On the "What is 350?" page, they explain that scientists say that is the parts per million of carbon dioxide (a main greenhouse gas) we need to get to.
It was a little tough to remember about doing my goal, or to find the time when I could just sit down and look-up and read. But once I did, I got pretty into it, and almost excited about finding more. Next week I will probably do the same thing, except maybe a little earlier in the week. Also, I did modify my change a little - I went from 3 articles/videos down to 2. I wanted to make sure that I would meet my goal, and then if I do go beyond that.. Great!
What I learned:
This week, I started off by reading this article that I found on MSN.com.
The title is: "Cantaloup toll rises to 100 sick and 18 dead, CDC says"
I'd heard just a little bit about this subject previously, and then it was brought up in a conversation with a fellow student on Monday, so I decided to get more educated about what was happening.
The sicknesses and deaths are being caused by a listeria outbreak in contaminated cantaloupes, and has spread to 20 states - the cause of contamination is still unknown. 300,000 cases of whole fruits were recalled on September 14th, but people can become sick with listeria weeks or even months after coming in contact with it, says the article.
The thing that really struck my heartstrings: "Two of the victims in the outbreak are pregnant, and the outcome of the pregnancies is being monitored."
In the linked webpage above with the definition and information about listeria says that the elderly, pregnant women, and newborns are the most effected...
It is very scary to think that any food we buy from a store could harm us. I know I rarely, if ever, think twice about the fresh or packaged foods I purchase - beyond the obvious warning signs. This outbreak is a perfect example of why I am choosing this goal for my lifestyle change. Granted, I don't eat cantaloup, but it would be very important information to know about if I did, or if someone I know had purchased it recently.
What else I learned:
My friend Ethan "liked" this video on his Facebook, and it popped up on my home feed.
How AWESOME!! Such a cool idea, so much fun, and all around the world! I was sad when I quickly realized that I'd missed the day, but went to http://moving-planet.org/ to learn more about the movement.
On the "What is 350?" page, they explain that scientists say that is the parts per million of carbon dioxide (a main greenhouse gas) we need to get to.
What I thought was possibly the coolest thing, is that this organization is working to change personal lifestyles - very important - but also working hard to make policy makers, governments etc. to change their ways and get on board also. Without those people on our side and working for change too, not much will get done, or at least not fast enough.
The whole site has a lot more information, much of which I intend to explore on a later date. I also noticed a feed of "Latest Updates", which I might be able to use for more Lifestyle Change posts!
Monday, October 3, 2011
Eye Opener: Ecological Footprint
I already had a general idea of the term "Ecological Footprint", but it was interesting to read more about. The first statistic about humanity using 1.4 planet earths in 2006 was a little shocking (stated here)! This means that we use up resources 1.4 times as fast as our planet can produce them. My first thought was - "I sure hope we've slowed down, Earth clearly wont be able to keep up for much longer."
Under the "Methodology" tab, it explains that there are many different things to consider when calculating this number, and different people/studies take different things into account - sea area, fossil fuels and nuclear waste are some of those.
Then, I took the quiz... and wow. It told me in the end, that if everyone lived like I do, we'd need 5.5 planet earths!! I use up 24.5 global acres to support my lifestyle. Sad.
The quiz itself was very interesting and pretty simple. You create an avatar for yourself and it asks you a series of simple questions about your lifestyle. You can choose to either be more broad with your answers, or more specific. I chose to be broad, but might go back sometime and get more specific to see how it changes. One thing I hadn't thought about, was flying in a plane! I don't fly very often (I chose "1-4 times a year"), but I bet a plane uses up a ton of gas.
This really did open my eyes to my footprint. One question I was a little ashamed of answering was how much processed, packaged, non-local food I consume. I am definitely going to start there when I reduce the size of my "footprint". On a positive note, I do ride the DTA (Duluth Transit Authority) as often as possible when I'm going to school, and thankfully don't need to drive very often/very far.
Under the "Methodology" tab, it explains that there are many different things to consider when calculating this number, and different people/studies take different things into account - sea area, fossil fuels and nuclear waste are some of those.
Then, I took the quiz... and wow. It told me in the end, that if everyone lived like I do, we'd need 5.5 planet earths!! I use up 24.5 global acres to support my lifestyle. Sad.
The quiz itself was very interesting and pretty simple. You create an avatar for yourself and it asks you a series of simple questions about your lifestyle. You can choose to either be more broad with your answers, or more specific. I chose to be broad, but might go back sometime and get more specific to see how it changes. One thing I hadn't thought about, was flying in a plane! I don't fly very often (I chose "1-4 times a year"), but I bet a plane uses up a ton of gas.
This really did open my eyes to my footprint. One question I was a little ashamed of answering was how much processed, packaged, non-local food I consume. I am definitely going to start there when I reduce the size of my "footprint". On a positive note, I do ride the DTA (Duluth Transit Authority) as often as possible when I'm going to school, and thankfully don't need to drive very often/very far.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
My SMART Goal
I have chosen to educate myself about current and historical environmental issues each week, and will do this by implementing my SMART goal:
I will read/watch 2 environmentally related articles/videos each week. They will be from a variety of reliable sources.
This goal is eco-chic because it is all related to our environment and what is happening in, on and around it.
I chose this as my goal because I thought it would be a little too easy for me just to recycle or use less water when I do the dishes, and those wouldn't keep me engaged. Getting educated is important to me because I think it is the main starting point for any change, and if I want to be able to help people and our environment, I need to know what is going on. In the past I haven't been very good about staying up-to-date on news.
I am going to begin this goal today by choosing and reading an article from the National Geographic magazine that I subscribe to, when I get home.
(I will update my blog later about said article, but it might be after 5 since I am currently on campus.)
*The article: "Water-cooled Nuclear Power Plants Aren't the Only Option" (National Geographic Magazine, October 2011)*
This article caught my eye because since taking Aspects of Chemistry last semester, I have been more "pro-nuclear". We learned about nuclear power, how it works, it's possible benefits and it's negatives. Unfortunately, the media builds nuclear power up into something very threatening and scary, which it has the potential to be, but with newer and newer technologies being developed, it might be our best option for the future.
Most nuclear power plants today are used with fuel rods of uranium, which are split and produce huge amounts of energy. We control these reactions so that they can only react to a certain point - a point to give us energy, but not a meltdown (normally). But of course, we're human, and we make mistakes - but a mistake of over-heating a power plant can be lethal and explosive, like we saw in Japan recently.
This "new generation of nuclear plants" can't overheat, claims the article. Instead of uranium fuel rods and water, it's uses "pebbles" of of uranium bits dispersed amongst graphite, and helium. Graphite acts as a mediator to the uranium, and helium - which is inert unlike water - is the coolant.
The article quotes Andrew Kadak of MIT, who visited a prototype of these reactors four years ago in China. When the workers turned off the cooling system, it naturally shut down - "It was incredible. Especially in light of Fukushima, this is a reactor that doesn't melt down."
It does mention that waste is still a problem with these pebble-bed reactors, along with fuel storage.
I will read/watch 2 environmentally related articles/videos each week. They will be from a variety of reliable sources.
This goal is eco-chic because it is all related to our environment and what is happening in, on and around it.
I chose this as my goal because I thought it would be a little too easy for me just to recycle or use less water when I do the dishes, and those wouldn't keep me engaged. Getting educated is important to me because I think it is the main starting point for any change, and if I want to be able to help people and our environment, I need to know what is going on. In the past I haven't been very good about staying up-to-date on news.
I am going to begin this goal today by choosing and reading an article from the National Geographic magazine that I subscribe to, when I get home.
(I will update my blog later about said article, but it might be after 5 since I am currently on campus.)
*The article: "Water-cooled Nuclear Power Plants Aren't the Only Option" (National Geographic Magazine, October 2011)*
This article caught my eye because since taking Aspects of Chemistry last semester, I have been more "pro-nuclear". We learned about nuclear power, how it works, it's possible benefits and it's negatives. Unfortunately, the media builds nuclear power up into something very threatening and scary, which it has the potential to be, but with newer and newer technologies being developed, it might be our best option for the future.
Most nuclear power plants today are used with fuel rods of uranium, which are split and produce huge amounts of energy. We control these reactions so that they can only react to a certain point - a point to give us energy, but not a meltdown (normally). But of course, we're human, and we make mistakes - but a mistake of over-heating a power plant can be lethal and explosive, like we saw in Japan recently.
This "new generation of nuclear plants" can't overheat, claims the article. Instead of uranium fuel rods and water, it's uses "pebbles" of of uranium bits dispersed amongst graphite, and helium. Graphite acts as a mediator to the uranium, and helium - which is inert unlike water - is the coolant.
The article quotes Andrew Kadak of MIT, who visited a prototype of these reactors four years ago in China. When the workers turned off the cooling system, it naturally shut down - "It was incredible. Especially in light of Fukushima, this is a reactor that doesn't melt down."
It does mention that waste is still a problem with these pebble-bed reactors, along with fuel storage.
 |
| "Typical" uranium fuel pellets |
 |
| Fuel pebbles in the new technology |
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Environmentally Friendly Snack
Brewing the sun tea for tomorrow's class!!
It's my first attempt - so far so good!
(sorry it's a little burry, it's off my phone)
Monday, September 19, 2011
Welcome to Sea-Air-Ahh!
(from my plane - leaving San Diego, California)
My name is Sierra, and I am creating this blog in the hopes of educating myself, and others, about the wide world we live in - and to pass my class ;)
There are 5 possible types of posts on my blog. They include:
- Advocacy Project
- Eye Openers
- Reflections
- Lifestyle Change
- Share and Voice
If you notice at the bottom of this post, the categories will be listed as labels. This post is has been labeled with all five kinds of posts. You will also see the number of each kind of post in my "Labels" gadget at the top of the page. All post titles from now on will begin with one of the categories above.
The members of my web group are:
- Lindsay@Lindsay's Loving Land
- Chnice@Eco Summit With Chnice
- Duzong@Duzong's Treehouse
- Dr. V/Kristen@Eco-Surfing With Amy and Kristen
You can also follow my blog by clicking "Follow this Blog" in the gadget column. You can see my complete profile and all the blogs I am following by clicking on "See Complete Profile."
Thank you for visiting, and I hope you will return regularly to learn, watch, read, laugh, and share about our beautiful environment - from sea to sky!
(Lake Superior)
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