SUSTAINABILITY

What I got out of Colloquium.....

After taking this Colloquium class I feel that I am more aware of my natural environment and the affects I have on it. I think this class is important for all university students to take because it has really opened my eyes to how wasteful I really am. It also taught me that I am exactly what the government wants....a CONSUMER. We all buy more than necessary. As a future teacher this class has taught me that I should be teaching my students about the environment and ways in which we can help protect it. I think that I will try to incorporate nature into my lessons when possible. Overall I have learned a lot from this class and it has really opened my eyes to what kind of person I am and what kind of person I want to be.

Service Learning- Campus Clean Up

For this service learning activity we walked around campus and picked up litter. I found that there were a ton of cigarette butts and little pieces of trash. I was surprised to find that there wasn't a lot of large pieces of trash. While picking up trash I realized how clean our campus was overall. Compared to other universities I have been at ours was by far the cleanest. I also spent time thinking about all the times I have littered and how much of my trash someone else has picked up. I refuse to litter now and would never just throw my trash on the ground. I am not a smoker so I don't contribute to the nasty cigarette butts. Overall this service learning activity was fun and I could tell I made a difference. I would be willing to do another campus clean up and I am sure I will again someday. It is so important to keep out campus clean!

FGCUs Mission

I personally feel that FGCU is doing a great job at its mission that includes modeling best sustainability practices. I have taken 3 classes here at FGCU including Colloquium that focus on sustainability. Every student I have talked to from FGCU knows more about the environment than the average college student. I feel that we have a very green campus and the students at FGCU are participating in recycling and doing their part to keep the campus clean. I think every student at FGCU has an appreciation for the environment because we know so much about it. I think that more schools should teach their students about their local environment. I truly believe knowledge is power and the more we know and understand our environment the better we will take care of it. It also helps that the buildings at FGCU are Environmentally friendly. The students get to see first hand that it is possible to have a green university. Overall I feel that FGCU is doing a great job on its mission.

Field Trip: Downtown Ft Myers

On our trip to downtown Ft Myers I learned a lot about the history of Ft. Myers and some of the famous people who lived there. For example, Thomas Edison and Henry Ford both had winter homes here. I enjoyed walking around downtown because it was so close to the Caloosahatchee River and I felt a breeze the whole time. While walking around I really enjoyed looking at the architecture. It had an old small town feel to it since many of the buildings have been kept the same. I also liked the small shops and cafes. After we walked around and learned all about the history we took some time to sit and look at the river. This was my favorite part of the whole trip because we were able to relax and just enjoy the scenery. I have never been downtown before so it was cool to see something new. Since the field trip I have been downtown again for the Boat show at the convention center. It was nice to spend more time down there knowing the information I had learned on the field trip. Overall I felt like this was a great field trip because we got to go to a cool place and learn about its history.

Green Building

What can we do to make our buildings environmentally friendly? Here are some ideas when building or redoing a home.
*Smaller is better- Building size should be kept small.
*Energy Efficient buildings- high levels of insulation, High performance windows, and tight construction.
*Buy local products.
*Avoid ozone depleting chemicals in mechanical equipment and insulation.
*Buy Eco friendly appliances.
*Buy energy saving light bulbs.
* Set up easy recycling.
*Composite Decking
*Paper-based counter tops.
*Bamboo Plywood
*Rubber Mulch
*Synthetic Grass
*Repurposed Furniture
Those are just a few ideas you can use when trying to make your home more green.

Service Learning- Trail Clean Up

I spent 5 hours at the trail clean up. To be honest I didn't really like this activity. Everyone worked very hard to get the trail cleared and we spent a great deal of time physically working. However the end result was worth it. There were a lot of people at this event that worked very hard. I think the hardest thing done was removing a cabbage Palm so they could hang a hammock. I was slightly confused on why we would remove a plant to hang something for our own benefit. Besides that the day was fun and we were provided lots of snacks and pizza. I'm not sure if I would attend this event again. It was hard work and I felt that I didn't really make a difference because you couldn't really see individual progress since everyone was working together. I learned that is takes a lot of work to maintain a trail but it is necessary because a lot of people including myself enjoy walking on the trail every now and then. My favorite part of the day was probably just being outside in the early morning. I often don't wake up before 9 am so it felt good to watch the sun rise. Overall the day was a success.