My final project will be a continuation of my mid-term where I intervened in my community by transforming its landscape into a more native and ecologically productive one. I will research actual projects of this type to hopefully gain insight into the process required to accomplish the task of renovating…

If I were to design a policy initiative, it would be that the sale of disposable plastic food-ware items and plastic bags would be prohibited. This policy would apply primarily to restaurants and grocery stores. It seems that a large volume of plastic waste would be composed of disposables such…

The talk by Ms. Catherine Flowers was very interesting and insightful. I really learned a lot about environmental justice (EJ) and I realized that I would like to be involved in environmental justice issues more than I thought I would. Before her talk, I was thinking that advocacy wouldn’t be…

The concept of permaculture is so beautiful and refreshing because it is unique from the usual discourse that surrounds the topics of sustainability and climate change. Whereas most discussion about climate change and sustainability involves limiting our ecological impact through methods of reducing, reusing, and recycling, permaculture actually encourages us…

(June 9) I’ve come to Ecotopia for the summer to spend time with my friend, Trisha, who moved here two years ago. I must say that the experience so far has been pretty interesting– Trisha lives in Oakland, which is one of the bigger cities here, but it lacks the…

“It’s important to say what hope is not: it is not the belief that everything was, is, or will be fine.” -Rebecca Solnit To be completely honest, I’m very concerned about the future. I’m concerned because too many Americans are ignorant of, or don’t completely subscribe to, the risks and…

I like Pacific Edge for the fact that, for a utopian tale, it is so ordinary. As a tool for envisioning the future, the novel works well because the society and the lifestyles of the characters in the book are realistic and feasible– the way that they live is, for…

Fictional media definitely influences the way that we envision the future, and whether we see mostly negative or positive depictions shape our ideas on how we think future society might look. Novels and movies are important vessels in influencing human visioning because novels engage the imagination and lead us to…

I find it interesting the process by which popular opinion on a matter changes. On the topic of nature/environment in particular, the way in which the idea of it transformed from being detested to revered from one period to the next. How did this happen? Before the 18th century, most…

Name: Adrienne Hewitt Hometown: Ft. Lauderdale, FL but currently residing in Orlando Major: B.S. Environmental Science 3 Topics of Interest: Environmental Sustainability, Conservation, Education An interesting piece of news: Those affected by Hurricane Harvey are using their social media accounts to reach out to authorities and/or arrange their own rescues.…