Free Blog #3 - Carbonnation Movie

CarbonNation: Movie

                Today in class we watched a section of the movie CarbonNation. The movie hopes to find solutions to the growing worldwide carbon footprint.  The movie showed us a man who had a wind powered farm and how he had been working on it since his family passed it down to him. This hardworking man showed me the benefits of wind power and how it can help a community and the environment. It talks more about climate change and what people need to do to fix that.

                The main part in the film that I thought was the most interesting was the military base in the desert and how it was hard to keep the tents cool without wasting money and energy. The tents let out a lot of the cool air being distributed inside, and this ultimately was a waste. Being in a desert, you kind of need cool air to keep a comfortable environment along with your health and sanity. What they decided to do was turn the tent basically into a cooler with a certain spray which hardened the walls. This way, the walls of the tent wouldn’t move and the cool air would stay inside and cooler longer. Through these little changes, we can save a lot of energy and money next to helping the environment. Climate change is a big deal, and if things aren’t done to help this problem, the world can be in even more trouble.

Free Blog - Food Inc Movie

Food Inc. Movie

                Watching this movie opened my eyes in so many ways. It was excellent in the way it described and taught the audience. I learned so much about the food I was eating and it was shocking. I already had a good idea about where and what was in the food I was eating, but this movie brought it to light even more. The movie examines corporate farming here in America and how agribusinesses produce unhealthy foods.  It’s not only unhealthy for the people, but for the employees and animals as well. People are oblivious to what they are exactly eating, and that needs to be changed. From the genetically transformed animals to the fake foods and ingredients this movie proves that being aware of what you are eating is a necessity. Throughout the film, it talked about the many harms of fertilizing and pesticides, along with the general public’s way of eating and how unhealthy it is. I also learned how much corn is used in just about everything. It’s used as feed for the cows, who must adjust their eating habits to even consume corn. Corn is mainly used to make these cows hefty in the shortest amount of time. This means that the beef we eat is also based on corn…yet again. Eating locally grown veggies and even meats is the way to go because it benefits the community and gives you the freshest food available. It’s good for your body and is needed to keep you healthy and not blindly picking out food in the grocery store. Overall, I'm glad I got to see this movie because it has definitely changed my mind on what I eat on a daily basis.

Free Blog - is nature-deficit disorder a real thing?

Is Nature-Deficit Disorder a Real Thing?

http://www.psmag.com/blogs/the-101/nature-deficit-disorder-outdoors-outside-54707/

                Before even reading this article, I had a pretty good idea about the ideas and concept about it from the title. The concern is mainly about people and how now more than ever the enjoyment of nature is scarce. People would rather stay in the comfort of their air conditioned house than go outside and enjoy the cool breeze. With growing technology, there’s no surprise that people have been changing their views and feelings about being outside. Wherever you look people are on their own personal devices in their own world totally unaware of the blooming flowers down the street or the beautiful trees in the park. To me, it’s upsetting mainly because people are missing out on the beauty around them and instead are on Facebook or Twitter. There are many benefits of being outside that can help anyone if they get out and experience it. Taking a hike or walking down the street can clear your mind and fill your lungs with fresh air. The sun is good for you too and can totally change your mood! Being outside overall enhances the senses and emotions of people, which cannot be experienced if you are cooped up in your house. People need to re learn that going outside and experiencing nature is actually fun and good for you all at the same time. It really helps connect people with their surroundings, home, environment, and self. We just need people to encourage this and actually take it into action. By doing this, people can change for the better and also help their selves escape the overbearing technologies.

Ecofeminism

What do you think of ecofemisnism before you read, and after? Did you have any strong reactions? What do forms of dominance do you see in the world around you?

What I first thought about ecofemisnism was that it was just a bunch of older women who were very uptight and thought everything that happened was in some way being offensive to women. It’s sad that I thought that, but it’s what I have developed throughout the years as the ecofeminism way. Now, after reading and seeing the video, I think that it is a wonderful, helpful, and inspiring thing. People everywhere are suffering and a lot of women have no rights at all. Being in America is one thing, but looking at other third world countries and seeing some things the women and even young girls have to deal with is very sad. I really want to watch the documentary ‘Half the Sky’ now because I think its very inspiring and has a lot of good points a lot of people don’t know about. Watching a commercial of it really opened up my eyes and made me want to do something. Forms of dominance I see in the world today would be with certain races and women in the world. A lot of women are still paid less than men and that’s looked at as a normal thing. Women are more likely to go to college than men and this shows the dramatic turn women are taking and how powerful they really are.

Blog #12

                                                                  Green Democracy

          The Green Party would definitely be something I could see myself joining. The party brings a democratic view and hopes to keep the world cleaner and safer. Some of their main goals are having the people make the decisions instead of a few large corporations. I think that this is important and can fix a lot of things because the people can actually have a say. I would want to be able to step up and do something like a lot of people in the Green Party do. They want a sustainable world with people and nature. Their hopes are to have harmony between the two to benefit everyone, and especially the environment. Another huge goal for the party is to reduce national debt and making taxes fair. They want to lower individual taxes and then raise taxes of bigger businesses. The Green Party is working hard to make the environment better for everyone and give the people a voice.

Blog #11

                                                                 Spiritual Ecology

                The readings on spiritual ecology were very intriguing to me because I am fairly interested in the subject. I learned a lot about spiritual ecology that I didn’t know before, such as the Gaia Hypothesis. I fully agree with it because it talks about how Mother Earth is fully affected by every person and being on this Earth. Whatever we do, it will affect the Earth and everyone and thing in it.

                I think that it is pretty clear we live in a hyper-masculinized society because males have always seemed to dominate. Its seen in workplaces with women who have the same position as a man are still getting paid less. However, I think we are quickly on the way to equalization between men and women. I think that this is a big deal and that the closer we get to equalization between men and women, the better we can prosper.

                Overall, spiritual ecology is a very important topic for everyone to read about because it can open your mind and broaden your ideas. Hopefully everyone gets something out of the readings, and are able to take something positive away from it.