Study Abroad

Three hundred stairs to go.  Two hundred stairs to go.  I stop at the landing because I do think I can do another two hundred.  It is getting tighter and steeper the farther up we go.  My legs feel like they’re about to buckle and I’m out of breath.  I decide that it would be a waste to climb two hundred and not go through with the rest.  I walk away from the elevator.  There’s no turning back now.  Adrenaline kicks in and the next hundred stairs fly by.  I’m almost there.  Excitement pushes me faster.  I am so close to the top.  I look behind me to see my friends trailing not to far behind.  I get to the opening that is going to lead me to the top of the Duomo.  As I climb out on to the landing, sunset has just hit.  We didn’t even plan it, it just worked out that way.  I look out and can see the entire city of Florence, the buildings and the hills farther off into the distance.  The sky is an unreal wash of colors.  I take a breath in.  It was worth every single one of those four hundred stairs.  I stand around, gazing out into the most beautiful, picturesque landscape I have ever seen with my own eyes.
During my three week study abroad trip to Venice, climbing to the top of the Duomo was by far the most breath taking.  Despite that being my favorite, there were so many other moments that made the trip a life changing experience.  Italy has such an abundance of culture that no matter what corner you find yourself in, you are guaranteed to be amazed.  During my time there I traveled throughout Venice, and spent a weekend in both Rome and Florence.  Walking through a cities that have been there for centuries and looking at artwork that is known throughout the world is an eye-opening experience.
There was so much to see in Rome, it was hard to cram it all into three days.  One thing in particular that was amazing was to stand foot in was the Coliseum.  It was a beautiful day, 60 degrees and sunny.  Walking into a structure that massive, that has survived through so much, is astounding.  Looking down at an area where you know people fought to the death and others cheered in excitement is equally eerie as it is exciting.
Then there is Venice.  What can I say about Venice.  It’s not just a city, but place with its own characteristics and personality.  Being there for three weeks, I got to experience the real Venice.  The squares, the cafès, the buildings.  It has so much history, but it still has so much life in it.  I loved walking over the bridges and passing the canal, walking past different buildings on my way to the institute for class.  Venice is a magical city and four months later, I am still under its spell.

Cinco de Mayo

While everyone was running around drinking Coronas and Margaritas, I took a brief moment from inhaling my fish tacos and wondered what are we actually celebrating?  Cinco de Mayo has become something similar to St. Patrick’s day, where we adopt a holiday and use it to consume large quantities of alcohol and dress accordingly.  But where did this holiday originate? And what are the Mexican people even celebrating?  
Depending on whether you are celebrating in the U.S. or Mexico, it can have a slightly different meaning.  In the United States, it is observed as a celebration of Mexican  heritage and culture.  There are different events across the country that honor traditional Mexican dress, music, and dancing.  A well known example is mariachi, which is a traditional type of Mexican music.  Celebrating in the U.S. began when Mexicans and Latinos celebrated during the American Civil War.  Ever since then, it has slowly been gaining popularity.  However, it was until the 1980’s when advertisers and marketers caught on and began to use the holiday to push products relating to the holiday, such as beer.  Now, everyone loves to go out and celebrate with a sombrero and Corona.
In Mexico, specifically the state of Puebla, Cinco de Mayo is a national holiday.  The Battle of Puebla, which was on May 5th, 1862, was the day that the Mexicans defeated the French.  This was true victory because the French were better prepared and greatly outnumbered the Mexicans.  Even though their success was short lived, the victory still meant a great deal to the Mexican resistance effort.  
It is ironic that Cinco de Mayo is not even celebrated by all of Mexico, yet those of us here assume so.  Also, most people believe that Cinco de Mayo is Mexican Independence Day.  Cinco de Mayo probably also got so popular because of the increasing Hispanic population in the U.S.  As of 2010, the Hispanic population in the U.S. was 16.3%.  This percentage translates into roughly 50 million.  While that number is for the Hispanic population, not the Mexican population, the overall growing number could have something to do with why Cinco de Mayo is so popular.  

A Break From the Eco World

         While some of my peers were having wild spring breaks, I spent a couple days in Washington DC and Virginia Beach with my mom and my sister.  I have never been to either, and was really surprised with what I saw.  Washington DC was a lush city with nothing but clean streets and beautiful architecture.  We were surprised when we found out the zoo and museum were free, something that us New Yorker's know nothing about because a ticket to anything will run at least $20.  At the Smithsonian, we went to the National Gallery of Art and the Natural History Museum.  The National Gallery of Art was stunning with rows and rows of different art work from artists around the world.  My personal favorite were the Monet pieces.  The following day we spent looking at the monuments and walking around Georgetown.  Once in Virginia Beach, the city atmosphere was replaced with a quaint beach town.  We stayed at a bed and breakfast where every need we had was met with a smile by the homeowners.  We took a tour of the Botanical Garden which was full of flowers in bloom and walked the boardwalk.  While my spring break wasn't the typical "spring break" of a college student, I had a great time experiencing a different part of America I have never seen before.

President Obama's Stance on Energy

Alternative Energy News

Tips From a Friend

       

A lot of times people want to be environmentally friendly, but think it is too much work.  But, just by doing a few simple things you can make a difference.  My friend Michelle, a college student at Nassau Community College, decided she wanted to make a few eco-conscious changes.  Initially, Michelle had no knowledge of the environmental issues we are facing.  After taking a class in school, she learned more and became interested.  Because she is a college student, she’s always busy and on limited funds.  She thought it would be a big commitment to "go green", so she always ignored it.  She soon realized that there were several things she could do that would be quick and easy.

In the pictures above, you can see what she does to do her part.  She recycles once a week.   This ensures that what she is throwing out gets reused and not dumped in a landfill.  Michelle uses a reusable coffee mug, water bottle, and shopping bag. By using reusable products, you limit the amount of waste you produce.  Michelle said that this was the easiest change that she made, "considering I'm on a college budget, it's actually more cost effective for me."  She doesn't have to buy water bottles every week since she refills her reusable one with water from a filtered pitcher.  She can also make her own coffee and use her thermos instead of buy a cup every day at Starbucks.  Another change she made was purchasing her fruits and vegetables from her local farmers market. The final thing Michelle does is unplug cords when she’s not using them to save electricity.  Just by making these five easy changes, like Michelle did, you can do your part to help! 

Resource Depletion

Another issue plaguing our environment is loss of natural resources.  Because the world’s population keeps growing (we’re at about 7 billion now), we are using up more and more resources.  To make room for people to live and agricultural land, ecosystems often wiped out.  Deforestation often occurs when more agricultural space is needed.  Deforestation is the clearing of natural forests by logging or burning of trees in a forested area.  Deforestation has led to a rise in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and a decrease in biodiversity.  The cause for the rise in CO2 is that normally plants would use up the CO2 in the air and emit oxygen, but once they are destroyed they are unable to do so.  This leaves a high about of CO2 in the air which then leads to the greenhouse effect.  The other issue regarding deforestation is the decrease in biodiversity.  When forest area is cleared, the unique plants and animals that live in that ecosystem are left without a home.  They often become endangered or extinct. 

                Regardless of whether a resource is renewable to non-renewable, if we are using them up quicker than their rate of replacement, they will become depleted.  Some non-renewable resources (a resource that cannot be grown or regenerated once gone) are fossil fuels.  Common fossil fuels we use are natural gas, petroleum, and coal.  Since we depend so much on fossil fuels you can see how this is an issue.  This is why government officials and organizations keep looking for alternative sources of energy.

                Renewable resources (resources that can be replaced through natural processes) include timber, soil, metals, plants, animals, and water.   Even though these can be replaced naturally through the environment, if they are used to frequently they too can become non-renewable.  Hunting, forestry, fishing, and mining can all lead to a depletion of natural resources.

                As long as we conserve our environment, hopefully we will be able to slow down the process of depletion.  This is why sustainability is so important.  It is the idea of long-term maintenance of responsibility.  If we can all learn to be responsible we can take care of our environment.

Problems With Pesticides

Pesticide use is very common in the U.S.  It is in a majority of the food we eat.  Not only is it bad for us, but it ends up being in runoff that makes its way into our waters.  Once it affects our fresh water sources, it is not long before it reaches the ocean.  It kills major ecosystems in the ocean and kills off all the biodiversity that once lived there. 

A majority of these pesticides come from agricultural farms, but also from our own homes and backyards.  They are also found in parks, golf courses, and swimming pools.  Now with people becoming more educated about these issues, companies have begun to produce environmentally friendly products.  Purchasing these products won’t fix water pollution, but every little bit helps.  For example, Seventh Generation is an environmentally friendly brand that is now sold in supermarkets and drug stores.  It is important to use products that have fewer chemicals in them and more natural and biodegradable ingredients.  Also, whenever possible, try not to use pesticides outside when gardening or planting.  It leads to contaminated runoff.  This water ends up in our water or our water system. 

Some More Information about Vegetarianism and the Environement

 According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the chemical and animal waste runoff from factory farms damages our water system.  Animals produce 130 times more waste than humans do.  To give you an estimate, factory farms produce one billion tons of waste.  This waste is converted into concentrated liquid sewage and is stored in lagoons.  While in the lagoon, the gases from the waste seep into the air and the ground.  The then contaminated water has killed millions of fish and is responsible for about 60% of polluted rivers and streams in the U.S.  A common bacteria found in the water from this runoff is called pfiesteria.  This particular bacterium causes open sores, nausea, memory loss, and fatigue.  We are very lucky in New York to have a great water source, so we tend not to think about water as an issue.  But for states like California, where factory farming is a way of life, it is a major issue for the homeowners who live there. 

However, it is not just fresh water that we should be concerned about.  The ocean is in great danger as well.  The ocean now has what are known as dead zones.  These dead zones are areas of coastal water where nothing can live.  It is caused by contaminated water that leads to a lack of oxygen.

A majority of the grain produced in the U.S. is not fed to people, but to animals.  Because so many of these animals are fed grains, grain farmers use an extensive amount of land.  This practice has destroyed many ecosystems just to create new farmlands.  Today, 30% of the earth’s surface is occupied by livestock.  Species are now in danger of being extinct at a much faster rate than in the past.

(Farm Sanctuary)

Environmental Benefits of Vegetarianism

Being a vegetarian is not just good for you, but it is good for the environment as well.  According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, the chemical and animal waste runoff from factory farms damages our water system.  Factory farms are used to produce dairy, eggs, and produce cheaply and efficiently.  But they are very detrimental to the environment.

Farm animals produce large quantities of the powerful greenhouse gas methane.  These emissions lead to the greenhouse effect.  The greenhouse effect is when thermal radiation from a planetary surface is absorbed by atmospheric greenhouse gases, and is re-radiated in all directions.  The greenhouse effect heats the earth because greenhouse gases absorb outgoing radiative energy and re-emit some of it back towards earth.  As a result, the average surface temperature rises.  This then leads to other several other issues.  A major one of them is the rise of sea level.  The world’s oceans have already risen 4-8 inches.  Which, to put into perspective, is enough to erode certain islands.  The climate change caused by greenhouse gases is also causing severe floods and severe droughts in parts of the world.  Storm activity will increase as temperatures rise and more water evaporates from the oceans. This includes more powerful hurricanes, pacific typhoons, and an increased frequency of severe localized storms and tornadoes.  We have already seen examples of this the earthquake in Haiti and the tsunami in Japan, just to name a few of the most extreme recent examples.  This warming also causes evaporation on land.  The American West, Southern Africa, and Australia are experiencing severe droughts.

By limiting your consumption of meat, whether once a week or as a permanent life change, you can be helping to slowly reduce these statistics.

(A Cooler Climate)