Take Action Project
Essential Question: “How do your sense of place, your environmental ethic, and your understanding of our energy needs influence your perception of human’s use of Earth’s resources and your own lifestyle decisions?”
Documentation
Below, there is a small slideshow showing a before and after picture of a section we cleaned up, followed by a few pictures detailing the problem and showing the types of litter in the area.
Below, there is a small slideshow showing a before and after picture of a section we cleaned up, followed by a few pictures detailing the problem and showing the types of litter in the area.
My Take Action project was to pick up trash around a local trail system. While riding my bike in the area, I noticed lots of lightweight garbage like plastic bags and thin cardboard had blown over from the nearby recycling center. Seeing this trash, along with other items directly deposited by humans, inspired this project. As a conservationist, I believe that it is very important to keep certain areas as untouched by man as possible. By cleaning up this area, I was hoping to provide a better trail experience for mountain bikers and hikers, and to perhaps inspire others to spearhead similar projects and keep our local community clean.
My project connected to the essential question (see above) because I am a conservationist who believe in both the intrinsic and objectively instrumental value of our planet and our resources. It is undeniable that in our current state, humans must utilize earths resources, both renewable and finite, and that will be true for the predictable future. However, I believe that the earth's resources should be used in the most sustainable way possible, for both our and the earth's benefit, and some areas must still remain in a mostly unblemished state. By picking up trash, I am hoping to slightly help restore a small area to a more natural state, which by extension, would enhance the trail experience for its users. Additionally, I am helping prevent trash from entering watersheds, as during rainstorms, runoff can easily carry off litter such as wrappers, cups, and plastic bags down into the Animas River.
A personal takeaway I had from this experience was that projects of this scale require more planning, forethought, and earlier recruiting than what I previously thought. I chose to do my project during the last week of school, partially because the week before is Osprey Week, which is a week of school in which students can choose to explore different, traditionally non-educational pursuits, such as backcountry skiing, sewing clothing, and the chemistry of cooking I thought that students would either be too busy or too tired because of their Osprey Week, so I decided not to do it that week. However, I failed to realize that throughout the week, I would be camping without a wifi or a cell phone signal, so I had no way of reaching out to a broader community to spread the word about my project until just a few days before it was happening, by which time many people had other plans. Additionally, it has been exceptionally wet this spring, and the day I planned my project to be on, it rained all morning, which caused many people to become hesitant about helping me clean trails because of the mud. Because I was late on deciding what my project was going to be, I scheduled my action day just a day before it was due, and therfore couldn't reschedule. My last act of missplanning was that our Chemistry final was the day after I scheduled my project, so many people couldn't help out because they were studying for that. If I choose to pursue a project of this scale again, I will make sure to have a more timely recruiting strategy and make sure that there are no apparent conflicts of interest with the scheduled time, and generally enter the recruiting and action day more prepared.
My project connected to the essential question (see above) because I am a conservationist who believe in both the intrinsic and objectively instrumental value of our planet and our resources. It is undeniable that in our current state, humans must utilize earths resources, both renewable and finite, and that will be true for the predictable future. However, I believe that the earth's resources should be used in the most sustainable way possible, for both our and the earth's benefit, and some areas must still remain in a mostly unblemished state. By picking up trash, I am hoping to slightly help restore a small area to a more natural state, which by extension, would enhance the trail experience for its users. Additionally, I am helping prevent trash from entering watersheds, as during rainstorms, runoff can easily carry off litter such as wrappers, cups, and plastic bags down into the Animas River.
A personal takeaway I had from this experience was that projects of this scale require more planning, forethought, and earlier recruiting than what I previously thought. I chose to do my project during the last week of school, partially because the week before is Osprey Week, which is a week of school in which students can choose to explore different, traditionally non-educational pursuits, such as backcountry skiing, sewing clothing, and the chemistry of cooking I thought that students would either be too busy or too tired because of their Osprey Week, so I decided not to do it that week. However, I failed to realize that throughout the week, I would be camping without a wifi or a cell phone signal, so I had no way of reaching out to a broader community to spread the word about my project until just a few days before it was happening, by which time many people had other plans. Additionally, it has been exceptionally wet this spring, and the day I planned my project to be on, it rained all morning, which caused many people to become hesitant about helping me clean trails because of the mud. Because I was late on deciding what my project was going to be, I scheduled my action day just a day before it was due, and therfore couldn't reschedule. My last act of missplanning was that our Chemistry final was the day after I scheduled my project, so many people couldn't help out because they were studying for that. If I choose to pursue a project of this scale again, I will make sure to have a more timely recruiting strategy and make sure that there are no apparent conflicts of interest with the scheduled time, and generally enter the recruiting and action day more prepared.
energy and place project
1. How does energy production impact place?
2. How does your sense of place, environmental ethic and understanding of our energy needs influence your perception and decisions regarding energy production?
2. How does your sense of place, environmental ethic and understanding of our energy needs influence your perception and decisions regarding energy production?
The purpose of this project was to inform ourselves about energy production, environmental ethics, and sense of place. Throughout the project, we completed readings by the likes of Edward Abbey and Aldo Leopold, talked about a local wilderness act with one of it's main proponents, and discussed some misconceptions about fossil fuels with the owner of a large oil and gas company. Additionally, we learned about nuclear energy and its risks and benefits. This project was a multi-subject project along with Chemistry, so we were also exploring the science behind our energy consumption while learning about its impact on the planet and people. For the writing piece, most students wrote an essay or poem about their sense of place, in Durango or elsewhere, however I chose to write an Op-Ed to a local newspaper expressing my environmental ethic instead, because I wrote a sense of place essay last semester while attending an outdoor semester program.
Through this project, we learned about many different environmental ethics, which are the beliefs one acts upon when considering issues involving the natural environment. From preservationism to innovation, intrinsic to instrumental, we were taught the entire spectrum in order to be able to form our own educated opinions on the matter. Originally, I thought that I was a preservationist, or one who believes in leaving as much of nature unaffected by man as possible, because I believe in the intrinsic value of the world. However, after further thought on the subject, I think that at our current rates of consumption, preservationism is simply not a realistic solution. I believe that we need to focus more on creating and exploring more long term, sustainable solutions for areas such as energy and food production, which is why I am a conservationist. I believe we need to exploit certain resources in the least impactful, cleanest way possible, while leaving the most amount of minimally human impacted land possible, which is why I currently believe in conservationism.
The part of my Op-Ed that I am most proud of was the evidence I compiled and used. I advocated for the legalization of industrial hemp, and to create a convincing argument about hemp's environmental benefits that could get past most people's association of hemp and the psychoactive drug marijuana, I had to have hard evidence for all of my points, as shown by this excerpt:
"Compared to cotton, industrial hemp yields 300% more raw fiber per unit of land, and cloth made from hemp is 400% warmer, 400% more absorbent, and 300% stronger. "
In that excerpt, I argued that hemp could usurp cotton as our primary source of fabric, and I provided specific evidence of how hemp compares to cotton as far as the growing process and the properties of the final product. Because my goal was for it to be published in a newspaper, I did not cite evidence directly in the text, however I compiled a list of all my sources and cited them in correct format at the bottom of the piece.
Happiness and meaning Project
Personal Philosophy Poem
No Friends on a Powder Day
By Derek Pansze
Okay, who knows that feeling
That feeling of investigating the weather forecast, trying to decipher when the next storm is due, that feeling of watching clouds roll in at dusk, that feeling of being kept awake from a combination of the soft orange glow of light pollution and a sort of prophetic, ominous feeling.
The feeling that tomorrow could be the day, the day Ullr casts his favors in our direction and the winds all line up, and the sun looks elsewhere, and the clouds decide that they want to shed some weight, and it dumps.
These are the days that make life worth living right?
You know, you get jumpy, excited, and impatient, and a weird pressure builds up right under your clavicle that can only be released when the snow is so blower a snorkel doesn't cut it and you need full on scuba equipment to be able to breathe.
Really it's comparable to an addiction, because once you get a little taste of powder skiing, you'll turn into a snow zealot in no time at all.
On big snow days, skiing powder becomes an immediate need necessary for your survival rather than a recreational activity.
So when you wake up at 5 am to see how much it snowed, and have four hours to kill before the lifts start turning, what do you do?
Obviously you leave for the mountain to get the best possible parking spot and first chair.
And when your buddy calls as your passing mild to wild asking for a ride, you tell them you already left.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day
And when a different friend calls you up as you board the lift and says that they're in line, and do you want to take some laps, you say no, you can't wait.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day
And if you do end up meeting up with someone, if they can't keep up with you that's too bad. It's not your problem if they fall and lose a ski, because there's more fresh turns to be had in McCormick's.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day.
But let me let you all in on a little secret
And don't get me wrong, I love first tracks as much as the next person,
But every time I ski alone, it's not quite the same
Because there's nothing like the calm, fat flakes of snow getting tossed aside by multiple pairs of skis and quiet of the storm being ripped open by a groups united shrieks of joy. There is nothing quite like tomahawking down blackburn's right under the lift and shaking the snow out of your goggles to reveal your friends laughing and digging around for your ski.
Contrary to popular belief, I believe there are friends on powder days.
You see, I think the actual experience is important, but when it comes down to it, the difference between a day that was all time and a day that was pretty good depends more on the people you are with then the snow conditions.
I think a lot of people think happiness is a destination, something that is achieved, like crossing the line of a ironman triathlon. But I think happiness is a lot more ambiguous, it comes in moments. Happiness creeps up on me at 330 in the liftline, when my legs are so tired I feel like how a baby giraffe looks when it stands up for the first time. It smacks me upside the head as I follow my friends through the trees, it becomes a whisper in my ear when I fight to stay lucid on the ride home in the backseat of a car stuffed with perhaps a few skiers too many. Happiness knocks on my door every once in a while with memories of quarter sized snowflakes and a full chairlift, questionable cliff drops, face plants with a side of double-ejection, the comforting combination of fogged up goggles and light flatter than Kansas, and this feeling, this emotion no amount of gleeful hoots or powder crusted high fives could ever do justice.
Happiness, for me
Is friends on a powder day.
No Friends on a Powder Day
By Derek Pansze
Okay, who knows that feeling
That feeling of investigating the weather forecast, trying to decipher when the next storm is due, that feeling of watching clouds roll in at dusk, that feeling of being kept awake from a combination of the soft orange glow of light pollution and a sort of prophetic, ominous feeling.
The feeling that tomorrow could be the day, the day Ullr casts his favors in our direction and the winds all line up, and the sun looks elsewhere, and the clouds decide that they want to shed some weight, and it dumps.
These are the days that make life worth living right?
You know, you get jumpy, excited, and impatient, and a weird pressure builds up right under your clavicle that can only be released when the snow is so blower a snorkel doesn't cut it and you need full on scuba equipment to be able to breathe.
Really it's comparable to an addiction, because once you get a little taste of powder skiing, you'll turn into a snow zealot in no time at all.
On big snow days, skiing powder becomes an immediate need necessary for your survival rather than a recreational activity.
So when you wake up at 5 am to see how much it snowed, and have four hours to kill before the lifts start turning, what do you do?
Obviously you leave for the mountain to get the best possible parking spot and first chair.
And when your buddy calls as your passing mild to wild asking for a ride, you tell them you already left.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day
And when a different friend calls you up as you board the lift and says that they're in line, and do you want to take some laps, you say no, you can't wait.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day
And if you do end up meeting up with someone, if they can't keep up with you that's too bad. It's not your problem if they fall and lose a ski, because there's more fresh turns to be had in McCormick's.
Sorry, no friends on a powder day.
But let me let you all in on a little secret
And don't get me wrong, I love first tracks as much as the next person,
But every time I ski alone, it's not quite the same
Because there's nothing like the calm, fat flakes of snow getting tossed aside by multiple pairs of skis and quiet of the storm being ripped open by a groups united shrieks of joy. There is nothing quite like tomahawking down blackburn's right under the lift and shaking the snow out of your goggles to reveal your friends laughing and digging around for your ski.
Contrary to popular belief, I believe there are friends on powder days.
You see, I think the actual experience is important, but when it comes down to it, the difference between a day that was all time and a day that was pretty good depends more on the people you are with then the snow conditions.
I think a lot of people think happiness is a destination, something that is achieved, like crossing the line of a ironman triathlon. But I think happiness is a lot more ambiguous, it comes in moments. Happiness creeps up on me at 330 in the liftline, when my legs are so tired I feel like how a baby giraffe looks when it stands up for the first time. It smacks me upside the head as I follow my friends through the trees, it becomes a whisper in my ear when I fight to stay lucid on the ride home in the backseat of a car stuffed with perhaps a few skiers too many. Happiness knocks on my door every once in a while with memories of quarter sized snowflakes and a full chairlift, questionable cliff drops, face plants with a side of double-ejection, the comforting combination of fogged up goggles and light flatter than Kansas, and this feeling, this emotion no amount of gleeful hoots or powder crusted high fives could ever do justice.
Happiness, for me
Is friends on a powder day.