Reflection: Weeks 8-14

I can't believe the semester is already over!  Time has flown by.  I have to say I found the last half of the semester just as interesting as the first half.  

I found the second half of this semester to be much more hands on, which I think made me enjoy this half better!  I loved seeing everyone's creativity come to life by re-creating something from what most would call "junk".  Here's my junking project below: cutting up old t-shirts and making them into headbands! If you click here, you can check out a site that gives you some directions to follow.  You basically just need to cut up a t-shirt and be creative!  You can braid it, make strips, create flowers, or mix everything to make one masterpiece!  My next task is to create a scarf or two over break!

Now, I need to make note of how I came across this tutorial.  I have recently joined Pinterest, a website created for people who want to search for just about ANYTHING.  You can look up recipes, clothing, wedding ideas, and obviously Do It Yourself crafts.  There are tons of different DIY crafts that relate to reusing "junk" to create something!  Check it out!

Aside from our junking project,  I think the second best part of these weeks was visiting Goodwill.  I have always been a fan of shopping at Goodwill for little nik-naks or some comfy "lounge" sweatshirts, but going behind the scenes at the store really opened my eyes.  I never knew the purpose of Goodwill and how they offer so many opportunities for people who may have trouble finding a job based on their mental status, age, or past.  It was so cool to see all the donated items sorted throughout the enormous warehouse.  I really enjoyed the mattress contraption-what a cool concept!  Seeing all those mattresses in the warehouse and thinking of how they would have ended up in a landfill is just shocking.  I'm very glad Goodwill takes the time and gives us the choice of giving them our old mattresses, rather than dumping them.  

I loved "The Story of Stuff" movie!  This movie (along with other "Story of" ones) are a great way to get the point across of environmental issues our country faces.  These movies could be shown to middle school students all the way up to adults.  It's definitely eye opening, interesting, and it even throws a little humor in!  I actually heard of these movies before this class because I used "The Story of Bottled Water" for another class I had to present in.  It was a great way to explain the issue of bottled water and how it is becoming a growing problem for America.

I also thoroughly enjoyed doing the Share 'N' Voice posts over the past few weeks!  It was cool to be able to share something I found interesting with the rest of the class.  I also liked that it was easy to access everyone's Share 'N' Voice by linking them all in one place!  I got to share some awesome things like the book Hot, Flat, and Crowded, the film "Forks Over Knives", and discuss the never ending parking issues at UMD and how this affects other transportation routes like the DTA.  

The Advocacy Project was a little more difficult to accomplish over the weeks, but it definitely taught me a lot.  As I focused on a bill for cleaner Great Lakes through regulation, I realized how advocacy works and what it takes to advocate for something you strongly believe in.  I never really knew who my local representatives were (unless I heard here and there on the local television), so it was nice to be able to recognize who they are and how I can contact them. 

What a great semester it has been!  I can see there has been some change in my views and way of life, whether I try to eat more vegetables or attempt at recreating something out of "junk".  This class has most definitely opened my eyes to a new world of ideas concerning our environment.  I can most definitely say I have transformed my environmental thinking into the operational stage of learning, where I myself have the ability to do something about an issue.  I hope to keep all my new habits throughout my life because they will ultimately help the environment and make me a better person!