15. Final Impressions

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I heard from all of my friends that had taken the course before, that colloquium was a miserable waste of time. This made me very worried going into the class. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the course. I love nature and always wished for a hands on class that focused on the environment. In my opinion, the course work was very reasonable, and integrated the experiences learned in and out of the classroom. The only thing that I might change is the readings. Some of the assigned readings were a bit long and very complex. I did get the point the authors were trying to get across but think that there was plenty of detail and discussion within the stories that they could have been done without.

Other than that, I enjoyed the rest of the course. The books were interesting as well informational, for example “A Land Remembered.” That book was really interesting, being able to see firsthand how hard it was to survive in the past. Also learning how much people relied and needed to work with nature to get through life. All the paper requirements were fair and able to complete without difficulty. The projects were the most interesting outside of the field trips. The state of the world project, for example, was a different type of project that I had to do. Wiki’s, which are becoming popular today, was something that I had completely no idea on how to do. It was a very good thing that it was a group project because it made it easier to understand as well as made it a lot more enjoyable to complete. I thought it was a perfect way to do a book report type project for the whole class to understand. The final project was also a great deal different from other classes. It was a refreshing change from doing a standard powerpoint presentation. Finally a project in which students could use their creativity and relay all they had learned through the course and service learning. This class should be taught in every college around the United States. It allows students to see nature and experience it to its fullest. It is a great change from the average “here is the material now study it and write a paper or take a test” class. A class like this not only is so beneficial to the students but can change the environment for the better.

14. Sense of Place Interview

Three of my grandparents have passed away and my grandmother who is still living has Alzheimer’s disease and is not going to be able to complete the questions. However my parents could. My father is in Afghanistan so my mother will have to answer the questions. I asked her what sustainability, ecological perspective and sense of place meant to her. She had somewhat the same answers many of people who were not specifically educated or introduced thoroughly to the environment would have. Sustainability to her meant keeping the Earth as healthy as possible. This meant recycling, reducing gas emissions, and using energy saving devices such as energy efficient light bulbs. Ecological perspective means having the environment in mind at all times throughout the day. This can include carpooling as much as possible if leaving the house, or if purchasing food trying to get organic and when leaving the house to turn out all the lights. To my mother, sense of place means knowing your area on the planet. This means knowing her neighborhood very well, and then expanding out to city, state, nation, and planet. Knowing in this case includes environmental problems as well as other issues in the area.

As far as my taking this colloquium course and all that it has enlightened me on, she is very happy. She knows how much I enjoy nature, and she sees that it has gotten me outside more. This makes her very happy, and even happier that I am learning more about the environment. She also has learned more through me talking about the class. So not only has the class helped me, it spreads it's knowledge and education through students to parents, friends and community.

13. Field Trip # 6 – Canoe Trip at FGCU Marine Lab

(Photo by: A. Yurkovic)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovic)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovic)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovic)

Probably the field trip I was most looking forward to was the canoe trip. It’s been a long time since I went canoeing and I was anxious to see the wildlife on the waters, but things didn’t work out the way I wanted. I must have had something bad to eat the night before and was too sick to head out on the waters. It was very upsetting but even from the dock area I was able to see some of the wonderful wildlife. Most notably was the bird nest set up on a pre-made nesting post high above the water. The birds, which I can’t remember the name, popped their head up periodically to see what all the commotion was. It was pretty cool to see that they had nested on the nesting pole, and were thriving on it.

Along with the birds, the water and trees also were great. The mangroves near the shoreline house man of the rivers wildlife area. Over the docks I was able to look into the water. There, oyster shells were piled up and did exactly was they were supposed to, provide a habitat for animals. Fish were eating on the smaller creatures in the piles and crabs tried to get their claws on food as well. I obviously wished to see much more on the trip out on the water, but had to make due from what I could see on the docks.

12. Field Trip # 5 – Urban Fort Myers and Southwest Florida Historical Museum

When I looked at the field trips we were going to make during the class, the downtown Ft. Myers trip stood out. All the other trips were to conservations or other nature oriented places, but downtown was completely different concept. Little did I know that there was so much environmental experiences downtown. First of all was the river. It, along with the park and open area next to it was already so much more natural influence than I thought it would have. The river was a bit murky but with all the boat traffic it was no surprise. Still, wildlife in the area finds a way to survive. The amount of plant life in such a built up area such as downtown was surprising. Trees were abundant, most of which were tall and full grown being there for probably hundreds of years. There was even a garden of palm and fern plants and trees. This was really something that shocked me but in a good way. It was nice to see that space had been set aside for nature such as this. Also, the plants and trees brought in animal wildlife to the area. Many squirrels and birds set up home in the area because of this.

I was unaware of the historical past that Fort Myers had. Something that stood out to me was the statue of “Uncommon Friends.” This statue was a depiction of three historical figures that helped build Ft. Myers up many years ago. The friends were Thomas Edison, Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone. They are sitting together, surrounded by water which displayed Florida’s wildlife including alligators, turtles, and frogs. Another piece of Ft. Myers history that stood out to me was the Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center. We didn’t get to go inside but the outside alone was an amazing spectacle. The large columns were a great sight. Made of Florida key limestone with imprints of coral in them made them stick out. It looked like a building ripped from Rome itself. The mural was the next thing that impressed me. Something so large, so detailed made with tiles was something special. It depicted pretty much the entire history of Ft. Myers in one way or another including the Indians that lived here, the soldiers from the civil war, the unfortunate slavery, railways and cattle herding. It is one of a kind and one of the best pieces of artwork I have seen.

The museum was the next stop on the list. It was full of Ft. Myers history ranging from prehistoric times on up. The Indians I was aware of, but the animals that were here in prehistoric times was pretty interesting especially the giant megaladon shark. So much history in such a small museum was impressive to say the least.

11. Energy Usage: For 24 hours

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(Photo by: A. Yurkovic)

List each time you use electricity:
Alarm clock – 24 hours
Phone Charger (used at night)– 7 hours
Computer (including charging) – 7 hours
Fan – 6 hours
A/C – 6 hours
Shower (1 morning/1 night) – 30 min total
Dishwasher – 40 min
Microwave – 5 minutes
TV/Stereo – 6 hours
Lights (3 rooms) - 5 hours

b) RECORD THE METER READING of your electric meter, if you have access to it, 24 hours apart, to find out how much total electricity you use in a day.
After checking my meter at 9 am, then again 24 hours later I found out that the difference was 36 kWh. This was the day that the above list was used. Until I measured the times that I used certain things such as phone and computer and TV, I was unaware of how long they were on. During the day we open the windows for light most of the time. I checked online, and in 2008 the average per day kWh was 30.5. So I am a little bit above the average. I would open the windows up and use fans during the day but we have no screens on our windows yet. That would decrease the kWh per day definitely.

c) RECORD THE POWER COMPANY’S NAME. ASK THEM HOW THEY GENERATE THE ELECTRICITY AND RECORD IT (this may involve making a phone call or doing research online).
Florida Power and Light generates energy at a power plant using fuels and technologies. The breakdown of the fuel mix used is 52% natural gas, 19%nuclear, 15% purchased power, 8% oil and 6% coal (fpl.com). The energy produced is then sent to local substations through transmission lines and poles. Then the energy is routed to transformers which direct the energy to certain homes with smaller service lines.

d) Record your total mileage for the day, where you went and the mileage to get there. Record the number of people in the car with you.
House to Germain Arena and back (1 person) = 9.8 miles
House to CiCi’s Pizza and back (3 people) = 6.8 miles
House to College Club and back (1 person) = 9.1 miles
TOTAL for the day = 25.7 miles

e) DETERMINE YOUR GAS MILEAGE. ESTIMATE your total miles driven per year (you can take the current odometer reading and divide by the age of your car).
79,900 miles/5 years = 15980 mi/yr

f) DETERMINE THE TOTAL CARBON OUTPUT OF YOUR CAR for the day and for the year (Go to www.fueleconomy.gov for this number).
2005 Dodge Dakota 6 cylinder 2WD = 11 tons/yr of CO2 = .03 tons/day of CO2

g) Reflect on your energy and fuel usage. Do you make sustainable choices? Do you try to conserve energy and fuel when possible?
I did not realize the amount of energy I use a day. I normally realize the obvious energy users such as the lights, A/C, dish and clothe washers a couple times a week, but I didn’t remember that the small things use energy, sometimes for long times than the larger energy users. These small things include the alarm clock which is plugged in all day and night, phone and laptop charger, as well as the TV and sound system. The fans too, which I thought would balance out energy use with the lack of using the A/C. It was upsetting that I was above the average kWh in 2008. I want to try and lessen the amount of energy I use. Unplugging the computer, and phone when they are not in use, turning off lights at night and not in the room, and opening the windows using fans during the day would all help the energy use decrease. Fuel wise I think I am within healthy limits. I live in San Carlos, which is centered around Gulf Coast Town Center, School, hockey rink, and US 41. Everything is within a 10 mile radius, cutting down the amount of emissions and fuel spent. I fill up normally every week and a half to two weeks because of being so close. Even driving a truck, I think it is at good emission levels compared to almost any other truck.

10. Field Trip #4 Corkscrew Swamp

(Photo by: A. Yurkovc)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovc)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovc)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovc)
(Photo by: A. Yurkovc)

Corkscrew Swamp sanctuary was amazing. Coming down from Pensacola, from living out in the woods, to Ft. Myers was different for me. Yes, nature was around the neighborhoods but other than CREW, I was unaware of any place that you could go out and wonder around in the woods. I really underestimated the size of Corkscrew. I was waiting for an area that you could breeze through in thirty minutes, but I was wrong. As a class, we took an abbreviated tour through it, and that alone took nearly 2 hours. It was nature in its purest, relatively unaffected by human beings.

It had multiple types of ecosystems, but most impressive was the wetland area. There you were able to view the abundant variety of plant life that extended as far as you could see. The amount of wildlife out there was also equally impressive. Lizards, tons of birds, fish, and even a raccoon decided to make an appearance. We did not however get to witness the local alligators that are normally said to be in the area. It was possibly to cold outside, seeing how it was early morning during the winter. Chances are they were sun bathing their cold blooded bodies. The atmosphere, to me, was very exciting. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the wetlands, and how the birds and other creatures behaved in their natural habitat. For example, the Anhinga was amazing to watch. To see a bird dart through the water better than some fish was truly a spectacle. The fact that a bird was able to swim through the water blew my mind.

All in all, I very much enjoyed our trip to the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. Not only was it educational, learning about the hunting of herons for their feathers in the past, but it was also a great sight to behold, seeing nature as it should be. Now that I am aware of the sanctuary, I know that when I get a craving for nature I am going to make a trip out there.

9. Calculate your Ecological Footprint

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I scored 4.7 Earths. I thought that the score would be better. In my household, we recycle a lot more than most and rarely use the air conditioner or heater. Other than groceries, we do not really buy much. We also live 5 minutes from school and the Gulf Coast Town Center so we don’t use that much gas and often go shopping or to the movies etc.. together in one car. To help make the score better we can buy more organic foods, as well as take less time in the showers. Playing hockey I take at least two a day and my roommate likes to take baths. So water consumption could get much better. Those could just be the start of cleaning up the house even more for the environment. This quiz definitely was very incite full. I never realized that it would take that many whole planets to keep up with my lifestyle. Its very eye opening.

8. Food Intake/ Packaging

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Pasta and Spaghetti Sauce – made
Salad - premade
Kettle Cooked Chips
Buttered Shrimp – made
Jello Cup - premade
Vanilla Ice Cream = premade

Spaghetti - Cooked, Enriched, With Added Salt 220
Lettuce, Iceberg - (Includes Crisphead Types), Raw 8
Shrimp, Mixed Species - Cooked, Moist Heat 84
Kettle Cooked Salt and Vinegar Potato Chips 140
Vanilla Pudding Snacks - Fat Free 104
Vanilla Bean Ice Cream - All Natural Light 100
Total Calories Consumed 656

From : http://caloriecount.about.com/

This was surprising low calorie count although it makes sense seeing as I am on a strict diet that prevents me from eating pork, soy or corn. Soy and corn are in almost everything under the cover of soy lichen, corn starch, or corn syrup. This prevents me from eating most snacks and bad unhealthy foods. From that I eat less than normal and when I do eat its usually very healthy.

7. Field Trip#2 Estero Bay Historic Cottage and Matanzas Pass Preserve - Conservation 20/20

The Estero Bay Historic Cottage and Matanzas Pass Preserve was a different take on nature rather than the other field trips. We got a lot of history of the area from visiting the historic cottage. It was nice to hear a firsthand experience of how the area was developed from almost nothing. It’s amazing what a few decades do to a place. The Conservation 20/20 program was made to purchase and set aside lands to preserve the natural areas. This way, people are able to experience natural as it is supposed to be. The community gets further educated on the nature, why its good for the area as well as the world, and how to protect it even more. It was the first time that I heard of the Conservation 20/20 program. The Matanzas Pass Preserve was also the first preserve that I had visited that was from this program. The preserve was amazing. It was so beautiful with the sun light shining down. The large amount of trees was something that now a days is hard to find. The pier was probably my favorite part however. It was just an amazing view. I thought it was interesting to learn that raccoons wade in the water and eat the sea food. I would definitely be for giving tax dollars for land preserves. I think that it pays off in the enjoyment of experiencing nature as well as the education that these preserves provide to the public. Hopefully in the future I will get out more and experience more preserves such as this.