Sustainable nightlife!

http://www.enviu.org/cm/cm_index_site.html

Check it out. If I ever had the resources (like money and friends) to create something like this in America, I would, hands down. it has been a dream of a friend and I to open or found a nightclub in America that is just as sustainable as the people who come. Enjoying the night and ready to go as long as we are. And...without negatively impacting the environment. We hadn't thought of the dance floor and didn't know about this particular club in Rotterdam until recently. However, I find it marvelous that somewhere in the world, people are taking charge when it comes to "friendly partying".
The dance floor supposedly creates energy and light in the club and the toilets in the restrooms run off of rainwater. Simply spectacular! Although I don't currently have all the necessary resources or credibility to create something like this, my dreams still run wild and free in hopes that something like this will one day be a project that I can be a part of!

Other schools do it...peer pressure!?

http://r4.ucdavis.edu/
UC Davis- This year their stadium goes green. This is an amazing step when it comes to school buildings. They also provides many links, such as one on receiving “mini-bins” from the school in which paper and other items can be recycled into.
http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~recycle/
UC Berkeley- Obviously known as one of the most liberal schools, so it isn’t surprising that they have a recycling program. They offer a wide array of services to offices, classrooms, and lab buildings. They also provide a guide to recycling and other links related to sustainability.
http://www.studentgroups.ucla.edu/recycle/
This was one the best and most up to date out of the three websites I researched. It shares how last year UCLA had a “recycling rally, had a booth at the Eco Fair for Earth Day, and held a campus-wide Keep Recyclables Out of Trash campaign.” This year one of their main goals is to install recycling in all of the 27 Greek houses.

If they can do it, why can’t we!?

8 STEPS TO STARTING A SCHOOL RECYCLING PROGRAM
(http://www.bottlesandcans.com/)
1. Designate a school "Recycling Coordinator” to oversee the program and motivate others.
2. Arrange for collection: Contact your local recycler or designate a student(s).
3. Get recycling bins by calling 1-800-RECYCLE or by logging on to bottlesandcans.com.
4. Place recycling bins in high traffic areas and inform students of their location.
6. Label the bins effectively to maximize ease of use.
5. Educate your students so they can identify CRV recyclable beverage containers. For a list of beverage containers included in the CRV program, visit bottlesandcans.com.
7. Introduce the program to your students with an email or posters to create awareness.
8. Generate enthusiasm by motivating your students with rewards paid for with the
funds redeemed.

Sounds good to me…so basically…we just need a person, determination, distribution of information, and…oh yeah…money from Jim Doti.

Glad to see someone cares

So...after a few e-mail's back and forth I finally received some answers from Brett who I had e-mailed about the Green Committee:

1) The Green Committee is a fully formed committee this year. Last year it was just a task force because we were trying to set up the logistics of it all, but now it has been recognized by the administration and the faculty senate.

2) Environmental issues at the city level are out of the control of Chapman, we could attempt to influence the decisions of the city council, but the ultimate deciding powers rest with the city council. As far as Chapman is concerned, I would really like to see the Green Committee involved in the building process and logistics of the proposed science center. Having a "Green Building" on campus would increase publicity of the school (from a business standpoint) and would also, obviously, decrease Chapman's affects on the environment.

3) Realistically, I would like to see Chapman have a Green Building on campus. I would also like to see more recycling bins on campus so that recycling isn't classified as a chore, but rather a convenience. Any other policies that Chapman is able to accomplish would be above expectations, and highly unlikely.

4) If you would like to get involved, I would encourage you to run for one of the seven Senate positions available this spring. If you aren't interested in the policy making aspect of this issue, I would encourage you to speak with Kirsten Svenson. I know that she was trying to get something going on this issue a while back and would assume that she still is. I would suggest going out for Senate, but I may be slightly partial.

Hope all this information helps. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to email me.

Best,

Brett Swenson

Senator

Associated Students

It was encouraging to finally hear back from someone.
I will most likely Kirsten Svenson for information as well.
However, it still doesn't seem like there is much that just anyone can get involved in.
Just as I had expected. 

City Links

Today in class we looked at different politician’s websites and even the City of Orange’s website. I was actually both excited and surprised that the environment and global warming had been a main issue for some of these senators and congress folk. Check out Diane Feinstein’s site for example: (http://feinstein.senate.gov/public)

This part of the site was my favorite and I still haven’t gone through every single article. I learned quite a few things and was glad to see a politician concerned with the cause and actually reading what she had felt about it. (example: “We’ve got a President who claims to take global warming seriously. But he refuses to act. He won’t attend international global warming conferences. He refuses mandatory action. It’s all rhetoric and no action. In fact, he seems to be doing everything he can to postpone action until he’s out of office.”)

And for the City of Orange’s site. (http://www.cityoforange.org) was one that I was familiar with as it has been one that I have visited concerning how the city cares for the environment or if they have any concerns. On that subject, it mainly is just links and talks about California overall when it comes to things like The Clean Air Act and so forth. Here is a list I did find that was helpful, even to myself, as I didn’t know all of these were recyclable from the home.

Aluminum/tin cans
Empty aerosol cans
Pie tins
Cardboard egg cartons
Computer/white paper
Milk jugs/plastics
Juice bottles
Newspapers/inserts/magazines
Coupons
Cardboard/12-pack soda boxes
Cereal boxes (lining removed)
Tissue boxes
Glass bottles/jars
Laundry detergent boxes/bottles
Junk mail/magazines/phone books

Of course it was on a link to waste management of Orange County (http://www.wmorangecounty.com/env.asp) rather than the site but I found it to be one of the most informational links.

I am mainly about this because it doesn’t at all help you to get involved. But I suppose that’s why so many people just do what they can on their own anyways…good for them.

Getting involved...or trying!

I have found out that the meetings at school for Associated Students are held on Tuesdays from 11:30 to 1:00. Anyone is welcome to these meetings; however, class seems to be in my way. If the time is to be the same next semester though I am going to try and make it so that I don’t have class during that time. Maybe I will run for senate.
I also decided to email Kirsten today. I just thought I would ask her if she was still trying to establish a recycling program or what it is she was doing that Brett may have been talking about.
I think the only clubs on campus right now that I could join and that I am going to is S.P.E.A.K., Oxfam, and ROOTS. Why I say think I can join I mean...should because it will be a way to possibly meet others who feel the same way about helping our school out in becoming environmentally friendly.

Into The Wild

I haven’t been inspired by anything or anyone in so long than I have been by this movie. So choked up at the end that I couldn’t speak and I surely couldn’t breathe. For anyone who hasn’t seen it or read the story, skip over this part a bit. I must talk about the story to fully establish what it did for me and why I care so much about the environment. Also…watch this trailer. If it doesn’t make you want to see it…wow.

So this young man, Chris, just graduates from Emory with his last semester among many others with all A’s. I can see how everyone must look at him saying…”What a bright kid. He is going to go to law school. He is going to make so much money in his career. He is going to change this world.” And he did. But not in the way that everyone had expected him to. His parents come to his graduation and they are so proud. They leave him to go back home expecting to see him soon when he gets all of his stuff packed up. Instead, Chris packs a backpack, burns his identification cards, pictures, and other “useless” items as he donates his entire savings to Oxfam. He changes his name to Alexander Supertramp. Bold from the beginning. And it is a story that continues on as he meets the most interesting people, changes their lives and walks right out of them because he is on a journey. His great Alaskan adventure. He hitchhikes, hops on trains, and walks to get anywhere he is going. He survives many things that could have made the end of him, or anyone. He pushes forward through states like Arizona, Nevada, California, Colorado, North Dakota, and even Mexico. When he finally makes it to Alaska he finds a small abandoned bus and this is where he lives for the remainder of his life. He finds the beauty in his surroundings and lives off of nature. He breaks my heart and makes it stronger at the same time. He kills to live and cries at death. The smallest things he faces are what bring him to his death in the end. But beyond that, brings him to the realization that the happiness he was looking for wasn’t real. But that “happiness is only real when shared.” WOW.
What was most inspiring to me in this film was how intelligent this man was. He had the courage to finish school and face years of materialism while gaining knowledge before he went out on this extravagant quest. What he did is what i dream of doing everyday and the fact that he finished school helped me to realize that i must to the same before I can ever do anything like that. It also reminded me how beautiful nature is. How lucky he was to get to see it for everything it was and spent countless hours taking it all in. It is because of feelings like that in which I feel so strongly in helping to save the environment that we do live in. Maybe I am selfish, but I want to romp the country side, rivers, deserts, and mountains just like he did. And I want everyone else to freely be able to do the same.

Green Building

After all of the discussion last night about Chapman getting a "Green Building", I thought I would elaborate on exactly what a green building is. I had researched it quite a bit last year for a project and out of my own curiosity. This is one photo I had used to really catch a grip on what one might look like from the outside. First off you notice solar panels and even wind turbines which create energy for the building without using harmful resources like coal or fuel. Secondly, you can see that there is an area where water can run off the building and be used as a recycled irrigation system. There is grass on top of the building which also helps to keep the building cool. With that, trees are also sometimes plated on top of a building which helps to reduce carbon dioxide in the environment. Also a beautifully and lovely view on a rooftop if you think about it! The building is also made out of recycled materials or ones that do not hurt our environment such as bamboo, recycled glass, and non-toxic paints.
If Chapman had a building like this or even multiple...just think of how much we might be helping our environment. And hello...if Jim Doti wants attention (he does)then this is one useful way he can do so. And then I might not be so mad at him anymore!