Environment And Nature - Blog Posts

Concept: I live in a tiny cabin in the woods. I dry my laundry on a clothes line. I wake with the sun, stay up late reading and nap during the afternoon in a hammock. I have a garden full of flowers, herbs, vegetables and berries. I go on picnics regularly by a nearby river. I rarely need to leave my beautiful home tucked away in the forest.

today is earth day! in honor of Mother Earth let’s guillotine every ceo that’s willfully contributing to climate change despite having billions of dollars that could be used to stop it!

A great source for students interested in sustainable living!

🌲🌿 Being A Green Student 🌿🌲

Hello my studious friends! I’ve decided I’d (finally) make the green student guide that I’ve been promising forever. Here you’ll find a handy list of ways you can stay environmentally conscious while hitting the books. Feel free to pick a choose what suggestions work best for you and your lifestyle. Again, these are purely suggestions, but I really recommend adopting as many as you can. All of us, especially those in the traditionally “western” nations with outrageous carbon footprints (aka America and many parts of Europe), need to start thinking about how we impact our planet in our daily lives. It’s the only one we have. At first, these suggestions may seem excessive or strange, but I promise, after a week or two, they’ll feel like second nature. So, I hope you take up these tips, and enjoy my guide to be a greener student!

Disclaimer: I understand that being green can be expensive, with little reward besides a cleaner lifestyle and conscious. I’m a financially impaired student, just like many of you. I’m not one to go around attacking people for not trying to be sustainable, just passing along tips I’ve picked up. That said, most of these tips can be modified, with a dash of creativity, to fit your monetary needs. And, obviously, I’m not saying that if you’re struggling to feed yourself you should go drop all your money on recycled notebooks, because that would be ridiculous.

Open the Read More to, well, read more!

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Environmentalism is really about seeing our place in the world in a way that humans have always known up until very recently - that we are part of nature - utterly dependent on the natural world for our well being and survival.

David Suzuki (via spirituallyminded)

I’m just so terrified that my children will never be able to experience nature as it is with all the animals and diversity and plants and insects and forests and snow because this generation didn’t wake up.

The ecosystem here is so well preserved and naturally symbiotic that even a tree intentionally downed will provide food and nutrients for a new lush carpet throughout the forest. Follow my west coast trip here August 1, 2018 Cathedral Grove BC, Canada

What is needed are ecosystems that are designed to produce our food, fuel, animal feed, medicine and fibers, and ecosystems that can do so without the use of fossil fuel technology, those that can tolerate extremes of weather and potentially changing climates, and that can thrive without supplemental irrigation from vulnerable and increasingly expensive public utilities.

Restoration Agriculture: Real World Permaculture for Farmers - Mark Shepard (via postciv)

Guide to Zero Waste as a college student.

I know. Just the thought of it made me scared. When I first started a year ago, I dived head first and told myself if I didn’t start now, I would never start. It didn’t matter if I would make a mistake, I had to start and then learn from my mistakes.

Boi did I make a lot of mistakes. But I learned. Here are some steps you can take to become zero waste.

1. Look at your trash. 

What is in there? Plastic bottles? Straws? Jars? Wrappers? Foam containers of that one take away? Take a look at your trash and determine why you are producing that amount of trash.

2. Plan. 

After figuring out what’s in your trash think about what you can do to stop making it. I like to guide myself with these three questions:

Do I really need this in my life? If not, then it is a good time to stop buying/ using said thing.

If I do need it, is there an eco-friendly alternative? Do they sell it or should I look for a DIY-option? The important thing is not to get stuck just because you can’t get it!

What habits can I adapt to make transitioning easier for me?

3. Set goals. 

At first, I dived right into it. Which was probably not the best option. After some months I realized it would be better if I took one step at a time. Goals are a good way to get you there but the only way goals can actually work is of they are smart. These are some of the goals I had when I started.

Every day I must fill my reusable water bottle and take it everywhere with me. I am not allowed to drink from any plastic cups, straws any other form of packaging that is recyclable but not necessarily reusable.

Every day I must go out with my reusable straw and my utensils. In order not to forget them, I have to always keep a pair on each of my bags.

4. Keep track. 

I will admit: I am not perfect. But keeping tracks of what I do with zero waste helps me see what I can do better. And that’s what this movement is. What can we do to get a bit closer to producing no waste? Some people get discouraged but this personally encourages me to work harder.

So are you planning on becoming zero waste? Are you already part of the movement? Let me know!

-Shirou

If ur highkey pissed off that eco-activism is constantly written off as reefer hippie bullshit so much so that even the lower class, who would normally benefit from it, are willing to push this false narrative of giving a fuck about the earth being bad or embarassing, all because the capitalists who brainwash them would sooner watch it die than lose a single dollar, and it all makes you sick to your fucking stomach, clap your hands

Glacier National Park, Montana

June 2018

instagram: @juliana_johnson

Climate change is such a huge problem, that is so underrepresented for the amount of harm it causes. The actual change in the temperature, extreme weather events, change in what we’re able to farm. If we ignore this issue, we’re ignoring the fact that we’re slowly destroying ourselves. We can’t ignore it. Yes, the major issue is big corporations, but we are the demand to their supply. We can make a change. Even little changes is something, it does help. Work to make a difference, work to be aware. Don’t ignore the problem, for the sake of our Earth.

Rosy morning porthole view.

This is for all the coffee drinkers out there!

The Sawgrass Nature Center was notified via email today that we will be one of the many businesses featured on the Female-Founded Business Finder. This is a joint project between the Stacy’s Rise Project and the Hello Alice social business platform. The directory is featuring businesses run and founded by women. It can be found by scanning the QR Code on a bag of Stacy’s Pita Chips during the month of November or by clicking here:  www.femalefounderfinder.com. 

It is important for women to come together and support each other to close the gap between genders in leadership. We are proud to promote this business finder and other businesses of all backgrounds being run by women for women. 

Friendly reminder that the Sawgrass Nature Center (legally Coral Springs Nature Center and Wildlife Hospital) is a non-profit, charitable organization that runs on donations and is dedicated to the conservation of wildlife and environmental stewardship. We rehabilitate and released injured, sick, or orphaned wildlife brought to us by the surrounding communities. We also provide a home to over 100 non-releasable animals due to permanent injuries or their non-native status. Our education department is responsible for organize on and offsite programming as well as developing a program to provide free educational and professional development resources to Title I schools in South Florida. 

Feel free to check us out on our website, or like us on social media. We really appreciate the support :)

Today the SNC donated dish and appliance sets to FLITE Center. FLITE’s mission is to “guide those aging out of foster care and other vulnerable youth for a successful transition to independence.” 

The SNC is very happy we got the opportunity to give back to our community this way. Kids that have grown up through the foster care system are more vulnerable as they start their adult life and many of them do not have support systems to help them get started on the right foot.

Remember, as a community, there is no issue we can’t tackle together. 

Hi! My name is Abby De la Rocha and I am the Volunteer Coordinator at the Sawgrass Nature Center and Wildlife Hospital in Coral Springs, Florida. I was born in Puerto Rico and lived there until my family moved to Botswana when I was 8 years old. I returned to Puerto Rico when I was 16 and finished high school in Ponce. I then moved to New Orleans where I studied at Loyola University. I have been in Florida since 2006.

In this post, I’m going to tell you about Hispanic Heritage month as well as some interesting facts about Puerto Rico’s agriculture and its most precious ecosystem El Yunque.

What is Hispanic Heritage Month?

Each year, we observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15 by celebrating the histories, cultures, and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

This year’s Hispanic Heritage Month theme- Hispanics: Be Proud of Your Past, Embrace the Future – invites us to embrace our backgrounds, to be proud of who we are and where we came from.

Embracing the Future

The future of agriculture in Puerto Rico

Currently, Puerto Rico imports 85% of its food. This is a huge vulnerability for an island with a population of 3.1 million. For several years, my family has been involved in the agroecological movement which seeks to increase the self-sufficiency of Puerto Rico through their agricultural project Finca El Reverdecer. This movement has been largely spearheaded by young people who are eager to make a difference. I believe that by looking at our past we can create a better future.

The present agricultural reality of Puerto Rico can be traced back to Puerto Rico’s history as a Spanish colony and later as a Commonwealth of the United States. The establishment of the monoculture of sugarcane meant that many Puerto Ricans worked on sugarcane plantations. My grandfather worked cutting cane during his youth. Later, he would go on to own land that he cultivated for his own consumption. At the age of 93 he continues to enjoy getting his hands dirty on my parents’ farm.

Eventually, the sugarcane industry on the island collapsed. Its demise was due to various factors including hurricanes that decimated the island as well as policies imposed by the Federal Government. In particular, a land tax imposed in 1901 known as the Hollander Bill. As a result of this bill, many local farmers were forced to sell their land. This eventually led to mass migration from the island to the mainland. It also led to a decrease in farming in general as people did not have land to farm. Subsequently, attitudes towards farming became unfavorable, especially among young people. This is changing. Today, many small farms produce high-quality products that are sought out by individuals and restaurants alike. While still a work in progress, the path to agricultural self-sufficiency is being forged.

Celebrating the only U.S. National Forest located on an island

The El Yunque National Forest is the only tropical rainforest in the national forest system.  At nearly 29,000 acres, it is one of the smallest in size, yet one of the most biologically diverse.

The United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service. (2020) describes El Yunque, “Caressed by gentle easterly winds the forest has an average temperature of 73° F, and seasonal changes are almost imperceptible. It is the ideal climate for exuberant tropical vegetation. The rain forest is noted for its biodiversity; it is “home” to thousands of native plants including 150 fern species, 240 tree species (88 of these are endemic or rare and 23 are exclusively found in this forest). The El Yunque National Forest has no large wildlife species, but hundreds of smaller animals abound in this gentle forest, many of which exist nowhere else on the planet.”

To embrace the future, we must plan and prepare for it. Looking forwards requires us to look back at our history so that we can make sense of our present. Puerto Rico’s future is being planned by those who work the land in order to provide food for its people as well as those who work to preserve the natural wonder that is El Yunque National Forest.

If you’d like to learn more about some of the agricultural projects on the island check out the links below:

Proyecto Agroecologico el Josco Bravo

Organización Boricuá de Agricultura Ecológica de Puerto Rico

El Departamento de la Comida

Finca El Reverdecer

References:

Charles, D. (2017, May 13) How Puerto Rico Lost Its Home-Grown Food, But Might Find It Again. NPR. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/05/13/527934047/how-puerto-rico-lost-its-home-grown-food-but-might-find-it-again

U.S. Census Bureau (2019). Quick Facts Puerto Rico. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/PR.

The United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service. (2020) About the Forest. Retrieved from https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/elyunque/about-forest

Dick, D. L. (2015) U.S. Tax Imperialism in Puerto Rico. American University Law Review. Retrieved from http://www.aulawreview.org/us-tax-imperialism-in-puerto-rico/#_ftn220

https://sawgrassnaturecenter.org/2020/09/29/hispanic-heritage-month/