Sustainable Public Policy in Arizona

Hartwick has a one month term during January called J Term. J Term gives students who may not otherwise have the opportunity the chance to study abroad. As much as I would like to travel somewhere abroad for the experience, I chose to study in Arizona this J Term. The class focuses on Sustainable Public Policy in Arizona. Even though I won't be going abroad, I will still get to experience different cultures and climates. The most interesting aspect of experiencing these difference is that they are still part of the country I live in. Other than a trip to Niagara Fall, Canada, and a trip to Puerto Rico, I have not left the East coast of the Continental U.S.

We fly to Phoenix on Saturday. While in Arizona, we will be learning through the lens of sustainability. Three key approaches to sustainability that we will use are water, immigration (cross boarder migration as Dr. Malone calls it), National Parks, and Native Americans. We had a mini prep class this week on campus. While completing the first reading assignment, which was about sustainability, I already started to get excited about this course. Prepping for this class has reminded me how much sustainability and environmental policy applies to me. I was able to link some of what we are learning in this class to the Environmental Politics and Policy course I took as well as Environmental Geology.

During our time in Arizona, we will travel from Phoenix to Jerome, Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Camp Verde, and back to Scottsdale. We will hike much and meet many different experts. Our assignments for this trip include an outline for our presentation about a specific topic or issue in Arizona, a photo story presentation that represent the meaning a sustainability to us, and a reflective journal. I choice to present on "Contemporary Water Policy Issues and Concerns in the Grand Canyon." My partner, Sam, and I will decide how to approach sustainability in our photo story, but she mentioned focusing on water there as well. For our journals, we need to reflect upon what we learn each day and link it to sustainability and our readings. Some days, we will have free time to explore our interests on our own but Dr. Rinfret and Dr. Malone may give us a topic to think about while we are out and to reflect upon in our journals for the day.

I think this course will be very exciting, educational, and beneficial to all who are participating in it. I am waiting until next week to make my final decision for which EPA projects to interview. I choose three projects and will conduct phone interviews and eventually choose where I will be this summer. The environmental justice programs appeal most to me, but some of the projects with a research experiment component also appeal to me too. I think some experience with public policy in Arizona may influence my choice.

Happy New Year everyone! Look out for more posts about Arizona and sustainability soon.

Veggie Theatre -- Roots & Wisdom

I will be working with Roots & Wisdom again this summer as the Events and Outreach Coordinator and I am starting to get excited for this opportunity. Most of my blog posts during the summer will pertain to my experiences in this position. I would like to give you a little taste of what those posts might be like. Veggie Theatre has been a part of Roots & Wisdom's open house and used for participation in Be Vocal, Eat Local Week. Veggie Theatre is comprised of skits, songs, poems, etc. performed and/or created by the youth workers and the crew leaders. Veggie Theatre is designed to be educate people about the sustainability and health of organic agriculture through entertainment. Below are two videos from last year's program.

The video above is a Harry Potter spoof about organic gardening written by Shannon Turnbull and myself. This skit had mainly crew leader involvement.

Above is video featuring Shannon, Catherine, Mike from the events crew, and Sarah, a volunteer. All four of them worked for Roots & Wisdom together in 2008. This video is a brief taste of the veggie rap. A full version can be found on the Roots & Wisdom YouTube page, along with other inspirational or informational videos.

Roots & Wisdom

Roots & Wisdom is where my interest in the environment started. Roots & Wisdom is a community agriculture program that focuses on youth, specifically teens. Roots & Wisdom brings together the diverse population of the county. Teen can participate in a six week job program during the summer. Not only do the teens work in the garden to grow the plants, but they participate in workshops on topics in sustainability and community building, team building exercises, work with six to eleven year old children in the children's garden program, sell produce at a road side stand, and facilitate events in the garden for visiting groups.

I was and remain the only teen worker from the rural part of the county. Working at Roots & Wisdom gave me the opportunity to be exposed to diversity and to the idea of sustainable agriculture. I formed great friendships, learned a lot, step outside of my comfort zone, learned life and work place skills, and met many amazing people. I even met my future college roommate in the garden. I was inspired to chose a career path that would lead to sustainability and/or the environment.

I enjoyed my experiences with Roots & Wisdom very much. I worked as a youth worker during 2008 and 2009. Last summer, I returned as a crew leader and led the Events Crew in daily garden tasks and in planning and running events in the garden. I taught the youth how to give tours, design and run workshops, and lead children's groups in the garden. This summer, I will return as an intern as the Events and Outreach Coordinator and will expand upon the role I had as the events crew leader. I will train everyone how to facilitate events in the garden, I will coordinate with groups who would like to visit, and I will search for founding opportunities for this nonprofit organization. I am very excited to be working on a different part of this program.

If you would like to learn more about Roots & Wisdom, follow this link to their website. I believe urban agriculture programs for youth can make a great difference in the community and in the lives of the people who participate in the program. I encourage everyone to get involved with agriculture in some way. Being outside, especially with others, can be a very enjoyable experience and gardening is a great pastime.