Course Reflection Blog 6

University Colloquium has opened up my eyes to the world around me.  Before this class if you were to ask me to tell you about Eco-literacy or sense of place I would have only been able to give you a very generic definition.  Now after experiencing the history of natural world around me I could go on and on about these terms.  Sustainability in my experience, is the way we create and maintain our environment in order to live and insure the contribution of our life and future generations.  Living sustainably means to me that I am replenishing and preserving the environment that I live in.  Also while promoting the assimilation of different cultures and people into one direction; seeking a common goal of meeting the needs of our generation is imperative. While working to guide the transition of future generations, we strive to live a sustainable life.  Ecological literacy is the ability to understand the natural systems that make life on Earth possible. To be Eco-literate means understanding the principles of organization of ecological communities and using those principles for creating sustainable human communities.  With an understanding of ecological literacy, my perception naturally shifted.  I used to think that the environment would be fine if people stopped destroying it, what I did not think about was that we would still need help restoring it.  This is where Sense of place ties in.  My initial thought of Colloquium was that it would be a boring class that was required for graduation at FGCU.  What I learned over time is how much this course related to the media and even to my major.  The topics we covered this semester and the field trips we went on made me realize more and more that Communication and Colloquium are connected.  Communication relates to this class because in the communication major, students are taught that communication can branch to other fields because of the rhetoric and language that we use.  I believe through things like adherence and exigence we can change negative perceptions of terms like eco-literacy, sustainability, and sense of place.  The elements of the course that I most enjoyed were the field trips.  I really enjoyed the last field trip to the Estero Island Cottage and Mantanzas Pass.  I also really liked the group projects.  I was lucky enough to have a great group for the State of the Union project and for the final project.  I did not enjoy going to ECHO.  I hated this field trip because I felt that my animal lover trait.  I was very upset to find out that the livestock is killed during survival initiation week.  If I had the opportunity to take the helm and teach a section of Colloquium, I would emphasize the group projects more.  I feel that with a hands-on approach students learn more than they do in lectures.  I know this is true for me.  I generally retain information that I have to present rather than information I hear in a classroom.   

Estero Island Cottage and Matanzas Pass Blog 5

In two words the Estero Island Cottage was quiet and quaint!



It was the perfect little cottage I had pictured it to be in my mind.  All the little knick knacks in the cottage were so interesting to look at.  I really enjoyed listening to Joe's stories.  Joe is a little old lady that has lived locally her whole life.  Matanzas Pass was also very pretty.  Both of these places felt so serene.  I specifically remember that Professor Durham told us that the Matanzas is the 3% of land left that has not been built on in the Fort Myers beach area.  This trip has been my favorite out of every trip.  It completely blows ECHO and corkscrew out of the water.  I really enjoyed the canoe trip.  I got to spend time in the sun, canoe on the water (which is one of my favorite water activities) and even got my picture taken while in a canoe for Time Magazine! Or so the camera man said.  I have yet to see the newest releases of the magazine.  

The quality of life is being enhanced through the Cottage and Matanzas Pass by using the history of the island and it's stories, and through projects like the oyster bed.  The last time I visited my hometown of in Illinois I was surprised to see that my house had barely changed.  The neighborhood house colors had all changed but everything else had stayed frozen in time.  Since I have moved around a lot in my life time I tend to not get too attached to my homes.  If a developer offered me 300% the market value of my childhood home to develop into condos, would I take it?  Yes,  I no longer live in my childhood home.  I have hundreds of pictures and home videos of memories in that house, but it is the memories I hold on to not the house.  

I believe that the county could use the 20/20 program at different sites where there are not already families and existing communities.  This field trip tied all of the field trips together by showing me how all of the things we have learned about effect people personally and has been an ongoing problem for years; and that the future generations are what is going to help.  This reminds me of the Florida Gulf Coast University Earth Charter pamphlit. Principle 4 of the Earth Charter states “Secure Earth’s bounty and beauty for present and future generations (http://www.earthcharter.org/).

The beauty of "downtown" Blog 4

When I think of the word "downtown" I think of words like busy, high rise buildings, old, and fast-paced.  I feel emotions like anxious and exhilaration when I visit downtown. I believe that growing up in a suburban area an hour away from downtown Chicago has shaped the way I think of downtown.  Places like New York City or Chicago's downtown make me think of danger, hustle and bustle, and poverty.  Now downtown Fort Myers is completely different story.  Downtown Fort Myers has a great blend of modern and historical architecture.  Downtown didn't always have the beautiful cafes and cobble stone paths; it had fallen to pieces at one point in time.  It used to look rundown but now it has more of an up scale feel.  

Some of the prominent architectural features that I appreciate are the cobble stone roads, the coral pillars, and the ray of colors of the buildings. As you can see in the photo above, this pillar is made completely from coral. The downtown design was created to rekindle the "pedestrian" spirit by allowing easy walking and biking access to locals.  Downtown Fort Myers (River District) has many other sites to see like the Southwest Florida Museum of History, The Edison and Ford Winter Estates, and even a purple movie theater.  Other nods to history that are not buildings are statues of historical figures placed around town.  One of the biggest statues is in the Centennial Park and depicts Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harvey Firestone.  The economy of Ft. Myers evolved from a past of poor business to present with less crime and better established shopping and dinning.  The evolution of Downtown Fort Myers relates to sustainability because it is keeping up with changing factors.