Future of Food

Future of Food

My favorite snack is a Cutie. The fruit itself is a highbred fruit that is actually a cross between a sweet orange and a Chinese Mandarin. They look like a small seedless orange. But don’t let their tiny appearance fool you, they are packed with flavor! First brought to Florida in 1909, today the majority of Cuties are grown and shipped from San Joaquin Valley, California. This means that in order to make it to my plate, these little delights must travel roughly 2783 miles.
In regards to the movie, Future of Food, I thought the content was actually quite interesting. Food consumption is something that affects all of us and therefore allows us to relate to the film. The movie also made me feel even stronger that consumers should be informed of what is in their food. By omitting this information, consumers really have no idea what they are putting in their bodies and the result of this could be deadly. By informing consumers of exactly what is in their food, the producer is leaving it up to them to decide whether something enters their body. I thought that the use of the film was a positive way of keeping students on task during the ride to ECHO. I also believe that giving different way for students to learn, instead of just teaching from a text book can do nothing but good!


Unknown, (2009). The Natural History of Cuties. Cuties, Retrieved from http://www.cutiescitrus.com/what_is_a_cutie

Official site: http://www.cutiescitrus.com/

Field Trip #1

ECHO Fieldtrip

As we embarked on our first class fieldtrip, I was excited to see what they day would hold. Upon arriving and being introduced to the organization, I was anxious to see just how they were able to accomplish the things they had shown in the introductory video. As we walked through the working farm, I enjoyed the visual aids they had created to demonstrate how the organization teaches people to do things such as cook and filter water. I found it fascinating that they were able to simulate six different climates in such a small area to show just what kind of things they could grow and maintain in different parts of the world. I was also shocked to learn that most of the organization was run by interns and volunteers meaning that these people were kind enough to donate their time in an effort to help others. I found the information on how they were able to grow such a diverse amount of agriculture since I myself have had little experience growing even the simplest of plants. I feel that in my own life I would like to be able to grow my own food but realistically I do not think I would have the time or patience to actually go through with it. Overall I thought that this fieldtrip was very insightful and it gives me a whole new perspective on the way other people live and the hard work this organization puts in an effort to feed the poor.

“Give a man a fish and you’ll feed him for a day
Teach a man to fish and you’ll feed him for a lifetime…”

Offical Website: http://www.echonet.org/

YouTube video of an ECHO presentation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JZMp4pE1bY

Sense of Place

Sense of Place

The area where I feel most at home is on my back porch. Whether it is raining, sunny, hot, or cold, it is my favorite place to be when I need to think or focus on something. It is away from anyone else and it is outdoors without being completely outside. I live in a quiet neighborhood so there aren’t many disturbing noises or commotion. My back porch also overlooks a vacant golf course so I have a beautiful view of nature. I feel that because of the peacefulness of the environment around me, I am able to clear my mind completely on a bad day and I am able to focus on tasks such as homework and studying because there are no disruptions. I recently purchased a hammock that I can lay in which only adds to the appeal.

My Neighborhood

My Neighborhood

My neighborhood, which is located in Bonita Springs Florida, is a developing community so it still has some aspects of nature that have not been built on. As I walked around my neighborhood I noticed that the amount of building of homes to meet human needs far outweighed the amount of wildlife that was preserved. Although many housed had a great deal of landscaping that included live oak, queen palm trees, and juniper shrubs, this didn’t account for the amount of plant life that was lost in the building of their homes. However I also discovered the in some areas which were not developed, plants such as the invasive species melaleuca, grew in great numbers. Although there was little animal life to be seen, I spotted a brown anole just outside my front door.

Incoming Reflection

Incoming Reflection




Upon signing up for the university colloquium class I had little knowledge on what the class was actually going to be about. I had heard from students who had previously taken the course that it was another class that as and FGCU student we had to take and that it required a lot of writing. I also knew that the class mainly dealt with aspect of the environment and the damage we have done and what we can do to fix it. In my own life, I have had little experience exploring the wilderness. However, the experience that stands out most in my mind would have to be exploring the mountains in Tennessee. During spring break last year I was fortunate enough to take a trip which allowed me to go hiking in a mountainous area in Tennessee. The scenery and animal was absolutely breathtaking because it was as if the area had not been touched by humans. I felt that this gave me a better appreciation of the natural world, since I had not had much of a relationship before this time.
I think that this class could be very beneficial to my education as well as my life outside of school. Raising awareness of environmental problems and giving suggestions on what we can do to help can only benefit our society and generations to come. The only hesitations I have towards this class is that I have previously taken environmental biology of southwest Florida in which I feel we will be coving some of the same materials. But I feel that having some background knowledge from another class may help to make the concepts cover in this course more concrete. I look forward to learning more about our environment through this class!