A New Prosperity

I make several trips a day from my room to clear the trash or deposit some recycling. Each time, I attempt to remove some of the wrappers, bags, and other non-recyclable materials from the blue bins and transport them to the trash--where I discover a mountain of used food containers, soda cans, and paper, all of which could have been recycled. I feel not unlike a hobo while digging through the garbage and sorting out its contents, and often have to tamper my urge to put things in their proper place while out in public, so as not appear distasteful. But I resent that I have to choose between helping to minimize waste and maintaining a public image--why cant people just get it right? Or, more importantly, why don't people care about their ecological impact?

Although the impending catastrophes associated with climate change have done much to raise awareness about the repercussions of human activities on the environment, the fact is that our society does not live sustainably and superficial and ancillary adjustments will do little to tamper the destruction. Even if we got all of the recycling right, bought only organic clothes, and switched all our lightbulbs to CFLs, it still would not be enough to "save the planet" because these gestures do not get to the heart of the problem: our society is built upon increasing consumption and economic growth.

Alex Steffen, author of "Planetary Boundaries and the Failure of Environmentalism," (http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/010551.html) urges that, "If planetary boundaries mean anything, they mean it's time to stop pretending that 'greener' is good enough. We need pragmatic brilliance and transformation. Anything less is just cluttering the discussion."

Until our society abandons the long-held Industrial Age idea that the planet's capacity for material growth is infinite, and that the path to prosperity is to accumulate material wealth, we cannot make true progress in the name of sustainability. There is no room for lukewarm efforts--the physical limits of the planet's production deem that the resources for the maintenance of our lifestyle will run out. We must fundamentally change our ingrained habits--more than simply how we go about them--if the world's population is to support itself. "First-world" societies will have to redefine what prosperity is.

I am a hypocrite. I take to-go boxes of salad from the Marketplace on occasion, I'll still drink a Sprite. I recycle them, but I wish I could use a reusable container for all my meals and make my own soda (I actually saw such a device in one of those Skymall magazines--I plan to invest!) But further than this, I too need to consume less and change the way I live. Hopefully campus dining services will help lead the way in exemplifying that our culture needs to seek ways to minimize its environmental impact. Providing reusable containers and local, organic food are a great way to start. I hope, one day, such sustainable changes wont be a politically-laden choice, but a systematic part of our lives. Eventually, we shouldn't have to think about it.

Potential Bike Sources and the Ongoing Quest to Learn Anything Helpful about Zipcar

The well-meaning operator I reached at the northeastern branch of the Los Angeles Police Department ((213) 485-2563) informed me that no police station is permitted to donate confiscated property to private institutions. She recommended I turn to www.propertyroom.com - a national auctioneering site that manages police confiscations as well as third party items. With a category dedicated to bulk bicycle offers, I was confident this was a practical medium for establishing our initial corral. The prices for bicycles we'd be interested in hover around 10$ a piece. Shipping costs are not trivial - 9.95 per bike - and therefore restrict our pickup locations to Industry City, CA as opposed to the handful of other police hawking hubs throughout the country. Industry is located only about half-an-hour's drive east of Oxy. Each item (or group of items) is accompanied on the site with the following disclaimer: " Bikes sold for parts only. All bikes are in fair condition, have significant wear and may have functional problems. Bikes that are sold "for parts" are sold in an "as is" condition; all sales are final." Obviously I have reservations about purchasing bike's that are theoretically for parts and are non-refundable, but the "in-bulk" advantage of propertyroom.com is an appealing one. Alternative sources for bikes include Craigslist etc., private donations, and those scavenged from campus. Campus Security will be calling me this Monday (9/28) to walk me through the bicycle re-uptake process and give us some numbers.
The other front in our transportation reform effort is the possible implementation of Zipcar on Occidental Campus. Scouring the Zipcar "Universities" section of their website, one will find no shortage of the benefits of a contract with the car sharing company, but little in the way of actual price quotes, insurance policies, or the number of cars recommended for a campus our size. But who cares what it costs as long as we can "...choose your school colors, if you want" - a real option included among things Zipcar provides. Unsatisfied with the details provided on the website, I've left a message with the Zipcar-University relations office in Boston which will hopefully yield a better understanding of what we're dealing with. Also important - is Zipcar a resource that would be used at Oxy? Why would Zipcar availability trump asking a friend to borrow their wheels? I believe that, should Zipcar present an attractive proposal for Occidental, we should survey the student population on campus in order to evaluate whether or not Zipcars would remain parked.

Every Little Thing Counts

So, I'm going to try to keep this short and simple. Everyone talks about "greening" our campus, through various means, whether it be our up-and-coming bike share program, organizations such as FEAST, or the plans for the installation of solar rays. Granted this is great, no wonderful, that students are excited about making major changes that will positively impact the campus in such dramatic ways. However, I keep getting the sneaking feeling like we're forgetting the details in our excitement.

Seriously though, I am the only person who thinks that simply turning off the lights in the bathroom is also "greening" the campus? There are so many little steps that Oxy could be making that would lessen whatever negative impact we're having. Little things, like making sure you've actually turned the faucet all the way off, flipping lights off if they're not needed, or asking yourself if you really need the air-conditioning on when it's technically 70 degrees outside, could all potentially have huge consequences.

And honestly, it's really not that hard to think about these things. If you just remember how much waste is produced through the process of making all that energy (electricity production creates 2,337.8 Tg CO2 Eq., 33% of total CO2 emissions: http://fatknowledge.blogspot.com/2006/06/co2-emissions-light-bulbs-vs-cars.html), or how much water the process uses (up to 6,000 gallons of freshwater to light a 60 watt light bulb for 12 hours a day for a year - http://www.ecogeek.org/component/content/article/1559), it would seem pretty obvious that conservation is a smart choice. However, I guess it's just our custom to assume that these things are abundant and unlimited. At this point, we need to get out of that mindset.

I really think the campus should maybe look into a campaign for these kinds of simple greening techniques. Something maybe along the lines of, "Turn off the lights, save the planet." (Let me know if that one's already being used, I would hate to plagiarize.) Kinda hokey, but efficient and hopefully catchy enough it stick in people's minds. I'm planning on talking to my RAs about possibly putting up a few signs in the bathroom asking people to make sure the water sources and lights are properly turned off. Also, there are a few bathrooms around campus that have leaky faucets. I saw one in Johnson that looked like it would fill a cup in about 15 minutes, which would come out to about 6 gallons of water over a 24 hour period. Considering how we're facing a global freshwater shortage, I think it would be a good idea to maybe join forces with Maintenance to look into fixing those things. Most faucets seem like they'd need just a little tightening, which a student could likely do if given a little bit of guidance. I know it doesn't sound particularly exciting, but perhaps a group assemble every now and then to ensure that these quick-fix problems aren't being ignored.

So much for keeping this short, but I really think a discussion about this needs to established. Especially when so much can be gained from relatively easy actions.

Oxy’s Report Card: A for Parking, C- for Sustainability

Occidental has earned the attention of prospective students, the appreciation of current students, and the wonder of fellow colleges and universities with its extremely generous parking policy.  At Occidental, students register and park their cars for free, and are free to use any one of the hundreds of parking spots available throughout our small campus.  College Prowler, a rankings system for colleges for such topics as ‘Weather’, ‘Local Atmosphere’, and ‘Greek Life’, rates Oxy at an A- for parking,  “There’s always parking available somewhere on campus” and “There are never major complaints about parking.”

In another rankings system, Oxy fared far worse.  In 2009, The College Sustainability Report Card granted Occidental College a C- ranking for overall sustainability.  Their analysis included a ‘B for Food and Recycling, a ‘C’ for administration – and another ‘D’ for transportation (check out http://www.greenreportcard.org/report-card-2009/schools/occidental-college for a more extensive breakdown).  

In 2007, the ASOC passed a sustainability resolution calling for an increased effort towards campus greening.  Various organizations and individuals on campus responded:  In just the past year, Campus Dining has implemented more organic and local options and started using some compostable to-go containers, FEAST club has started and developed its own on-campus organic garden, and the administration is seriously considering installing the largest solar array of any private college in the United States.  Yet, despite these admirable developments toward sustainability, transportation at Oxy remains rigidly car-centric. 

Last year, the brand-new Sustainability Fund approved the purchase and installation of several bike racks at key locations on campus.  While this is a necessary first step towards decreasing car use on campus, Oxy remains far behind more progressive institutions in providing alternative transportation options.

Schools like Pitzer College in Claremont, CA, set an excellent example of sustainability efforts for Oxy to replicate.  Four years ago, Pitzer started a bike-sharing program in which abandoned bikes found on campus are repaired and refurbished, then raffled off to students to use for the entire semester – for free.  All of the Claremont Colleges also have contracts with Zipcar, a car-sharing program in which students pay a small registration and usage fee to use a car occasionally.  Just a few of these Zipcars could be useful to hundreds of students who need a car just once or twice a month for a quick trip to Vons or Spitz.  In addition, the availability of a cheaper alternative to a personal vehicle could dissuade dozens of students to leave their cars at home.

Improving alternative transportation options at Oxy is an inevitable facet of the college’s new push for sustainability.  By providing shared bikes or vehicles to its students, Occidental can maintain its reputation as a parking haven while still fulfilling its years-old promise to work towards a green campus.  Occidental demands much of its students; it’s time that the administration works towards all A’s as well.

Sometimes BIG IS better

Working with the solar panel group got me thinking about renewable energy in general. While we were talking to Professor Snowden-Ifft, he mentioned how the rebates for solar energy are the highest they have ever been and will ever be and we should be taking advantage of it. This makes a lot of sense when we talk about a project as big as the one oxy is trying to put together. This array would provide 25% of oxy’s energy consumption. When you think about oxy’s energy bill (one million dollars per year) 25% really makes a difference, not only financially but also environmentally. However, these rebates are also offered for smaller costumers, like households. My first reaction to this fact was excitement. In my mind, having your own personal solar panel sounds pretty amazing. However, once the excitement is gone, you are left with the real issue: is it really viable and productive to give all this rebates to small projects?

To the best of my knowledge, the reason why our array is 2.3 MW is because this is the largest array we can have and still get a rebate. On one side, 2.3 MW is pretty big, and it would be the biggest array in the city of Los Angeles, but on the other side, if we are putting all this effort and time into this project isn’t worth it to make it as big and effective as possible? Wouldn’t it be more effective to focus on big projects that will actually make a difference instead of giving rebates to residential costumers?

I guess in my mind spending resources, money and time in a residential project is kind of a waste, since more is going in than coming out. Fabricating and installing solar panels is neither simple nor cheap and a lot more would be accomplished if we focused on big projects that would actually have an impact on many people, this way we would be making sure that they are financially and environmentally efficient.

Kliah

Midnight Ridazz: Friend, Foe, Cult?

Ever taken an evening stroll down York Blvd and find yourself in the midst of a herd of bikers? Perhaps on the second Friday of the month? If so you may have encountered the Midnight Ridazz on their bike route. In 2004 a few bike riders and skate boarders in Echo Park took an impromptu bike tour of the fountains in downtown Los Angeles leading to what would become a city wide phenomenon. The idea of late night bike riding with a punk flare became popular and a year later the small group found that they had over a hundred riders joining them on the second Friday of every month. Soon the group grew too large and the Bike Ridazz decided to host multiple rides a month to encourage greater participation but in smaller groups. Today, there are midnight rides almost every day of the week including Taco Tuesdays, Wednesday Night Drink Some Ride Some and themed weekend rides.

The Midnight Ridazz have worked to support and even create the LA bike culture but as the group’s numbers continue to swell, public opinion of the group has begun to vary. Supporting all levels of bicyclists, the midnight rides provide an alternative atmosphere for riders to enjoy themselves and get to know fellow bikers in their community. But the rides have also experienced safety problems as the number of bike riders continues to grow. Though the Midnight Ridazz emphasize bike safety and proper riding protocol, the group has experienced serious safety issues due to the sheer volume of riders and the fact that many of the group members are intoxicated while riding. The LAPD has picked up on this biking trend and will often go to different locations along the cycling routes to cite bikers for traffic violations. Though many of these problems are to be expected with a rowdy group of bike riders, one incident was especially disturbing not only to the Bike Ridazz but to the biking community as a whole.

On July 10th 2009, as hundreds of cyclists made their way down Avenue 52 in Highland Park during a “Neverland” themed ride, the riders were attacked by a group of men at a house party. One biker was shot in the back but later recovered in the hospital. Though the Highland Park area has a higher rate of violence and gang activity than other areas in LA, the incidence reveals the vulnerability of these riders and the need to respect the communities they ride through not only for their own safety but for the safety of those they share the road with.

So are the Midnight Ridazz a group providing a way to promote sustainability and alternative transport in Los Angeles? A punk drinking team with a cycling problem? A cycling team suffering from insomnia? Take a ride and find out!

To find a ride near you visit the Midnight Ridazz website http://www.midnightridazz.com/ and look at the ride calendar. For more information on the July 10th shooting and other occurances in the Highland Park area take a look at the 90042 blog http://highlandpark.wordpress.com/2009/07/13/avenue-craziness/.

New and improved (but tentative) calendar of L. Food Month

Here's the new, tentative schedule for Local Food Month from Rev. Susan Young from OSRL:

"On Friday, October 2, FEAST is organizing a walk to the farmers' market in Eagle Rock. Later that night, Progressive Christians Uniting is hosting a movie on the green. PCU is showing the documentary The Garden at 8:00 p.m. on the Quad. This movie tells the story of the creation a fourteen acre community garden in South Central Los Angeles (the largest community garden in the U.S.) started by immigrants from Latin America and other residents after the 1992 riots and how the garden was forced to relocate after private developers purchased the land. The farm is now in Bakersfield, California.

On Saturday, October 3, FEAST is hosting a brunch in the garden using locally grown foods.

From Monday, October 5 through Friday, October 9, Campus Dining will feature foods made from local producers at the Home Style, Soup and Dessert stations.

On Monday, October 5, there is a reception and photo show featuring pictures from UEPI's Farm to School Program in the Cooler. We will hand out information about what Campus Dining is doing to support local and organic farmers and The Growers' Collaborative. We will also have information about local farmers' markets and other materials on hand.

On Thursday, October 8, Campus Dining, UEPI, and ORSL will invite students to make caramel apples outside on the Quad over the lunch hour. Half of the apples have been donated by The Growers' Collaborative and Campus Dining has purchased the other half and the caramel. A representative from The Growers' Collaborative will be available to talk about their work.

On Saturday, October 10, ORSL and PCU will take students to visit the farm featured in The Garden to learn more about community farming and to volunteer on the farm. Students interested in participating on this trip should email Rev. Blackstone at Blackstone@oxy.edu by Monday, October 5.

On Thursday, October 29, ORSL and UEPI are showing either the movie Food, Inc. or the movie Food Fight. The event is from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. in Johnson 200. We had hoped to show Food, Inc. but we are not sure we can get the movie rights since the film is still playing in theaters. After the movie, we will have a panel talk about the issues raised in the movie and discuss how students can become involved in the food justice movement.

These are the events that are planned so far but I believe FEAST and UEPI are exploring other events including a haunted house outside Johnson 200 on the day we show the movie and PCU is looking at creating a labyrinth outdoors to encourage students to donate food to Project EDEN."

Green Consumerism vs. Green Guerrillas

Lately I've been ruminating on sustainability and the "green" movement as a whole, as I've been especially interested on how sustainability, or the perception thereof, has been commodified. As consumers have become especially vocal in the past few years about the dubious modes of production and distribution, many producers have made significant strides to improve environmentally unsound practices they formerly employed. A small example of this can be seen in Walmart, one of the world's largest corporations, when they pulled milk made from cows treated with BGH from their shelves due to substantial public outcry and a significant decrease in sales of milk. However, as corporations wake up to the fact that consumers are slowly becoming more informed, organized and passionate about a commitment to sustainably produced goods, there has been a growing faux green movement -- one in which products are advertised in a way that touts their environmentally responsible production with little basis to the claims. In other words, marketing a product as green has become both fashionable and profitable.

Thinking about this has been troubling to me for two main reasons. First, companies are obviously profiting from false advertising while employing most of the same damaging production practices they always have been. But more importantly, this false branding and rise in popularity of green goods allows the consumer to feel as though they have done their part toward increasing sustainability and being socially responsible when, largely, they aren't. It has also been my experience that many people thing that buy purchasing these supposedly responsibly produced goods that they have done their part, and therefore absolved from participating in other green efforts. In an attempt to try to counter this growing green, consumer culture, I've been thinking about what it is we, as a school, community and nation, can do to truly increase our own sustainability.

One great example of these genuine sustainability practices put into action is at the Oxy garden. I realized upon dropping off a load of dirt at the garden how resourceful and even guerrilla the students that organize the activities there are -- they truly practice what they preach. I'm going to quickly examine the materials used for each plant bed to demonstrate my point. (And I'm sure Elissa will correct me if I botch some of this) In each plant bed there is a mixture of soil, manure and compost, all of which is waste from other groups or materials which would not otherwise be used. The soil, which we procure from a site in Altadena, is obtained for a small, nominal fee and is dumped at the site by the city. We're taking this nutrient rich dirt from a site where it would ostensibly sit untouched for a long time. The manure is obtained from from an equestrian center near the site where we get soil -- manure being possibly the most obvious example of re-using literal waste. And finally, the compost is made possible, in large part, by the food waste of dining services and students. This practice of tapping into, and utilizing a network of various waste and excess is exactly the kind of sustainability practices I think we need to continue to foster, rather than buying into the green consumer culture.

Eagle Rock Businesses vs Parking Day LA and the Eagle Rock Farmers Market

Participating in Parking Day LA last Friday was an eye opening experience. Simply sitting in a parking space would not have left such an impression on me had we not had so many individuals comment on and ask questions about what we were doing and why. The typical conversation consisted of us discussing the necessity of more public space and the overabundance of space devoted to parking.

Often times the conclusion that was reached was that, realistically, for parking space to be converted to public space it would necessarily require an advancement and reworking of public transportation. As of now the transportation system in the LA area cannot support those living and working in the city. It was not atypical for those riding their bikes to be extremely open and supportive and those who were looking for parking to scowl in our direction. Neither reaction was really all that surprising. We also were passing out booklets produced by UEPI on the importance and availability of local fresh foods in the LA area. This prompted a very interesting conversation with the owner of the store in front of which we were stationed.

Although the storeowner was supportive of our ideas and goals, she expressed annoyance at our use of what she deemed “her parking space”. The storeowner was open to our greater goals of a better transportation system for LA and seemed to be less annoyed with us after understanding where we were coming from. Her customers on the other hand seemed frustrated with us and one costumer even went as far as to chastise us for taking away the storeowners business. Returning to the storeowner, our discussion about our food pamphlet brought up the most interesting point. At the mention of our support of all local farmers markets her demeanor returned to a serious one. The farmers market for her does not represent a place where local fresh organic food can be purchased, but instead an opposition to her wellbeing. As a business owner she expressed the frustration the farmers market causes due to the fact that it has no designated parking area and instead, all those visiting the farmer’s market block up and congest parking for the customers of her stores. She described that typically the days in which the farmers market is held, her total revenue is lower than usual since fewer people can actually visit her store.

I found it shocking that something like a farmers market, which to me represents a positive community project, would be seen as detriment to those actually working and living in the community. This brings up the important point of balance. I think as we progress as a culture towards a more sustainable system it is necessary that actions be taken to bring together the community instead of tearing it apart. Perhaps the farmer’s market could be held later in the day or at a venue where more parking is provided. It is undeniable that oppositions will always exist to community projects (as someone is always getting the short end of the stick), but I think it is necessary to minimize them so these projects can be seen for what they truly are – positive changes to our current system.

Local food month, in the works..

Last Thursday, I was lucky enough to sit in on one of the later planning meetings for Oxy's local food month. Involved are members of Campus Dining, the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, members of UEPI, and of, course, FEAST and our class of UEP 246.

A lot of the groundwork had already been laid down by above-mentioned groups, including a tentative schedule of events, dates, and who would be managing which. (I have a copy which I'll try to post as soon as).

As Jessica from UEPI explained to those in the Food Group, the local food month will involve members from a number of departments and students from several interest areas to co-sponsor and lead events such as movie showings, "harvest" celebrations incorporating local, in season foods, expert panelists, hands-on work in the garden, a trip to South Central Farms, and much, much more.

It's been intriguing to be on this side of the operations (aka, the admin) and see how much planning, organization, and give-and-take goes into events that seem to come together with such ease.

For most of my own experience, I've been on the side of the indignant student, almost entirely sure the institution was trying to crush and demoralize the spirit of progressive change and green initiative (and maybe, in past scenarios, said institutions were..).

But to my surprise, the admin I've encountered in the last year and a half have been enthusiastic and at least willing to take suggestions and study them further, adding helpful tips and guidance along the way, as well as giving their own suggestions and implementation for oxy-greening.

Such a relief, right?

In a way...and maybe this isn't the right place to be posting this, as many/most in the class are sustainability enthusiasts, doing much in his/her power to conserve energy, consume less, etc., but I couldn't help but have the distinct impression that the green-movement on campus has a bit to be desired.

Not that the commitment/passion isn't there! I've talked with a number of classmates simply itching for a way to utterly transform this place, but in terms of organization, we students could definitely get on the ball.

I do think that FEAST has got its shit together--putting the garden proposal through proper channels, getting funding, having a regular crew to rotate compost--kudos! This is probably one of the best examples of student motivation+organization we've got.

But in terms of energy conservation? Resource conservation? Landscape adjustment? Promoting greener methods of simply living and learning here? Yet to see a group of passionate students move behind one of those and push it forward like FEAST.

It is hard to simply start from scratch with noble intentions and no idea of how to get people to act with you or even listen, but what's most important is getting the message out there that we, members of this college community, L.A. community, and greater world community, care to some degree, and that we're willing to try.

If we could take these committees and channel them into the greater school body, how amazing would that be? To have standing organizations ready and on hand to organize for a drive, or for a lecture, a field-trip, what have you.

People want to do something--though sometimes that something isn't quite thought-out. That's where groups come in--to channel the energies of the many into a more defined goal and action plan.

Yes, this post did turn into a semi-rant, but I don't write blog-posts often, and get distracted easily...

will try again to better results maybe?

Tara

Easing Bike Anxieties at Oxy

Though we have not made a lot of headway thus far in the bike-sharing and alternative transportation project, we have received a lot of support. Everyone I have talked to about the program so far has had a very positive reaction and asked how they can help. For this reason, we need to create a comprehensive way of including and harnessing the energy that currently exists on this campus. Recently, we found out that someone outside of UEP 246 (Ava Mikolavich) is trying to begin a bike-sharing club. We should not only provide encouragement and guidance during this process, but we should also begin raising awareness on campus.
Our group has talked about a couple ways to do this. On the first day that we split into teams, we had a recent Claremont McKenna graduate speak to us. He brought up the idea of a “social ride” which I found very interesting. A social ride would be a planned group bike ride that had some sort of destination that would encourage socializing. This would help bikers meet each other and boost the energy of the movement. It would also be a good opportunity for the more timid riders who are not ready to take on the streets of LA alone. As Katrina pointed out, there has to be a viable solution for many different individuals. It is important that we cater to people who, like Katrina and me, are worried about biking in LA. I know that setting up a social ride with current and well-seasoned bikers would help reduce my anxiety. In this way, a social ride would encourage new bikers while reinforcing bonds between current bikers. As a side note, another way to ease the fears of new riders that we discussed is to create Google Maps of fun bike routes in the area. We can make a list, or short pamphlet, describing different places that are biker friendly/accessible that includes a mapped out path and traveling tips. Maybe we can advertise in the Oxy Digest and ask current bikers to submit ideas.
Another way to increase awareness is to have a bike maintenance workshop on the quad during a busy time of day. (Best time would probably be 12:30-1:30). If we can recruit either a professional from a local bike shop and/or organization, then we can have them give a short and fun tutorial on bike upkeep. Ideally, this would encourage students who are worried about the responsibility of a bike to overcome their hesitation.
From all the support that these ideas have received, it seems like there should be nothing standing in our way. We just need to actually take initiative and action. We have so many good ideas, so maybe its best if we initially pick 2 or 3 to focus on.

Chickens in the Garden

I've compiled a report about the health and safety hazards of having a flock of chicken on campus. The main things I found were some guidelines for maintaining bio-security when dealing with chickens as well as a small write-up on Pitzer's project. I contacted the gal who is in charge there and she would be more than happy to host a field trip with us over there. I also made my facebook status "PLEASE COMMENT if your school has a chicken coop. We are trying to start a program here and I am compiling a list of schools that have projects." I didn't get as many repsonses as I would have liked but...I did find that Whitman has an extensive project that includes birds for meat, Hampshire college in MA and, of course, the Pitzer project. Good start. Also, we had the first official sit-down meeting for FEAST tonight and one club member brought in some beautiful sketches for a coop design. As well as some insights into the everyday care of chickens. WE. ARE. IN. BUSINESS.

Chicken Report:

Many other colleges of our size and status have small farm operations including Pitzer college. Their project is maintained by Pitzer Gounds/Arboretum staff along with student help during the academic year. The chickens (3 at this time) are fed and watered daily during the work week. On the weekends the chickens have automatic feeder and water systems. In the past the college has had a rodent problem and several traps, near and around the area, were placed to control the problem. With the help of students, the chicken-coops are cleaned out monthly and new shaving placed for the chickens. Chicken manure is used in the garden and in the compost to add organic fertilizers to the garden soils.

Implementing a coop on our campus would not pose significant threats to the human population on campus, especially if students and staff involved in the project practice biosecurity. A lot of biosecurity practice is common sense. There are three major steps in practicing biosecurity:

1) Keep Your Distance:
a. Restrict access to the birds to those who know how to work with them
b. Prevent contact with other birds, including other chicken flocks
2) Keep it clean:
a. Keep the coop clean
b. Wear disposable gloves while cleaning the coop—wash your hands before and after working with the birds
c. Disinfect the tools you use
d. Clean the eggs before you use them
3) Avoid Bringing Disease Home
a. Make sure to clean up before heading to the coop if you’ve been in an area with a lot of birds (zoo).
b. Don’t use anyone else’s’ equipment

Be sure to watch for symptoms which inclide sudden death, diarrhea, a severe decrease in egg production, drooping wings or complete paralysis
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/avianflu/backyard.html

The good news in all this? It's rather difficult for chickens to get the flu from coming in contact with it (they're low on the totem pole, well below ducks and turkeys and other fowl). Couple this fact with the knowledge that our backyard flocks have very low stress levels (out in the elements, enjoying their lives scratching around our backyards) compared to their agri-business-raised sisters, and it'd be difficult for our birds to get a high-path flu.

Finally....This is a link to an awesome blog maintained by two Mt. Washington residents. I'm not sure if it is possible for two people to love their chickens more...

http://greenfrieda.blogspot.com/search/label/chickens

Burgeoning Food Community at Oxy

Life as a foodie is good at Oxy. All these meetings (ie excuses to eat together) have kept me very well fed.
Thursday gardening help has been so well-endowed that there are not enough tools and tasks to occupy the many helpers. We're planning on adding another day for gardeners to meet and better utilize the work force. There were even more new faces at the first official FEAST meeting tonight. (Cardamom bread, mmmmm.) Plans for chicken coops, garden art, potlucks and YOGA are also under way. (Someone at the meeting- I forget her name- gave the most beautiful description of her yoga studio in SF: dehumidifiers in the place of practice suck the sweaty moisture out of the air and they use the contents to water their garden! She says the plants are crazy healthy! We want to do yoga in our own garden and exchange gasses with the plants!) I left the meeting high with excitement, there was so much enthusiasm.
We have lots of plans for improving the sustainability and nutritiousness and deliciousness of campus dining. I personally am really interested in trying to work with administration to cut back on supply of really horrible products. I understand there will be an uproar if we get rid of certain things like Cocacola but I think generally the student body would be okay with reducing our consumption of really corproate, nutritionless products in general. This next week I'm going to try to investigate the comparative harmfullness of the food brands oxy sells. See what can be improved upon. It looks like pretty soon everyone will be examining the quality of their food products:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/10/opinion/10pollan.html?ref=opinion
Micheal Pollan connecting the dots.

Sitting in the first meeting of the bike group a few weeks ago, I felt very excited to be a part of the creation of a bike share program. We were told of fledgling programs at other institutions like Pitzer College in Claremont and presented with a multitude of resources at our disposable like local bike shops, cheap bike auctions, and even the Oxy administration. It seemed as if the steps of establishing a successful program were already laid out for us and that we were here just to see them through.

But as I began thinking about how we would actually execute these tasks of the early planning stage, I remembered and realized why bike share programs at other schools had taken so long to take effect without complete support from an administration. I believe this is to due to the fact that each campus culture is unique and a particular bike share program must cater to that campus’ wants and needs. And ultimately it’s about getting the students behind the idea, since they will be the ones carrying out changes and adapting to a new transportation method. The key for our bike group is to figure out how best to approach biking at Oxy – which will surely take many learning experiences.

Sitting in a UEP class, it is easy to forget that not everyone is super pumped up about saving/preserving our environment and that more attractive incentives must be provided for a realistic chance at change. I like talking with friends that are not in any UEP class about ideas and passing plans by them to get their realistic reactions and attitudes that probably represent a clearer idea of the student population as a whole. That’s not to say a few social “change agents” can’t change the general view of student body…

A side note: Everyone I’ve been telling about the solar project at Oxy seems really excited and interested – because it’s good for the school and the environment (and doesn’t necessarily require any effort on their part.

When creating student-dependent programs, we must remember how much students are really willing to sacrifice. Also, we must decide if a system is truly feasible and will actually be effective. Here are some examples:

- Implementing a parking permit fee at Oxy probably isn’t going to cut down car-usage as most students with cars would tend to be able to afford a permit fee. But at the same time, this fee would be worth it because it could generate funds to use in other projects.

- If Zipcar had a presence on campus, is a student really going to stop bringing a car unless he or she knows for sure that they will be able to gain access to a Zipcar whenever he or she wants? Personally, I would totally use this program to drive to the beach and to concerts in L.A. (the only reasons I use my own car here). But this is granted that a car would be available when I needed it – if students know that there will most likely not be a car available when they need one on the weekends, faith in the system will not exist and the system will be ineffective.

The point I’m trying to make is that it will be hard to get it right the first time, as it always is. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t go ahead and initiate stuff to get the ball rolling…

The Struggle for Organic Food to Make an Appearance at Oxy

More University Students Call for Organic, 'Sustainable' Food

The link is to an article from USA today that describes a high school senior, Philip Gant, who was choosing between Harvard and Yale. His choice was not based on the impressive alumni but on the sustainable food that Yale offers, Gant quotes, "Part of why I was so excited about coming to Yale was the way it eats."

More college students are becoming aware of the way some campus food is prepared and are not too happy about it. There is a significant student movement around the country that is demanding more sustainable food practices. At Oxy we see "local fruit" and "local vegetable" signs in the Marketplace but does that necessarily mean it's organic? No. Just because food is local it doesn't mean is was grown organically; without pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics or hormones. But time and time again many students see the word local and think, local = organic. It is important for students to be educated about campus food and if they aren't satisfied with the options available on campus then they should also know there is something they can do about it.

The food group is putting together a survey for Oxy students to see how much they value/want organic food to be offered in the Marketplace and the Cooler. The questions will range from how many meals a day do you eat on campus to what category of food do you prefer to be organic. We hope that by completing this survey it will prompt Oxy to make more of an effort to bring in a range of organic, sustainable food more often.

At Yale, like Oxy, they have a 'minifarm' on campus that students volunteer at known as 'Yale Farm'. But unlike Oxy, they have they are allowed to sell it on campus and weekly at the New Haven Farmer's Market. It would be a big step for Oxy to allow the food grown in the community garden at UEPI to be sold in the Marketplace. Talk about a local, organic AND sustainable option. In the past five years Yale has gone from spending $4.6 million a year on food to $5.6 million but has also increased the food served on campus being organic from 0% to 40%. Can Oxy compete with that? Only time will tell but I think it is a definite possibility, especially if the students voice their opinions.

Clarification

A close friend of mine is in Professor Hightower's Energy Resources class. When I told her about Oxy's plan for a 2 megawatt solar array she said that there was still a problem with the panels that hadn't been considered. She said that Hightower had told her class that the solar panels were highly reflective. As you all already know this goes contrary to what Professor Snowden-Ifft told our class last Thursday. One of these professors has been misinformed. This reminds me of a certain health care bill that is being widely debated; Snowden-Ifft should investigate allegations of misinformation that can possibly lessen support for this project.

Good News! Martifer Solar, the company we have chosen to build our solar array, completed a new production line in July that is capable of producing 50 megawatts worth of solar panels in a year.

Why Do We Care? This new facility is fully automated and runs in a semi-sterile environment and eliminates the need for nitrogen trifluoride, a gas used in thermal cleaning of chemical vapor deposition when manufacturing solar cells and other electronics. This gas has a global warming potential more than 17,000 times higher than CO2 and it's use has been increasing steadily with yearly production more than doubling in the last few years. It's great that we are using a company which has less of a negative impact creating the solar panels. Martifer is also involved with other renewable energy sources the coolest of which is their prototype ocean wave driven generators off the coast of Portugal.

The Administration's Plan for Solar...or Lack Thereof?

I, like Thomas, was excited to learn that if Oxy's solar project does not encounter any obstacles, our 2MW solar array could be up and running within the next year. After meeting with the administration however, I left a little disheartened. Not to put a damper on your enthusiam, but there are some roadblocks.
To date, much of the committee's focus, to my understanding, has been on developing a model with the chosen manufacturer so we can then provide the community with a more specific physical description of the array itself. This stage of the project is almost complete (although the administration seems to be agonizing over whether or not to proudly display a big O at the center of the array), but there remains a lot to be done.
As with any project, this one will likely encounter some critics. A number of our neighbors have been against Oxy’s development of Mount Fiji and its surrounding hills, fearing they will no longer get to take advantage of this open public space. While Professor Snowden-Ift assured us that Fiji’s trails will remain unobstructed by the solar array, Professor Drier continued to play the devil’s advocate and speculated whether others will complain about a potential decline in their property values if the array stands in the way of their views of Mount Washington and the surrounding sprawl that is Los Angeles. Regardless of the reasons for the potential opposition that the College may face, Professor Drier stressed the need to present the community with the positives before it can fire back with the negatives. Can we connect with local High Schools and develop a solar energy curriculum with the potential for students to visit Oxy’s solar array? Can we host workshops that will help our neighbors install solar panels on their own homes now so they can benefit from the LA DWPs solar rebates? Whichever path the college chooses toward community outreach, it needs to be done quickly before it holds a press conference announcing this laudable project to the public.
The neighbors seem manageable. The college has dealt with them before. But what of the legal system? Solar power is still in its infancy, and many are unfamiliar, even our lawyers, about the procedures that must be completed before we can actually build. Do we need permits?
While I must confess, I like things to proceed in an orderly manner, but it seems to me that these are the questions we should have raised before embarking on such a huge project. My hopes for a solar-powered Oxy are not shattered, but the administration's lack of a concrete plan does concern me a little bit.

Parking Day LA

Our display at Parking Day LA certainly accomplished the goal of evoking public thought about our cause. Not necessarily support, but certainly thought. I think the most common reaction to our display was an amused curiosity. Some seemed annoyed, some supportive, some inspired, and most expressed a sort of skeptical interest. While some approached us to learn more about our cause, others seemed to use it as an opportunity to rant about any and every political issue they had an opinion on. The degree of support for our efforts varied greatly. One man said “it’s young people like you guys that are going to change the world for the better,” while another man told me we were wasting our time. Another tried to convince me that recycling is just a big conspiracy. Realistically, I think mixed reactions were to be expected, seeing as displays advocating sustainability and green space are relatively uncommon in Eagle Rock. A woman said, “I heard about Parking Day LA on the radio but I never dreamed I’d see it in Eagle Rock!” I think the important thing is that we were able to spread awareness in an area where there’s traditionally not a big focus on redefining land use in LA.

One of the probable reasons people resisted our message is that converting land devoted to roadways and motor vehicles into parks and green space in LA would mean a lifestyle change for many residents. People want to be able to drive their cars to work and have places to park. I admit – I drove to parking day. I don’t have a bike on campus, and because I was going straight to class I wouldn’t have had time to walk. Even if I had had access to a bike, I probably wouldn’t have felt safe biking on streets in LA, and I’m not familiar with the bike paths. The key to redefining land use for alternative types of transportation is giving people viable alternatives. Until people trust modes of transportation other than motor vehicles, I think they will continue to resist the idea of converting roadways and parking lots into parks.

I think one thing that could have improved our display is to have something to hand out to people about parking, alternative transportation, park space, etc. The fresh produce in LA booklet was great, but didn’t have an explicit connection to our exhibit of parking/motor vehicle signs. Even just passing out a flier of quick facts about land use in the surrounding community would have reinforced our message. Overall, I think parking day was beneficial and educational for the community and for us.

-Katrina

The many reactions to "Park"ing Day LA

During "Park"ing Day LA, I observed varied reactions to our "park" including anger, gratitude, and enthusiasm. Although the negative reactions were unexpected and unfortunate, they still accomplished the goal of creating a dialogue about the use of public space in Los Angeles. The most brazen and aggressive reaction I observed was from senior citizens attending a salon that our "park" was located in front of. One man told us, "For college students, you're pretty dumb, pretty dumb." Despite the explanations Prof. Vallianatos and I gave to him, he went back into the salon and undoubtedly riled up more senior citizens because a lady with her hair still in curlers and half of it dyed red staggered out to berate us, "You think people are going to drive by and say whoopee for green!? I don't think so....Where are all the customers going to park?...I'm calling Huizar. I worked for the city council for 23 years!...Do you think you're representing Occidental? Oh, yes you are! Oh, yes you are!" From this I learned that sometimes old people are stubborn, they fear change because they don't understand change. I understand that it may be difficult to watch your neighborhood grow from a sleepy suburban community to a progressive urban environment, but I think that educating senior citizens about why change is happening and why it's important would be beneficial for both young and old.

Ultimately, it was really fun to argue with these ignorant people. The whole time I was explaining our project to them I couldn't help but laugh in their faces. Fortunately, Prof. Vallianatos was more composed than me. I should finish by mentioning that the majority of the reactions I observed were positive. Dave from Dave's Chillin and Grillin loaned us chairs for the day and offered discounts on sandwiches (I took him up on one of the incredible meatball/sausage combos). One woman thanked us and said she had chills. We were also successful in handing out the fresh and local food pamphlets that UEPI printed. In conclusion, I had a lot of fun participating in Parking Day LA and think that it was successful because it forced people to reevaluate the use of public space in LA.

Bike Sharing Program at Oxy

One of the major projects the alternative transportation group has discussed is the idea of a bike sharing program at Oxy. For our first couple meetings, our group threw out some ideas regarding the start up and initiation of this program. Just through discussion, we came up with a lot of good ideas as to the basic logistics of the program. After the excitement of the project turned into a more realistic realization of how much work would have to be done in order to be successful, I started to get a little less confident in our progress through the a short semester time frame. Through research about other campus bike share programs however, confidence quickly returned.

When researching, I was pleased to find a nation-wide spread of the bike share movement. Already, many college campuses have implemented successful bike share programs. I was extremely happy to find that not only are a lot of these programs successful, but also encouraged when I learned more about their start-up phases. Currently, UC Berkeley, Lesley University, Bates College, and University of Nebraska Omaha are only four of the many colleges with bike sharing programs. All currently have successful bike programs or are initiating a pilot on campus. UC Berkeley is equipped with only four bikes, Lesley: nine bikes, Bates: ten bikes, and University of Nebraska Omaha: eight bikes. I was both extremely shocked and relieved after learning about the few number of bikes in such successful programs! Knowing that there are probably at least four abandoned bikes on campus that can be used for our bike sharing project, I have regained certainty that a pilot plan at Oxy maybe very possible in the near future.

While reading about the history of bike sharing at other campuses, I also learned that resources to start up this movement isn't too demanding. Lesley University was able to create its pilot through donations of bikes, abandoned bikes, and one bake sale raising $200. Through this small demand, again, I am now assured that we can really get a great start to a bike sharing program at Oxy!

As for the next steps of initiating bike sharing is actually accumulating bikes and determining a system for rentals. Depending on the number of bikes we can get, we may want to pitch donations to companies. I also think that we need to gain support and awareness of our efforts for this project--maybe try to locate bike experts on campus that would be interested in helping. Does anyone know of anyone who would be interested or of help? Any other ideas that will help get moving on this project?

Update on the solar team/Barefoot College

This past week the solar teem met with Professor Snowden-Ift about the solar array. Professor Snowden-Ift gave us a really quick rundown on the status of the project and what stage the project is in at this point. I was very encouraged to learn that the project is much farther along than I originally thought, and there is a possibility that the college may break ground as early as the end of next semester. After we met with Professor Snowden-Ift we went to a meeting with the CFO of the college, President Vietch, Jim Tranquada, and Professor Drier as well as a other faculty of the college. Again I felt very encouraged by this meeting because it seemed that most of the faculty were on board with the solar array and much of the discussion centered around how the college will “unveil” this project to the public. From this point on the solar team is going to focus on outreach to the Oxy community about this solar project. The point of this outreach is to not only generate support and excitement for the project but to also increase awareness of its existence. We are in the process of making a fact sheet to circulate around campus and creating a facebook group where students can ask questions (that will be answered by Professor Snowden-Ift) and contribute ideas. We would also love to hear any other ideas you have so please feel free to contribute any ideas you have.
As you know when this solar array is installed it will be the biggest solar array of any private university or college in the country. With this in mind, I did some research to try and find out about solar at institutions in different countries. I stumbled upon a few very interesting communities that use solar energy. One such place is called Barefoot College and it is located in Tilonia India. Barefoot College is a Non-Governmental Organization that addresses issues in rural India such as drinking water, female education, health and sanitation, and solar power. The URL of the site is www.barefootcollege.org and this organization has really done some amazing things with solar power. If you go to the website and click on programs there is a link to their solar programs and some of what they have accomplished in rural India we have not come close to accomplishing here in the big city of Los Angeles. For instance their solar program started in 1986 and their campus is now completely self sufficient using a 40 kilowatt solar energy unit. I believe that some of the techniques that Barefoot College used are very valuable ideas and that we at Occidental could take these ideas and make them work for our current situation.

Thomas

The Problem with American Food Culture

Culture is one of the hardest things to change. Unfortunately, our society is stuck in the culture of convenience. We want things to be immediate and easy. However, food is a slow process and when forced to be fast- health, safety, and the environment are compromised. Changing the American food culture is a difficult but necessary task.

Food is a tricky issue because so many factors are attached to ones habits including individual preferences, social relationships and settings, cultural or religious practices and customs as well as economic, environmental and political influences. What factor influences you the most? Which factor do you think influences people the most?

Often times it becomes hip or the fad to change ones usual shopping and dining habits. This is a step towards progress and can catch on, even if only in some communities or areas. For example, although it has been known for years that this is better for the environment and ones health, it is now popular for middle to upper class Americans to eat organic. Also, more recently, the hundred-mile-diet is the ‘cool’ thing to try, in which you eat only ingredients grown one hundred miles away or less. Despite these periodical efforts towards good habits, I have been trying to think of ways to help people change their lifestyle more permanently.

Here are some ideas:

1. Educate the importance

2. Give options

3. Go step by step

4. Teach the benefits

As for educating the importance of new ways, people need to know the effects that their choices have on the environment. For example, eating food out of season or food that travels a long distance is harmful to the Earth. By giving people options and going step by step, people can gradually make adjustments to their routine. If people incorporated more local or organic food into their diet rather than other foods, slowly they will change their habits. It is important that people know what is out there. Changing diet does not mean never eating meat again but rather limiting intake or never going to McDonalds but instead going less often and ordering in to use less packaging. Lastly, people should know the benefits related with changing our wasteful ways. They will save money, the environment and more importantly their health.

Here are some informative sites to help individuals make healthy, smart, and economical choices:

http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/downloads/Stretch_FV_Budget.pdf

http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/benefits/index.html

http://www.cdc.gov/Features/GrowingVegetables/

http://www.auntieemsdelivery.com/howitworks.html

Many of these strategies can be translated to a smaller community on campus and in the marketplace here.

As part of the food group, it is our job to educate students about their choices so they can make smarter choices and use the power of their dollar (meal plan money) to influence campus dining. Simple changes can be encourages such as not using the ‘to-go’ boxes or plastic forks and spoons, despite their convenience. The marketplace and Cooler do have a selection of organic and local foods and they advertise these so students need to be aware of this. Also, people should be persuaded to stop buying bottled water and carry around a water bottle to re-fill. How can we stop people from using bottled water? We all do it sometimes; it is just so convenient!

Maybe we can pressure campus dining into making policy changes such as charging 10 cents for ‘to-go’ containers or plastic bags (like done at Whole Foods) and this money would go toward the sustainability fund or to the budget for local and organic food campus dining purchases. Do you think this is possible? Would this make people think about their wastefulness or just anger them?

-Grace

Sustainability at other colleges

After reading the Los Angeles Times article "3 California colleges make eco-friendly list," I was eager to find out what these institutions with high rankings were in fact accomplishing. While Occidental College, located in progressive Los Angeles, is a sustainability innovator, it is also important that we look at other institutions that are also greening for ideas and inspiration.

In regards to the class discussion of "why greening Oxy is important," specifically the idea that prospective students take into consideration eco-friendliness when looking at a college, the article states that, "about two-thirds of applicants reportedly [take] eco-friendliness into account when choosing. . .." While this number may be exaggerated, it is still exciting that students look at green schools in a different light than those that are not.

What ideas from these top-green ranked colleges (#1 University of Colorado at Boulder, #7 UC Santa Cruz, #8 Berkeley, #9 UCLA) can Oxy apply to the campus? For instance, UCLA increased tuition by including a $4 increase per quarter. I think this is a good idea to break up the payment because then it doesn't seem like a "chunk" of money. Also, including it in the tuition almost makes it an invisible payment, making opponents less likely to complain. Is there a way we can change the payment method of the sustainability fund so more people are aware of it and its purpose. Also, UCLA uses bio-degradable eating utensils!

Yale was another school that practices advanced sustainability with a one-acre garden that provides food for the students and flowers for school events. Also, 49% of food served at Yale is local, seasonal, and/or organic.

What do you guys think about these practices and applying them to fit Occidental? Wouldn't it be amazing to have a flower garden that could be used to decorate dances, productions and other school events? How many to-go forks do you grab in a week? Bio-degradable utensils sound great. Finally, what do you guys think about making an advertisement (on the tables) about the sustainability successes of the marketplace as of now, as well as providing information about our on-campus garden?

Hopefully Occidental can learn from other colleges/universities, increase our own sustainability and become a leader and innovator in the campus greening movement.

Kylie

parking day LA 2009 countdown ... 4 days

The class will, spur of the moment, be appropriating a parking space in Eagle Rock for this year's Parking day LA. When we decide where to create our impromptu park (probably on York, maybe Colorad0), we'll post an update.

Welcome to sustainable oxy!

This blog will be capturing some of the work being done to make Occidental College a more sustainable place to study, live, and work. Students from UEP 246 will post about their projects and observations.