Entry #18: Colloquium has opened my eyes 7/12/2011

The Colloquium class really helped me realize how I am affecting the environment in my everyday life. I have been able to take a step back and think about my impact and how I need to change how I do certain things in my personal, academic, and future career. Before starting this class, I never considered the amount of energy I used in day to day activities or how much paper or other things (such as water) that I waste on a daily basis. As the class begun, I begin to look at nature a little differently; the fieldtrips were great because it allowed me to see how beautiful and precious nature is and that I have to take an active role to save it. It has been a long time since I really stop to look at nature and the habitats of plants and animals (I have not thought about this since Girl Scouts). Since I took the class online, I was in Georgia for most of the class where my mother now lives. She and I or my sister and I went on these fieldtrips and enjoyed nature. My family already recycles and does a lot of things to conserve energy. My mother is conscience of these things but she admits that she has only recently become more conscience of it due to the environmental impact; in the past she was more focused on it as a way to save money on bills. I am now shutting off my lights more, as well as unplugging electric outlets when they are not in use. I conserve water a lot more at home, especially when I wash the dishes and shower. I think about how much water I am actually wasting. I let it air-dry a lot more often instead of taking an hour to blow-dry my hair. In class, when I take notes, I used to always use only one side of the lined paper; now I use both sides or take notes using my computer. I also take online classes because I feel that taking them can help with the environment since students do not have to drive to class daily or take the shutter.