New lessons to me

March 23^rd is a special day. At 10 o’clock, I heard one of the most inspiring stories from Emily. At 8:30 pm, earth hour began.

From my environmental philosophy, I value the role of government more than other factors. I think government regulation is the most direct and effective way to change the society; I think it is too hard for an individual to make a difference especially under the government’s obstacle. However, I was totally shocked when I saw how much impact Emily has made on her campus. When Emily and her friends gathered together, they did not even know what they were going to with the trash, but they made everything happen. They prevent tons of objects from landfill; they make thousands of dollars from selling “trash”. I also saw that as long as the first person stands out and guide people, they are more than willing to participate in environmental protection projects. I have been overlooked the role of the public for so long that I underrated their how many powerful effects they could bring. I start to understand Emily’s bottom to top environmental philosophy. Then I questioned myself what I can do but have not done in environmental protection. I noticed that my actual actions have fallen far behind my environmental ideas. I felt exhausted after Emily’s presentation due to the huge shock it brought to my current philosophy. On the other hand, I also felt energetic, because her story made me confident about what I can do and made me notice that I need to start now.

I also gradually notice that I am more activism during these two months. I become more open-minded to hear voices expressing different approaches in environmental conservation. Simultaneously, I become less tolerant to hear opinions which are lack of environmental consciousness. At 8:30pm, our CELL group turned off our lights and went out to remind people of earth hour. I am glad to see people are willing to cooperate when we remind them. However, I saw many people on the internet arguing that households lighting does not consume much energy, but using candles do cause carbon dioxide emissions. They said turning of lights is not an earth hour, but an hour makes people feel good about themselves. One Chinese actor was even criticized for his photo with candles. I was shocked, second time in one day. I believe the initiator of the earth hour does not count on it to save energy, but to spread environmental consciousness to everybody that everyone can participate and every tiny thing can help change the world. I did hear that due to the setup of the turbine cannot easily change, the energy saved by turning off lights will lose anyway, but I am surprised that people are using this science to taunt those who want to contribute their effort to make a difference. As a result, I spent a night arguing with that random people over the internet about how to protect the environment. However, I quickly noticed that we were unable to convince each other, we both had firmly believed theory. This is another lesson to me.

Environmental conservation is a long way to go. Thank you for CELL program and my classmates for teaching me so much about everything so that I can develop my own understandings and philosophy so quickly. I hope one day I can be somebody who made a difference and made a impact on the society, on the environment, and maybe on you.

 

Chen

What Are We Eating in Iceland

You've seen a lot about what we are doing here in Iceland, and this post is all about what we are eating in Iceland!

【Desserts】

Solheimar's pink-themed birthday party

cakes, hot chocolate, and cream!

sweet Icelandic pancakes from Rósý

creamy buns for bun's/ball's day

Icelandic cakes from Solheimar's bakery

【Meals】

chicken soup at Lava Cafe, Reykjavik

a typical lunch in Solheimar

work lunch in Reykjavik

dinner at Turf House, yummy seafood soup & home made bread! 

fish dish at a Reykjavik restaurant, dinner

【Others】

snacks from grocery store in Selfoss

traditional Icelandic food tasting hosted by Axel

foods from the old days in a museum

presented by Yilin 

Un-Independent People

I have been reading a lot. It is a desire that I had forgotten I had, but now that I have found it again I have easily slipped back into the mode of a time when I was younger and always had at least one book at hand. Of all the books I’ve read, Independent People by Halldor Laxness is the one that I cannot get off my mind. There were times when I hated it and times when I loved it. Sometimes I was captivated by the story and drank up every word of Laxness’ descriptive storytelling and sometimes I was bored and struggled to get through. But the book has stuck with me. It has gotten me to think about what independence really is and helped me better understand Iceland in the context of its history. 

The story focuses on Bjartur of Summerhouses, a poor but independent sheep farmer, and his family. Bjartur is stubborn to the greatest degree possible. I came to loath him and started to wish that the main character could have been a bit more likable. Often I would put the book down in utter disgust at something Bjartur said or did. He is so focused on being “independent” that he forgets to be a father, a husband, and a friend. And I almost forget that he is human. At some point in the story I realized that there was not going to be much character development. Bjartur and his family were all struggling and they were all stubborn and that was not going to change.

Bjartur prides himself in being independent, but he goes about it in entirely the wrong way. He focuses on his sheep and completely ignores other duties in his life. I see independence as similar to sustainability, but sustainability is more than just economic sustainability. One way of looking at it is the compass of sustainability, which includes nature, wellbeing, society and economy all at equal weights. Bjartur ignores the wellbeing of his family and himself in favor of his sheep and he refuses to create meaningful friendship with anyone. He thinks he is being independent by refusing gifts and favors, but really he is missing his chance to build community and enrich his life. So he is unsuccessful at creating the wellbeing and society aspects of sustainability.  Bjartur lives an unsustainable life. And because of this, he is not the independent man he so prides himself in being.

If Bjartur were living 100 years later and came to Solheimar he would be outraged. He would see a collective society made up of people that depend on each other for happiness, work and food. But in a sense, Bjartur does exist today. He exists in my consumerist society. I live in this society, but I do not want Bjartur to exist in me.

The Iceland I am living in seems so different from the place that Bjartur lived. I live in a modern country that boasts a 100% literacy rate and an excess of geothermal and hydro-power. Bjartur lived in a dark turf house, starved through the spring and fought against disease and the infamous Icelandic weather year-round to keep his sheep alive. But the similarity between the two points in history is the strive towards “independence.” Bjartur wanted independence and he made himself a slave to hard work so he would not have to owe money to anyone. My modern society also puts a lot of value on working hard to have money to buy things. The American dream is to own your own house and lots more stuff to fill it with. And this has become the dream of every other country, including Iceland. But there is nothing in the dream about a sustainable life that stresses a balance of community, wellbeing, nature and economy.

I don’t want to follow the path that Bjartur and many others in modern society have taken that so focuses on economic security that they miss out on the happiness of life. Instead I want to use my strive for independence to live more sustainably. I want to focus on building community, knitting sweaters, growing food and making music.

-Julia

A tribute to the Easter candy that I’ll “never” eat again…

When I started my journey with CELL I would have by no means considered myself a “food freak”. My diet consisted mainly of pasta smothered in canned tomato sauce, cheerios, and of course the occasional dining hall dessert. Now of course I am intentionally leaving out the vegetable stir-fries, salads, and homemade wheat bread. The point I am trying to make here is not that I considered myself an unhealthy eater, but that despite my knowledge of healthy food options I would still knowingly put bad things into my body.  Thanks to the CELL program, however, those days are now in the past.

We all knew before coming here that certain foods are bad for you. For example, not even the most intelligent college student could make a valid argument proving that a slice of cheese pizza dripping in grease has any form of nutritional value.  Yet we all still eat it. To make matters even more complex, nutrition is really just the tip of the iceberg. Our food choices, both personally and as a society, have ecological and social impacts as well. These impacts can reverberate far outside the realm of our school dining halls. In my natural resources classes we are taught about the devastation of ecosystems in the Midwest from corn monocultures. We read about government subsidies that crush small farms and limit access to fresh organic food to low income families. Our professors preach about how the energy used to transport our food is greater than the energy our bodies reap from eating it. Yet most of us don’t think twice about what goes in our carriages at the super market. So why isn’t the basic knowledge we have about heating healthy and our food system enough? Why do nutrition majors still eat greasy cheese pizza?

The beauty of having the opportunity to live an essentially isolated Eco-village for three months (especially with a program like CELL) is that there are few if any opportunities to continue a typical college diet.  Our meals consist of mainly fish, vegetables, and grains (this is a bit glorified, I’ll admit). One key player that gets left out is processed food. Because we don’t have access to as much processed food or sugar in general, all of our lessons about food (related to both health and sustainability) suddenly seem to send off a different array of light bulbs in my head.  Now that I know of a life without these types of food, all of our lessons are inspiring me to actually apply this knowledge (both new and old) to my lifestyle back home. I finally feel like I can commit to food goals that are more consistent with my environmental values and what do you know, apparently I could even become healthier too! In a way this program is like food rehab. I consider myself extremely lucky to have hands-on experience with eating a healthier and sustainable diet and I feel that these types of experiences provide viable solutions to some of the questions I posed above; they provide the push that college students need. Sadly though, not everyone has the opportunity to have an experience like CELL. This will make coming home very difficult. While I can’t individually send students at UNH on programs like CELL, (as much as I’d like to) what I can do is start strongly encouraging my fellow students to take value in organizations on campus like Slow Food or Get Real, who are committed to the concept of making positive food choices. Also, within the realm of my close friends I can start setting better examples. It will not be easy, but the perspective I have gained here about food is undoubtedly worth spreading.

With Easter fast approaching there has been a lot of talk in our group about missing Easter candy (I’ll be honest, most of it from me). The Emily that celebrated Easter prior to doing CELL might not have been able to imagine an Easter without treats. However, now having committed to making better food choices, I thought it would be appropriate to say a final goodbye to some of the processed Easter treats that I’ve come to love over the past 20 years. Would it be realistic for me to say that I’ll never eat a piece of Easter candy again? Probably not, but I certainly have developed my self-control.

Peeps:  Ugh, don’t look at me with those cute little eyes. You’ll always have each other; I mean c’mon you’re literally melted together. Oh I will miss your sugary coating and soft marshmallow innards. I remember so clearly the days of biting your heads off and then saving your small misshapen bodies for my final bite. Remember when Justin and I would put you in the microwave and watch you expand into a gooey sugary mass? Your creators had it right when they decided to sugar coat you and with such fun colors too! Your shimmery coating never failed to catch my eye even when you were hidden amongst Reeses cups and the new deodorant stick in my basket.  I wish we could just fly off together, but I have dreams to chase and let’s be honest you’ll be stale by next week.

Chocolate rabbits: I’m sure this comes as no surprise to a rabbit like yourself, but you were always the crown jewel of my Easter basket each year. Your sideways glance would peer my way as I delicately placed you aside.  You and I both knew that I would save you for last. In a lot of ways you were a selfish candy, always so hollow. What about my feelings? I always hoped you would develop your inner rabbit, but year after year I would take that first bite and be disappointed. I can’t be selfish though, it really wasn’t your fault. Your simplicity made you all the more delicious, all chocolate and nothing else. What more could a girl ask for, really? I can hardly bare to watch you just hop away like this. Just go already!

Jelly beans: I never considered Easter to be a particularly exciting holiday, until I was introduced to all of you. You guys really know how to start a party. Your pizazz made even the most uneventful Easters as fun as a night out on the town. You never failed to surprise me as I would mix and match with your unique flavors. My taste even developed enough to love all you licorice flavored ones! Furthermore, I attribute my ability to catch food in my mouth to you. I’ll never forget those days of tossing you into the air one by one and like rain from the gods you would fall on my tongue. Thank you for always inviting me into your diverse community. You will be missed!

(Note: Contrary to popular belief, I am not a crazy person) 

By: Emily Spognardi

CSI: Where in the World Are All the Chemicals?

There could be chemicals locked away in here and you would never know it. 

            “Don’t play on the grass for the next few days, kids! Make sure you leave your shoes outside before coming into the house!” These were common words from my dad during the warmer months when he was sprinkling fertilizer on the front and backyard lawn. A sign taped to the front door advising us to take our shoes off before entering the house always accompanied these words. As a child, I viewed this as an annoyance and was mad that I could not play outside with the dirt and bugs. In addition, I thought that as long as I followed these simple rules when it was fertilizing season, I was safe from these toxins. These rules placed a barrier between humans and chemicals that were supposed to stay outside, well, because why wouldn’t they?

            As I grew older, I was told to throw away any non-stick pans that were scratched because chemicals would be released. Don’t put plastics in the microwave. Don’t leave water bottles in your car because the heat will release chemicals from the bottle. Look for BPA-free labels when purchasing a reusable water bottle. I followed these directions but didn’t really know exactly what these chemicals were, how they affected humans, why they were even in these materials in the first place, and where the EPA was in all of this. Isn’t it their job to make sure that any chemicals used are safe? I didn’t realize until very recently that humans and chemicals are interconnected to a degree that is quite unsettling.

            The chemical I found most interesting is BPA or Bisphenol A. First synthesized in 1891, it is an artificial estrogen that is primarily used in the creation of epoxy resins because it holds materials together well. It is in the linings of metal food containers, aluminum water bottles, plastics that are labeled #7, fax paper, CD’s and other items. It has been detected in rivers, soil, household dust, and even in amniotic fluid surrounding babies. One study found BPA in 95% of 400 American adults. For many years, exposure to this chemical has been associated with cancer, insulin resistance and birth defects. Tests beginning in the 1930’s showed that high doses are toxic to rodents and a very interesting discovery is that low-doses given to mice produced worse effects than those mice exposed to high doses. You may be wondering why such a harmful chemical is even allowed in products because I certainly was. Interestingly enough, industrial chemicals are regulated by the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, which doesn’t require that they be tested or proven safe before being used. Instead, it is the EPA’s job to show that a chemical is unsafe before it can regulate or ban that chemical. However, the bar is set so high that the EPA can essentially never meet these standards. According to “Cleaning House,” a session in the Northwest Earth Institute’s course book, “Congress’s original rationale for giving pass to industrial chemicals like BPA is that they weren’t designed to be biologically active or get into our body in the same way pesticides or drugs would, and wouldn’t pose the same risks.” This sounds like a fantastic rationale to me.

            The next time I get my blood taken, I will wonder how many trace amounts of chemicals, including Bisphenol A (BPA) and endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDC) will end up in that sample. I will wonder how much BPA is in the supermarket when I go shopping, looking at the many aisles of canned products. It is alarming to learn that a biomonitoring report in 2009 detected more than two hundred environmental toxins in the cord blood of newborn babies. Is there any escape from these chemicals that are supposed to stay outside and removed from our daily lives?

            Aside from this doom and gloom from products that are very much a part of our routine, my eyes have been opened to the realization that we have more control than we think. The first step is to understand these chemicals, the products that contain them and how to limit our exposure to them. Simple lifestyle switches such as keeping a clean house to remove exposure, obtaining a stainless steel reusable bottle instead of plastic or aluminum, buying fresh, frozen, dried food or items packaged in glass jars rather than plastic and avoiding personal care products that list “fragrance” as an ingredient are all ways to take your health into your own hands. Furthermore, a motivating alternative to current commercial synthetic chemistry is green chemistry. This approach focuses on preventing chemical pollution by designing products that do not contain them in the first place. It sounds like a no-brainer right? I’ve learned that we can apply this principal to own lives. Avoid products that expose us to harmful chemicals so the likelihood of being affected by them is minimal. It’s not my family’s fault for fertilizing our lawn with substances that have the potential to cause harm. The important lesson to learn is that knowledge of these substances must spread so you no longer have to place a “Fertilizer Down: Stay Off Grass” sign on the door.

                                                                              - Liana M. Agrios

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Throughout the semester we have been learning different techniques about how to reduce our carbon footprint, live a more sustainable lifestyle,  and consume less. Each semester the CELL students have to chance to do a research project that benefits the community. This semester we split into two groups, group 1 is the "recycling group". The members of this group were asked to create a recycling event, where community members could come, play games, and learn about the new recycling program Solheimar recently implemented. The members of this group include Emily, Julia, Yilin, and Chen; they put together a great event where residents came and played games, made crafts, and earned a recycling certificate. The joy that this event brought to the homes people is what really got me. It was incredible to see them learn and just hang out with each other.  It was also an opportunity for us, the interns and the homes people to come together. It was amazing to see their faces light up when creating a caterpillar out of recycled material, or sort items into the correct bins. It wasn't only the homes people that got joy out of this event, but it was obvious that the interns and my fellow CELL students also took a lot out of the experience too. One of my favorite parts was the photo taking booth, at the end of the event everyone was having coffee and cookies while enjoying each others company. Some of us started to goof around taking funny pictures with each other, a few of the homes people caught on to this! We ended up taking picture after picture with them, it was truly amazing to see the joy something this simple could bring to their lives.

 

all of the CELL girls with Rosie! 

The day before this grand event, we had the opportunity to visit one of two recycling plants in Iceland. We met with a man who has worked for the company for about 22 years (so he had a pretty good handle on the operation). He had very valuable information to share with us, and the group did not hesitate to inquire about different issues we were curious about. One of the most interesting things we learned is that Iceland cannot recycle glass. While normally one may choose glass containers over plastic, in Iceland its not as sustainable as you would think. Since they cannot recycle it, and it is to expensive to ship to Europe they bury it. There is rumor of an initiative to figure out if the glass can be crushed and used in roads or other construction, but for now they bury it. Another thing that got me thinking was with the plastic that doesn't get melted and reused. This includes plastic bags and other types of special plastics. With this material, their way of recycling it is to send it to a place that burns it, and then is used to produce electricity. For me I debate what is better for the environment? Burn these toxic plastics and have the toxins released into the atmosphere, or  throw them away and have them go into a landfill, where there might be a somewhat protective barrier to keep the toxins from going into the ground, but chances are the chemicals are still getting into the ground water. Neither option seems ideal to me... so what do we do? This is a questions that I have been facing a lot this semester, each issue we face is so interconnected with other issues. The only alternative I see is to stop using plastic bags all together. Now this is easier said than done, when going into a grocery store and looking around I start to feel overwhelmed by this idea of eliminating plastic from my diet. There are so many items that have loads of unneeded packaging. Now no one is perfect but I am learning way around this issue, and how to limit the amount of packaging I purchase when I get back home. For example buying in bulk, and using reusable bags are just two simple ways to help the cause. I am not saying that the recycling plant is doing a bad job, their heart is in the right place, and the things they are doing are great! We even learned that they are not necessarily making a profit off of some of the things they recycle, so that shows they do what they do for the right reasons! Also the way the system is set up, is pretty much a no fail system. Meaning that the average person cannot even screw it up, by recycling the wrong thing. They also have huge compost bins, and the compost if free to residents in the area. I was really happy to see that, no one is perfect and I am coming to the realization that out of the people who are trying to make a difference, they are doing their best.  There is still a lot of room for improvement, and growth. But these things come with time, and furthering education. I am not losing hope in society when it comes to environmental issues, although sometimes it gets hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but together I know we can dig ourselves out of this mess!

 The Recycling group! (clockwise: Yilin, Chen, Emily and Julia)

- Elizabeth G