Blog entry #13

Blog Entry #13: What was your overall opinion of Estero Island Cottage and Matanzas Pass? What sights, sounds, and/or experiences stood out? Give concrete examples of how the local quality of life is being enhanced. How has your hometown changed since you were a child? Do you still feel a sense of community? If a developer offered you 300% the market value of your childhood home to develop into condos, would you take it? What if the county approached you about purchasing the land under the 20/20 program, for 80% of its market value?

I thought Estero Island Cottage was very informative. I loved our speaker we had at the cottage. She was super informative, and you could tell she was passionate about the history of the area. It was nice that she was around for a lot of the stuff she told us about. She was very nice and really adorable like a grandma. I had a very good time there. Matanzas pass was fun too. It was a lot of walking and i almost stepped on two crabs, but it was a good field trip. I learned a lot about the plants in the area. The mangroves stood out the most, they were all over the place. I also noticed a lot of crabs, there are always crab holes by mangroves. I think its nice that the community cared so much about the conservation of this little piece of land that was left. I also think its great that they give the school everything they need. The local quality of life is being enhanced with the rebuilding of matanzas pass. They made it look much better, cleaned it up, and got all the junkies out of it. It used to be full of hobos and drug addicts, so bad that there would be needles left all over the pathways. There is now less crime in the area, and less pollution. My hometown hasnt changed much since i was a child. It is a rural village in Michigan called Mattawan. There is still not much around, a few buildings popped up here and there but for the most part it is still pretty untouched. I always feel at home when i go there. Everyone knows everybody, its very "small town america". If i could live in my childhood home again i would, forever. I loved that house. My parents bought the land and had the home built on it. My dad finished the entire basement, and did all the landscaping. My best friend since i was three years old still lives next door to it. I would not sell if for anything, i dont care how much i was offered. The community would not allow condos to be built there either. It would mess with the whole feel of the town.

Blog entry #12

Blog Entry #12: What is “sustainable consumerism”? Are globalization and capitalism positive or negative drivers in this phenomenon? What is greenwashing? Would you be willing to pay a premium for foods labeled “organic”, “local”, or “fair-trade”? Do you prefer to frequent mom and pop stores in downtown Ft. Myers or patronize chain stores at the Gulf Coast Town Center? What are the ramifications of your behaviors either way? Think holistically.

The Oslo definition of Sustainable Consumption defines it as "the use of services and related products which respond to basic needs and bring a better quality of life while minimizing the use of natural resources and toxic materials as well as emissions of waste and pollutants over the life cycle of the service or product so as not to jeopardize the needs of future generations." Sustainable consumerism ties in with this referring to the consumers who are being sustainable by this consumption. Globalization can be negative because it means shipping things abroad and having multiple businesses over seas, which can mean more traveling, and more shipment going abroad, which lets out more emissions with planes, and cargo carriers. Capitalism can be negative as well referring to a money hungry society which may not try to be as sustainable as a society who is not as concerned with making money. Some sustainable practices dont make as much money for businesses, like for instance if people start growing their own gardens. Greenwashing is when marketers push all this "green" movement all over the place in the media to try to brainwash people into "going green". I would not pay more for foods that are "organic" or anything like that because i like to get the cheaper deals.. im a broke college student. I shop chains more than mom and pop just because they are convenient and i know about them and know what to expect. I think it would be better for me to buy locally and help out the mom and pop stores but i dont really know of any.