Looking back on the second half of this class, many interesting topics have been covered. It began with a documentary on water rights. I loved learning about this topic and hope to spread my new knowledge to others. The documentary made me realize how water bottle companies are basically stealing water from towns near water sources, and unlike tap water, companies are not forced to perform any amount of testing and filtration on their product. So long story short, buying a bottle of water means you are: Supporting greedy companies that steal water, drinking from cancer causing plastic, paying for tap water rather than drinking free water, increasing the demand for disposable water bottles which means creating more pollution, more waste in landfills, and an increase in disease and cancer among factory workers who make the water bottles, and disease. For these reasons, I pledge to avoid purchasing water bottles. Instead I will bring water from home in a bpa free reusable water bottle.
Another topic that I had never heard of prior to this class is junking. Junking means to take something old and repurpose it. What does this have to to with the environment? Well, it decreases the demand of "stuff" that factories and companies make. Old objects have already made their eco-logical footprint on the world, unlike a new product that hasn't been created yet. If more people use junked items instead of new items, there will be less pollution, less stuff in landfills, and less money and power given to corporate America. Junking is a tremendous way to be creative and put your own personal spin on things. Since learning about junking, I have a new appreciation for old items, and things I may have considered garbage in the past. I have started to try to not buy as many new items and will first shop at Goodwill, thrift stores, and other places that resell items. The Youtube video, "Story of Stuff" was really eye opening and has made me reconsider my shopping habits. I now ask myself if I really need the things I put into the cart, and purchase more quality items rather than cheap and disposable.
Finally, I learned all about advocacy. I never considered writing to persons of power before the second half of this class. Now I have the skills, resources, and practice to make a difference.
This is a picture of my junking project. It is a TV tray that used to belong to my Great Aunt. I found it in my parents basement, cleaned it up, fixed the stand, and it is now used as a nightstand.
