Design

After reading about West Village and Village Homes, I was mostly surprised by all the seemingly cheap, efficient, sustainable, easy solutions that exist. Especially when reading the chapter on Village Homes, it seemed that the hardest part was convincing the local government that it would work, and adding a few feet to the streets. The creators of Village Homes seemed to have answers to any issue, and they all worked! I would be interested in learning more about the setbacks and severe problems they faced (if any), or their reasoning for why ALL OF AMERICA doesn't live this way. The water collection and movement systems, the orientation of the neighborhood, the plants and vegetables growing everywhere, the building materials...it all seems perfect.

I do wonder, however, how many people would live there who weren't already interested in being sustainable. How applicable and attractive is this type of living to the greater community? Of California? Of the country? Of the world?

In regards to West Village, I wonder how much of their plan they are taking directly from Village Homes. What went wrong (or didn't work as well as planned) with Village homes that they are hoping to improve upon with West Village? I like that in West Village they are having different kinds of housing options, like for students, small families, single people, etc. In the chapter on Village Homes it said that because everyone wants to live there it has gotten really expensive, too much for the lower income families it often attracts.

Transportation

Walking: Walking is pretty sustainable. You are only using your own energy (so you get exercise), and depending on what you use to get your energy (ie local, organic, vegetarian food), it can be very eco-friendly. It's free too! You can walk anywhere (especially on campus) because people can fit through much smaller spaces than cars or even bikes.

The other thing I like about walking places is that it is slow...you can look around at the nature (squirrels!) or people you pass (or are passed by), you can listen to your music, think about your day, or just think about the walk. The thing I don't like about walking is that it takes forever! Walking to class takes 10 to 15 minutes, depending on where it is. If you're already the type of person who runs late, walking makes it that much worse. When I walked to class earlier this week, I noticed very few people walking. Most people on campus bike wherever they go (myself included). However, I have a few friends who strongly dislike biking and try to walk everywhere.

Biking: I like to bike places when they are close but I want to get there quickly. As long as you take into account the environmental cost of the bike and it's production, it is a pretty sustainable mode of transportation. You use your own energy (see the above point) and don't buy gas! Parking for bikes is very prevalent (part of Davis culture), so you don't need to worry about that.

When biking, I usually try to focus on not running into people. It seems that everyone in Davis owns a bike and uses it, especially during passing period in centrally located bike circles. It is great that Davis has such a culture of biking...where I'm from (San Diego) everyone drives EVERYWHERE. My brothers used to walk to school (about a mile) and were often referred to as "those European kids who walk everywhere." When I knew I was coming to Davis, one of the first things I thought about was "where am I going to get a bike?" Luckily, my grandma had one she never used, so I was able to refrain from buying a new one, which was better for the environment and my bank account. I was excited to be part of such a progressive culture where everyone biked.

Bus: I don't like taking the bus. I've only taken the one up here a few times, to and from the airport, and I was carrying a lot of bags so maybe that's why (I need lots of stuff, okay!?) but it seems crowded and slightly dirty and depressing. Nobody is friendly, and although you aren't driving there aren't many interesting things to look at or do. Also, the bus seems to put out a lot of exhaust. It is free however, and if I lived far off campus I would probably use it more. It is better to share a large car with a bunch of other people than take a bunch of cars that each have one person in them.

Car: I don't own a car, but one of my friends does so my friends and I sometimes use it, either to visit home or go to neighboring cities. We feel bad when we use it, especially when filling it up, but it is the only way to get home! We usually have it pretty full though (carpool!), so that's good. And it is used pretty infrequently.

I think the "best" mode of transportation to use depends on people's personal needs (and proximity to their destination) but it is important to be informed of your choices.

Sustain your space

According to http://www.coolcalifornia.org/calculator,

My "TOTAL carbon footprint is 74% of comparable households, and 362% of the global average.

These emissions are the equivalent of burning 50 barrels of oil,
or driving 4 typical 25 mpg cars 10,000 miles per year."

I had the best score in transportation, somewhat unsurprisingly as I do not own a car, and rarely go anywhere that is farther than my bike can take me. I do fly a lot, perhaps more than the average person, because of my travel to and from my home. In terms of food and electricity consumed, I really don't have any idea what I use (or eat) so I left that as the average Californian. Living in the dorms is probably pretty sustainable because we share a lot of the resources, like heating (walls) and bathrooms. Also, our personal spaces are pretty small.

It is shocking to find that a mostly average Californian is 362% of the global average. We consume so much more than is really fair! I don't know how the other nations haven't held an uprising!

I think eating less meat (although I don't really eat that much!) would be a good way for me to cut down on my carbon. The food at the DC is usually pretty locally sourced, so that's good.

Also, my roommate and I are kind of addicted to the thermostat. It only changes by like 4 degrees, but it makes a huge difference to us, since we are from San Diego and not used to this whole weather thing! Probably not the most eco-friendly as we stay in shorts and t-shirts inside when it is overcoat/hat/scarves/gloves/2 pairs of pants time outside. Using the thermostat less would be a good (but hard) way for us to cut down on our footprint.

In terms of the entire state/country/world? I think the best thing to do is to change our transportation methods. Biking is best! Not driving would save so much unsustainable carbon emissions from going into the atmosphere.

In terms of toxicity, I already know that all of the products I use on a daily basis (some of the party makeup or perfume I have gotten as gifts doesn't apply) are 1's or 2's on the scale. I had a full on freak out session earlier this year (at the end of senior year) when I read an article in Newsweek or Time about how bad our makeup and other toiletries were. I immediately stopped wearing makeup (which was hard!), lotion (I switched to olive oil) and using my aluminum-filled deodorant (luckily I had a crystal one that was safe). For my birthday in August, my mom bought me all new (and safe) makeup, deodorant, lotion, shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste, shaving cream, soap, etc. I know I haven't cut out all toxic products, because of the few occasions I use something not as "safe," like hair dye or nail polish, as well as in my food or plastics or clothing or whatever, but I feel that the cosmetics I was putting on my skin, in my mouth, or in my eyes were one of the biggest ways I was encountering toxicity.

Waste

I think recycling is very important, when done correctly. I think the best choice is to get rid of disposables once and for all, but until that happens, recycling is a small step in the right direction. I didn't know that plastics when recycled weren't magically restored into new plastics, and in fact little of it is saved, which we learned from the first video. I think that if more people knew that they wouldn't be so placid and think that by recycling they save the world. We should recycle things like water bottle and plastic bags, but also e-waste items like computers or cell phones. I am not sure the best (safest, least destructive, most return per item) way is, and I would leave that up to scientists to predict, but there has got to be some way to do it.

Personally, I think that of the three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle) reduce and reuse are the best ones. This is why I make choices to use reusable shopping bags, re-use poly's to hold hair ties or leftovers, shop at thrift stores, choose items with less packaging, fill (and re-fill) my camelback water bottle instead of buying a new one every day, limit my use of paper towels in the bathrooms, and basically cut down on my consumption. It is hard, don't get me wrong, but there are little daily choices everyone can make to be more sustainable.

I liked the first video best; I thought it was funny and tried to get the message out to a large audience. The second video was mostly pictures, which didn't have the same effect to me as actual statistics. Neither speaker seemed to really have a clear solution, which I understand because it is a hard and complicated problem that doesn't really have a quick, clear, easy solution. And that's okay. I think that people should make changes in their daily life (and Davis should ban plastic bags, which is actually a campaign I am working on with CALPIRG), but a whole overreaching solution has yet to be found.

Food Systems

Interview with a farmer:

Unfortunately I took notes for this conversation on my phone, which is now broken (all sorts of bummers). However, I can remember most of the conversation I had with the orange seller. I first saw him handing out wedges of oranges to people and he seemed pretty friendly. He gave me an orange, which was awesome (I bought a ten pound bag for $7) and then asked him a few questions. He is not a full time farmer; it is his dad that grows the oranges and other citrus (900 trees) on his farm in Winters. The man I talked to mostly liked the selling part because he got to meet cool people and have lots of conversations. He wanted everyone to know how sweet and delicious his oranges were.

Interview with a grocery store employee:

I chose to go to Trader Joe's (I needed groceries anyways) and talked to a great guy named Andrew who was working the sample bar. He had worked at Trader Joe's since it opened because he needed a job and TJ's was hiring. He graduated from UCDavis and has lived here ever since. Although Andrew works every job in the store, his favorite job to do is probably working in the wine section, because he traveled a lot and seeing the wines from different places reminds him of the good times he had. When he first started working at TJ's, he didn't realize how quick the turnover was for fresh foods, but he soon realized that's why everything is always fresh. That's one of the main reasons he likes to buy food from where he works.

I think knowing where your food comes from is important. Whether you are trying to eat locally, organically, or just curious about the origins of your food, it is nice to know where it comes from. If you were really concerned, you could go to the actual farms (especially those that provide for the farmer's market, since they are so close) and see how they grow their food. It is interesting and can show you more about the other side of things. I'm glad I got the opportunity to learn more about the food systems available in my neighborhood. Although I mostly eat at the DC this year, next year I want to focus on eating in ways that are healthy and sustainable.

Gardening Assignment

calendula

Calendula officinalis

The plant I chose is the calendula plant. I know that you can eat some flowers, like nasturtiums, but I never knew about this type of flower. Apparently it is a kind of marigold that comes in shades of oranges and yellows. It has antibacterial properties.

I went to the garden to get this very Georgia O'Keefe picture (taken with my phone, sorry the quality isn't up to par). It was a freezing bike ride but it was so worth it when I got there! What a beautiful and well-designed garden. So pretty. I look forward to seeing it in the spring when everything is growing and blooming.

I really like the way Davis is organized. The buildings all have plants around them and there are lots of open spaces with grass and trees. Coming from San Diego, I am used to more asphalt! Outside my dorm, there is a tunnel of trees. In the fall, with the leaves changing color and dropping, it was so beautiful! I fell in love with Davis (and seasons) right then, although with this brisk weather I may have to rethink my position!