Blog Entry #5 - Sustainable Farming

What are the major elements of "sustainable" farming? How are ecological principles woven into this framework? Do you buy organic or "naturally" labeled foods? Why or why not?  I buy organic foods from Fresh Market because they seem fresher, better, for some reason… I don’t like the look of target’s pre-packaged 1lb meat containers, because they look too perfect to be made in the store. I don’t...

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Blog Entry #4 - Environmental Issues

The most pressing global environmental issue facing us today is global energy consumption. We are simply consuming too much, while producing too little (or having the inability to produce more altogether, as is the situation of fossil fuels). There are numerous different methods of power generation, from coal to natural gas, wind power to solar energy. All of these things have effects on the environment, some worse than others. I feel...

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Blog Entry #3 - Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary was awesome. The two mile trail took us through the pine flatwoods, the wet prarie (which was not very wet at the moment), the ponds and the grass ponds, cypress forests, and a marsh ecosystem. I saw several different animals, from birds to spiders to lizards to alligators. The "ecosystem services" that they provide are sheltering and providing food for the animals who inhabit the area. Birds nest high in...

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Blog Entry #2 - Campus Walk

Your musings on the campus walk... Here's the sign upon entering the Nature Trail at FGCU. Here is a picture of the canopies of a few palm trees. I took Biology of Southwest Florida, which was very similar as far as topics and field-trip locations as this one. We learned about the "Air Plant" in that class, and I knew I had stumbled upon one here. Here is some of the wildlife we saw that day! You can see...

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Blog Entry #1 - Introduction

What are your expectations for this class? My expectations for this class are that I will learn new things about the environment around Southwest Florida through field trips and interactive assignments.  In your own words, what is sustainability? Sustainability to me is "being able to be maintained for a long period of time". How does sustainability (or ecological sense of place) relate to your chosen field of study? My chosen field of study...

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