University Colloquium Blog: June 2010

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Field Trip # 5 - Agricultural Environment

On June 26th, 2010 I did my Agricultural Environment field trip at ECHO Global Farm in North Fort Myers. ECHO stands for Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization and they provide sustainable options to fight world hunger. ECHO Global Farm is dedicated to finding sustainable ways to help poor farmers overseas work with the land they have to beome more productive. They have a seed bank that has a variety of seeds that can be produced under difficult condition. While touring the farm I saw a worm culture where they raise worms as a source of protein to replace animal protein in poor countries. They also use the diluted worm urine to make fertilizer. This trip was very interesting and informational and I also got some gardening ideas that I will personally use at home. This was a wonderful experience and I was happy to have visited this farm.

Me on the farm

Guide educating us about the farm

Tilapia pond

Duck's whose dropping is used to feed the tilapia.

Worm culture

Rice bed

Low land with raised beds to prevent plant roots from rotting.

High land

Manual irrigation systems for farmers with no electricity

On the farm

Guide explaining how plants can grown in tires

Plants grown in empty cans

Rain forest setting

Plant nursery

plant nursery

Personal Reflection # 7

Today June 26th, as I deceided to spend sometime outdoors relaxing and enjoying the environment, I figured what better way to do this than visitig the Everglades which would also make me complete GR #8. So my husband and I packed some snacks and we headed for the Everglades. We had a wonderful time walking around sightseeing, taking pictures, talking about different things we saw in the area. We drove through the city and got on a long stretch of road that had water on both sides of the road. We say may people fishing so kept driving for a while. Then came the rain, it started pouring so heavily that it was white out conditions and we could hardly see. The wind started blowing and the ocean came splashing up on the side of the road. I got very scared and decided we needed to get out of there. I was scared for many reasons, I cannot swim, as far as I could see it was all water on both sides of the road with no building in sight, the rain was pouring down as if someone was throwing buckets of water on the car and the wind was blowing very heavily and splashing the water from both sides on to the road. I was so relieved when we finally got out of there.

Field Trip # 4 - Downtown Fort Myers

On June 25th, 2010 I did my field trip of Downtown Fort Myers. This was truly a freshing experience. I drove around the city in awe of the wonderful work that was done with the redvelopment project.
Downtown Fort Myers is known as the historical district and also the waterfront district. It is home to historical buildings such as the court house, city hall, many different museums and government buildings. It also has a very beautiful scenic waterfront view which truly validates the term urban waterfont living. There are over 400 residential high rise condominium units in the river district. Many cultural opportunities are available in Downown Fort Myers, some of which are the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, the Harborside Event Center and the Headquarters of the Art of the Olympians.
On my field trip I stopped by the offices of the Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce and the Redevelopment Center in Downtown Fort Myers to get some literature on the area. I walked around the city and took pictures of some very interesting sites and buildings.
The developers did a wonderful job at trying to preserve our ecological system with the beautiful array of plants that lines the street of Downtown Fort Myers. Because the downtown area is extremely flat they built a water detention basin between the river and Bay Street to improve the quality of surface water run-off into the Caloosahatchee River to prevent flooding. The landscape is beautifully arranged and the streets are decorated with bricks.
As I reflect on the suitability of urban development in Southwest Florida yesterday, today and tomorrow. I believe that as the area grows so does the need for urban development. Many development project comes to mind with this topic, such as the construction of the new international airport which was well needed to accomodate travel for the increased population. Another is the I75 expansion project which helped to alleviate traffic jams and delays. However, the project I found most impressive was the redevelopment of Downtown Fort Myers. In the past this urban environment appeared forgtten and neglected. Today, it has a very elegant look and the community appear to be vibrant and full of life.
I was very impressed on this filed trip to see how conciencious the developers were when constructing this urban environment by portraying the city as a historic district and a riverfront district while preserving our ecological system. These urban developments will improve Southwest Florida's communities, which will bring visitors to the area and will be beneficial for the future of the Downtown Fort Myers environment. Below are pictures I took of Downtown Fort Myers.

Me on my field trip in Downtown Fort Myers

Downtown Fort Myers

Urban waterfront living - residential condominiums in the river district of downtown Fort Myers.

Riverfront District - where boats are docked

Streets of Downtown Fort Myers

Centennial Park

Park of Palms - this is a palm arboretum with 47 varieties of palms and cycads.

City of Fort Myers Yatch Basin

Art of the Olympians

Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center

Harborside Event Center

Court House

City Hall

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Personal Reflection # 6

Monday June 21st. Today I am enjoying nature as I spend some time bonding with my plants. I love working in my flowers garden and talking with my plants.

When I look at my plants I feel a sense of pride knowing that I am doing my part in trying to beautify the environment.

Independent Service-Learning Field Trip (Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium)

On Sunday June 20th, I did my Independent Service-Learning Field Trip at Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium. The trip went well, however, I was hoping there was more to see. The sun was very hot which made it uncomfortable to be out door. I saw many children and their parents touring the facility for Father’s Day.
The Calusa Nature Center specializes in caring for injured or abandoned animals and nurturing them back to good health. The center has 105 protected acres of land on which you will find the Iona house. In this facility is their museum with
exhibits on display and also a gift shop. To the right of this building is a planetarium where you will see binoculars and telescopes on display. Here they also have a theatre where they show movies about space science and mammals.
While outdoors I saw a butterfly aviary with beautiful butterflies and a bird aviary where they care for disabled birds which are unable to survive in the wild because of their injury. I also saw some wildlife such as alligator, bobcat, raccoon, skunks and they also have snakes on display. They have nature trails which takes you through the cypress wetlands, pine flatwoods and a restoration area.
The center has live educational shows where you can learn about their animals and also get to pet some of them. They also offer guided tours along the trails where you can learn about the plants and animals that live in our area.
I got to see one of their shows called “Meet the Mammals,” in which the Director of Wildlife feed the animals, and give us a history on them. This was then followed by a question and answer session. The children took advantage of his opportunity as their inquiring minds wanted to know so much. We were also given the opportunity to hold or pet some of the animals. I found this to be an interesting experience and I could see how excited some of the children were, they could hardly wait their turn.
I also had the opportunity to personally meet and interview the Executive Director, Jennifer Clearly and the Wildlife Director, Ruth Welburn. They were both excited that I chose their facility for my service-learning field trip.This field trip was an interesting experience, however, I am sure the children had more fun as they were happily running around and did not seem to mind how hot it was outside.