REFLECTION: WEEKS 15 & 16

Week 15

This week we did our final eye opener on an online learning activity for our group members to do. I thought this was fun, and a great way to cover many different topics! We also had a guest speaker Sue Whitney come to our class to talk to us about junking and her life background. I thought she was a great speaker, junker, and very intelligent as well! She gave us all a free copy of one of her junking books, so I was very thankful for that. This week was also had class outside and sat in a big circle and shared to everyone what our most significant learning was. Although it was fun and nice to be outside, it was somewhat sad because we all knew that it was the last day of class! I think it's clear that we all learned so much from this class, not only about the environment, but also about ourselves and everyone around us...

Week 16

This week all we had to do is comment on everyones eye opener post. This is officially the last week of blogging, but I know I will still check my blog over the summer and even post things when I'm bored! Also this week we have to do our very last reflection, which I am doing right now...(sniff sniff)

What I have learned overall

Overall, I have learned so much in this class. Here is a brief list of things I learned or got more familiar with from being in Environment Health Issues:

-blogging (duh)

-junking

-using a compass

-be nice to people when approaching them about the smoking policy, lol

-water privatization

-corporations can patent seeds (still angry about that topic!!!!)

-you can easily make an eye-gouger out of a sprinkler

-how to take good photos

-Subways cookies are AMAZING

-health equals wealth

-eat less meat!

-Dr. V is the fastest speed walker in the world!

-the ozone is closing

-group 3 is hilarious!

-this class was filled with good quality people!

Well that about does it. Last post (for class) ever! As Dr. Martin Luther King once said in his infamous I Have A Dream speech, "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" Hope everyone has an amazing summer break! Don't work too hard now, and keep in touch. This class may be over, but its spirit will live on....(in health 4000)!

Eye Opener: Online Learning Activities

Tobacco Facts Puke Page - Sara

This website had many gruesome pictures of the long-term effect of cigarette smoking. I have always known smoking can harm our bodies, but these pictures really took it to the extreme and definitely reinforced me to never smoke! I think a smoking policy should be enforced in every school nationwide, and if possible, worldwide (since the effects of tobacco aren't prejudice towards different races)! This was a highly effective eye opener!

Water Calculator - Ingrid

This activity was a great way to see how many gallons of water I use each day, and how much money and water I could save if I changed a couple habits. After answering the questions I found that I use about 107 gallons of water every day! I know this is just a rough estimate and hopefully it's inaccurate in my favor. My favorite part of this activity is how it tells you what behaviors you can specifically change to save the most water. For me, if I lower my shower time by 2 minutes, I could save 36 gallons of water each day! I'm glad I got to do this activity, and now I just need to work on taking faster showers =)

Little D the Dragon Exercise - Katie

I thought this game was really fun, and the music was super catchy! The main point of this game was to feed the monster at least one item from each food group. Once you fed the monster some food, it would give you information about that type of food and the group it belongs to on the food pyramid. This was a great way to educate kids about healthy eating and it was also fun to play!

Foot-O-Meter - Abbey

This activity was very informational and great for kids to learn how to lower their eco-footprint! After answering the questions for Bobbie, I found out that his footprint would be 7.7 acres. If everyone lived like him, we would need 1.7 earths, which is a lot better than mine was for our eye opener we did in the past! I thought this activity was very informative and fun. Schools should definitely use this activity to help students become more aware about our environment.

Dining Decisions - Autumn

This activity was a great way to learn about the foods you like to eat, and how healthy they really are. To play this game all you had to do is click and drag food items onto your tray that you would like to eat. Once you ate, you would receive tray feedback which tells you some facts about the foods you chose. I honestly chose foods that I would eat in real life and according to the tray feedback I did alright =)

Well congratulations to group 3 for being the coolest group in the blog world! These activities were a great way to kill time and not study for my finals =) Hope everyone has a fantastic day!

SHARE & VOICE: How to be an eco-friendly beer drinker

Hey Guys!

Well believe it or not, summer is FINALLY here! After finals, most of us will be working hard but hopefully partying harder! Well why not take what we learned from class and directly apply it to our crazy lives? Here are 10 great tips to drink beer in a more "green" manner...

10 Green Beer Drinking Tips

Advocacy Project: Environmental Learning Activity

Purpose

To become more aware of eco-friendly materials by building your own virtual "green" house!

Instructions

Click on this link. Then click on "start building." Choose a climate where you will build your house. Then click "construction" and choose the type of material you want to build your house with (keep in mind you only have $100,000 to work with, so choose wisely!). Once you've chosen your material, click on "energy." Choose what source of energy you want to run your house (you can choose more than one way!). Finally, click on "efficiency" and choose the types of efficiency materials you would like in your home. When you are finished, click on the "check efficiency" button on the top right (next to your budget). See how much money you spent and also see how efficient your home is based on an efficiency scale!

Having a clean environment is very important for physical activity and overall health in general. No matter where you live, it is important to get outside and get moving! For more information on this topic, you can check out these links:

21 tips to making your home more ecofriendly

Environmentally friendly furnishing

Eco-friendly parks

REFLECTION: WEEKS 13 & 14

Week 13

This week we watched a short video called "Story of Stuff." It was a bit one-sided but it was entertaining and a fast-paced way to show how manufacturing works, so I enjoyed it. We also did the second half to our advocacy project, the Issue Overview. Towards the end of the week we went out to Bagley Nature Area and engaged in a navigation activity using compasses. Since barely anyone knew how to properly use a compass, I think we all had a good time, and learned something new!

Week 14

During this week we had a speaker come in and talk to us about opportunities after graduation. We learned about the Americorps and how it is a great way to gain experience and pay off loans. We also wrote letters to our political representatives regarding our advocacy topic. I thought everyone did a great job with their letters, especially since it was probably the first time for many writing a letter like that. On Thursday we got to do a junking activity which I thought was hilarious! It was really fun getting into groups and coming up with crazy ideas to repurpose certain items!

What I learned about myself

Over the past two weeks I learned that I can successfully navigate through the woods with a compass. I also learned that I should try to repurpose more things in my life because it's actually pretty fun. Although having an eye-gouger or ninja star in my house may scare my friends away...

What I learned about the environment

I learned that although there are millions of ways to harm the environment, it is counter-balanced with ways to help. There's always a pro to every con. For example, buying a lot of junk essentially hurts the environment because of all the manufacturing it has to go through, and all the space it takes up in landfills. However, junking is a way to counter-act this problem. But sadly, even though there may be a pro for every con, it seems as though everyone these days engages in the "con" activities without balancing it with a "pro." This may be why we are coming up short when it comes to sustaining our resources.

What I learned about blogging

Once again, I haven't really learned too much about blogger itself, but I have come to realize that my blog group is pretty much AWESOME! I'm thankful to have been in such a sweet group this semester, and will miss blogging on a regular basis when this semester is over =/

That's about it, hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! DON'T GET THE SWINE FLU!!!!

SHARE & VOICE: Save the planet? Yeah right!

Hey Guys,

I was just "youtubing" because I'm pretty much addicted to any and every type of video out there. Well I don't know if any of you have heard of a comedian named George Carlin before, but I believe he was one of the greatest and smartest stand up comedians to ever be in the business (he passed away last June). I say this because he's a very logical person with his comedy...everything he says just seems to makes sense and that's why it's funny!

In this video, he talks about environmentalists and people just wanting to save the earth in general. It basically contradicts everything we've learned in class thus far, but I wanted to post this because it gives you the other side of the story, and really makes you think. I have to warn you though, he uses a lot of profanity so if you oppose of this, DO NOT WATCH! For the rest of you, enjoy!

PS. What are your thoughts after watching this? Do you agree or disagree with him?

Advocacy Project: Letter to Public Official

Ben Lee

2021 Sugar Cone Dr.

Cookies&Cream, MN 55801

April 28, 2009

Senator Amy Klobuchar

302 Hart Senate Office Building

Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Klobuchar,

I respectfully ask that you vote to pass the SF 2028 bill, which focuses on increasing public access to outdoor recreation and parks for communities.

As you may know, obesity has been a huge issue and major concern in America for the past few years. One of the main reasons obesity is becoming an epidemic in America is because people are not getting enough daily exercise and/or physical activity. By passing this bill, you will provide the lower class and more importantly, children, an ideal environment to be physically active. It is crucial that children grow up with an active lifestyle so that they will continue on this healthy lifestyle in their future. Teaching children to be active may be the single most affective, easiest, and cheapest way to prevent obesity in America. I am aware that health facilities are already available and people can also exercise right in their homes, however, health facilities are oftentimes costly and exercising outdoors is a very different positive experience than exercising indoors. With that being said, I believe by passing this bill and providing more outdoor parks for communities, we will be taking a crucial step towards decreasing obesity in America.

I am aware that you may not know exactly how problematic obesity in America really is. There are a few facts you may want to know about this issue. As of now 63% of American are overweight. Even worse, the child obesity rate has tripled within the past two decades. This is a major concern because obesity leads to many serious chronic diseases later on in life such as type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers. And according to the U.S. General Surgeon report, obesity is responsible for over 300,000 deaths per year.

Since obesity is highly modifiable, if not genetic, we should work to prevent this epidemic and save hundreds of thousands of American lives every year. As a health educator and a physically active citizen, I know that exercise is vital for good health. I understand that with more money comes better health. Because of this, passing the SF 2028 bill will help eliminate such economic barriers. I have had the privilege to go to a fairly nice high school and college which both had nice exercise facilities. I believe people who don't have these privileges still deserve a place to be physically active. Passing this bill will affect me very positively because I believe reducing obesity is a moral issue that everyone should be concerned about. Also by passing this bill, it will create justice for the whole public regardless of one's socioeconomic status.

Hopefully by now you are more aware of this issue. As a mother, I know you support child safety and promote child growth in all aspects. I am also aware that you have voted to pass bills to protect children from harmful products, environments, and people. By passing the SF 2028 bill you will be protecting children from the most dangerous aspect of their lives, chronic-disease. I hope you will vote "yes" to this bill to help keep America's children, lower class, and communities in general, healthy by being physically active every day.

If you have any questions, or would like more information about anything else regarding this issue, please feel free to contact me at (952) 925-2592. Thank you for reading this letter. Your time is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Ben Lee

Advocacy Project: Issue Overview

The issue I chose for this project is to improve health, fitness, and quality of life through daily physical activity. The related bill is SF2028, Parks and trails funding eligibility requirements and parks fund appropriations priorities establishment. It mainly talks about trying to increase public access to parks and outdoor recreation, and also funding for more places to be physically active outside.

Who is affected by this issue?

I believe the younger population and also the lower class will be most affected by this issue in a positive way. Since public exercise facilities such as Lifetime, or the YMCA can be costly and unaffordable for many, having more places to be physically active outside will promote this issue. Also it is important for children to grow up being physically active, so providing more parks for them will impact their lives. So children and the lower class will gain the most out of this issue. People who may be negatively impacted are the taxpayers. Taxes may need to increase to help fund these outdoor areas.

What are the consequences?

As a result of this issue, children and the lower class population will have more opportunities to be physically active which will impact their health in a positive way. Children will grow up with a habit of playing outside rather than sitting inside and watching TV all day. The lower class population will also be able to enjoy physical activity, and it will help prevent obesity which will also prevent chronic illness as well. Families would have an overall higher quality of life because of healthier siblings and parents. If all families engaged in some kind of physical activity every day, the society as a whole would become much healthier, and chronic disease would be at minimum.

What is the economic impact?

Like I mentioned earlier, the tax payers may be affected by this issue if no grants or other funds are offered by the government. It will cost a good amount of money for land space, and proper resources. Also health insurance agencies may be impacted as well because if more people are physically active, people will be getting sick much less often. On the other hand, people using these parks and public services will economically benefit the most because they will not have to pay expensive fees to use these facilities. Also, they will be bettering their physical health which will help prevent future illness. This, in turn, will result in less visits to the hospital and drastically lower medical costs.

What is the social impact?

This issue will have a huge social impact on individuals and communities. More outdoor parks will allow individuals, and families to come together and enjoy being outside and be physically active at the same time. Children will get to play with one another, and parents/guardians will be able to meet and socialize as well. Public places such as these will bring communities together, and also allow communities to host certain events free of charge.

What are the barriers?

There are a few barriers that come with this issue. First off, if taxes are raised, this will impact the lower class. Even if it is benefiting them, I think people with less money are more concerned about house payments, food, and other essentials, and not recreational parks. Another barrier is park location. Many people are limited in transportation, so even if there are parks available, some may not be able to get to them. The final barrier is cost. The bill talked about how some parks may have a fee to get in. The point of the fee is not for profit, but to maintain the park and self-sustain it.

What are the resources?

Money is the biggest resource that comes to mind with this issue. Someone will have to pay for these public services so money will be a big issue. Also the government and/or tax payers will be needed to help with funding as well. If communities want these parks but do not wish to pay for them, they will need to advocate for them to the decision-makers of their state. Along with these resources, other resources will be needed to actually build the parks and design them as well.

Who are the allies and opponents?

This one is kind of tricky because the people who are potentially for this issue may also be against it whether or not the money is coming out of their pockets. Therefore the allies for this issue could be parents, schools, health organizations, and people of lower socioeconomic status. However, they could also oppose this issue if they find out that taxes will be raised in order to build more parks around their communities. People who would oppose this issue could be public health facilities (Lifetime, YMCA, etc...) because having more access to free/low-cost parks would impact their profits negatively. Also the government and other decision-makers may oppose because it may ask for a large sum of grants and/or money, which they feel is not an important enough issue.

My recommendation

I would like my policy-maker to vote "YES" on this issue because physical activity is very important to me and I would like people to have more opportunities to be physically active regardless of location, money, and other barriers!

If you notice, I didn't have information on the history of my topic. I couldn't really find any information on the history of parks and physical fitness so if anyone knows where I could find some information, or has any other ideas, that would be AWESOME! Thanks guys =D

REFLECTION: WEEKS 11 & 12

Week 11

This week we watched the documentary "Unnatural Causes." I thought this was one of the most interesting videos we've seen yet. It was mainly about the health gap between the wealthy population and poorer population. People with less money most likely have worse health because they may not have health insurance, no or minimal access to health facilities, and live in urban areas that may be unsafe for them physically and environmentally. We were also introduced to the Healthy People 2010 assignment, which is basically a national goal of becoming healthier by taking little steps towards achieving certain health objectives.

Week 12

This week our advocacy project was due which was composed of choosing a goal from the Healthy People 2010 list. It was interesting looking through all the national goals and objectives and seeing which were moving towards the target, and which were moving away from the target. Although America is making a lot of progress, we still need to work on improving a lot of other health-related goals. We also read Ch. 20 in our textbook which talked about the ozone layer and how it's expected to repair itself dramatically within the next 3 years! One reason for this is because of the decrease in use of CFC's (Chloroflourocarbons), which deplete the ozone. This reading was great because it was the first to show that we as humans are actually helping the environment for once! It's good to know our actions are making a difference, giving us a sense of hope.

What I learned about myself

My parents have raised me to believe that "money does not buy happiness." I've lived by this motto my whole life. But after watching the documentary "Unnatural Causes," I think I have to reconsider how important money actually is. In essence, money can and does buy happiness because without good health, I believe it is nearly impossible to be happy. Therefore I have learned that I should revise my motto to "Money can buy good health...which IS happiness."

What I learned about blogging

I learned that blogging is truly a powerful tool in today's world. I say this for a couple reasons:

1. I believe we have all learned so much through blogging all semester. Not only about blogger itself, but technology, and how to utilize a computer to a much higher potential.

2. The photo essays we created, and how Dr. V has sent them to the HEDIR listserv for other faculty and administrators to see our work!

3. I think we have become closer as a class because of blogging. Before this class, I didn't talk to many people that I've known about for the last couple years, so blogger is a great social tool.

Well that about sums everything up for the last 2 weeks. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! Enjoy the sunshine =D

Advocacy Project: Healthy People/THOMAS

Goal:

Improve health, fitness, and quality of life through daily physical activity

According to the Progress Quotient Chart, 7 of the 10 objectives have moved toward the target. However, unfortunately 3 of the 10 objectives moved away from the target. The objective that experienced the highest amount of progress was objective 22-11 (28%). The objective that back-tracked the most was objective 22-6 (-25%).

Expanding on the progress, disparities, opportunities & challenges, and emerging issues:

The highest amount of progress was seen in the decrease of television viewing in people ages 18+ (28% increase). However, the lowest amount of progress was seen in regular physical activity in people ages 18+ (6%). This shows that although more young adults are decreasing their television time, they aren't increasing their exercise time in place of watching TV. The objective that back-tracked the most was the increase in moderate physical activity in people ages 18+ (-25%). The objective that back-tracked the least was participation in daily physical activity in school: grades 9-12 (-5%). It is sad that this objective has moved away from the target because schools should be encouraging students to be physically active. Since students are at school for the majority of the day, they should be able to exercise and engage in physical activity.

The progress toward eliminating health disparities showed that the more educated one is, the more likely they are to be physically active. Other than that, all other disparities stayed somewhat constant over time. Also for most of the objectives, the best group rates for physical activity were the white population (non-Hispanic), with at least some college education, urban dwellers, males, and adults without disabilities.

Looking at the opportunities and challenges, it focuses on the fact that technology has ruled out the need to be physically active in many aspects of our lives, such as transportation, our jobs, and maintaining where and how we live. In the past, we needed to walk or bike to get around, use the stairs and not the elevators, garden/grow our own produce, and mow the lawn (manually). Advances in technology has made it so easy to do all these without hardly breaking a sweat. This section also mentions that certain groups are looking into ways to increase daily physical activity in the lives of the public. These groups include employers, school administrators, park and recreation managers, transportation engineers, and public health practitioners.

There a few emerging issues regarding this topic. First and foremost, public health practitioners are working to provide more access to suitable locations for physical activities such as more biking/hiking trails, and recreational facilities. They are also working to reduce certain barriers associated with facilities such as expensive membership fees and hours. By doing both of these, physical activity will be much easier for all public to access, and also improve the public health of communities.

Second, although advances in technology are leading people to live sedentary lives, it is also helping to come up with better ways to measure whether or not people are being physically active. Some advances in measurement methods include pedometers, motion detectors, and heart rate monitors.

Related bill from THOMAS:

SF2028

Title:

Parks and trails funding eligibility requirements and parks and trails fund appropriations priorities establishment.

Latest Major Action:

Referred to House Committee

Status:

4/02/2009 - Introduction and first reading

4/02/2009 - Referred to House Committee

Political Representative:

Amy Klobuchar