Quarterly Research Projects

While I am on "motherhood sabbatical", I've decided to assign myself quarterly research projects. Balancing the time to do this should be interesting while watching my two young children as well as fulfilling the continuing education requirements of my architecture license. But, as I've always told other people - it's important to keep your head in the game! So, here I go...

These research projects will focus on a subject I am interested in and, ideally, coincide with a seasonal theme.

Fall - in keeping with the harvest season, i will focus on a topic dear to my heart, "urban agriculture in the upper midwest"
Winter - in chicago, this is the heating season, so i will focus on "residential energy efficiency"
Spring - biomimicry in practice
Summer - tbd

i will use this blog as a record of the research and then synthesize lessons learned. this research is given away free of charge with copyright rights reserved. i welcome feedback and references. when reposting, please cite my blog in addition to my sources.

thank you and enjoy!
amy

Downcycled, but still Recycled

i just got the kids a "buzz lightyear" stuffed doll at walgreens as a treat, and on it is a small removable tag that says it is filled with something called EarthRite Fiber, or recycled PET bottles. i thought it had to be greenwash, because it was for something as commercial as Toy Story 3, but the website is so cheesy, it has to be legit.

one word...plastics

going back to my intent of this site being a reference for people, like me, who have a shameful memory, this is something i can never remember: 

which plastics are ok and which could harm you?

when the BPA (Bisphenol A) freak out happened, i threw my avent bottles out with the rest of them.  but then they took BPA out of my Nalgene and I'm back drinking my artificially flavored Crystal Light out of it daily.  i'm drinking pink lemonade right now.  shades of green:  i almost never buy bottled water, but i drink flavored tap water out of BPA free #7 bottles.  but one thing i truly find disturbing is that i never realized until just now that BPA lines the cans of the premixed formula i buy for my son.  well, so much for that occasional convenience. good thing it's a once in a while thing for when we're on the move, but i should have thought of that.  memory...

so i can remember, here are the plastic recycling numbers:

1, 2, 4, 5 are nice
3, 6, 7 (with BPA) are naughty

Genius Upcycling

On one of my walks to the forest preserve, I pass by a house I love. It is what appears to be a really nice prairie style rehab of an old house. It's gardens are fantastic. I should post a photo so I can remember them in the dead of winter. At the sidewalk entry to this house are two planting urns, and the homeowener uses wine bottles as a self-watering tool. I personally love the aesthetic and it seems to work reasonably well, depending on the amount of water in the soil. I'm not sure I'd leave my plants unattended for a week with one, but as a stopgap to my forgetfulness, I rather like it. And, best of all, it's free!

Quote: "Isn't growth for the sake of growth the philosophy of cancer?"

- John Langerak, Chester, ME as quoted in Scientific American, August 2010

Garden Gossip: What I (tried to) grow in the summer of 2010

My mentor once told me that she didn't need to remember anything she can look up.  I'm not sure that's entirely accurate because a lot of what I do involves thinking on my feet.  But with the advent of blogs, looking things up has become so much easier.  So, because I am like my mentor and have a hard time remembering specific details, I am veering off of the sustainability course a bit to discuss wine and gardening, two things I love.

Stories for my Grandchildren

What stories would you like your great grandchildren to know about you someday? 

i was recently asked this question on an essay application i submitted.  i think it speaks to my viewpoint on environmentalism and how vital it is to our survival.

I am an environmentalist because I’ve always felt at home in natural environments and destroying beauty is a tragedy.  Environmental catastrophes such as the Gulf oil spill bring to the forefront of my mind that our society of rampant consumption and short-term gratification cannot sustain itself.  I hope future generations know I was a woman who loved her family fiercely and worked to make the world a better place for them.  I would like the legacy I leave to be one where I worked with a network of like-minded individuals and groups to inspire others to make the hard changes that will be necessary to sustain our species.  I would like to succeed in that goal by working hard, continually learning and drawing inspiration from nature, and teaching others to work together to improve the world.  My grandfather always told his family to “live, learn, and pass it on.”  I hope they say that I fulfilled his wish.