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Showing posts with label Community. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Community. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

My Service Project.


Five Faces is a course that teaches my classmates and I about the different variations of Five Faces of Genesis. The course explores the beauty and challenges of life through the examination of personal creativity and how it can impact my life and communities. In the last unit called Bring it all Together, we learned about how community service can be so important and can make a huge impacted in our lives and many others. We had to use all the skills and tools that we have developed throughout this course to apply to a real world situation. Not only did we use all the skills, we also came up with really unique community service ideas. What I had trouble with during this AP was finding time to actually do my community service. Since I work over the weekends it was really hard because that was the only time that I could have completed it. What I enjoyed the most was actually doing my part in servicing, I love helping other people, I felt very proud of myself serving.



  My community service idea was to help out my local Austin-Irving Branch Public Library. I have been going there since I was little and I loved going so now that I have went back and did community service there, I felt very proud of my self. I also felt very comfortable and I love what I did. I had thoughts on what I was going to do, like organizing and labeling books. But when I come in Andrew, who was my supervisor said I would be doing more than that. That would be my Seer part of my project because I pictured what I could be doing. My service hours were 9:00-1:00pm which is a total of 5 hours. I used my observer skills when I entered the building, it smelled and looked the exact same since the last time I had been there. The library was completely empty and Andrew walked me over to a cleaning closet with all the supplies that I would need. He explained to me that I would be cleaning children’s toys, which would benefit over 100 children. I think that was so amazing because I would stop the prevention of sickness spreading throughout the library, and many children would avoid getting sick. I think that it was cool that I clean the toys because many people don’t think a child can get sick off a toy item, and that can be one main reason why many children become sick. The three things that I combined throughout my service was to be productive, staying on task, planning, I think planning was the main part of my whole project, and enjoying what I was doing. To me I think I did such a good job because I helped out my whole community. I also kept a positive energy throughout the whole experience. All the staff members said I looked like I was enjoying what I was doing, they said I had such a big smile on my face and that I made everyone’s day I was being an Alchemist/Fool. I think that is so important because people that you worked with will remember what good volunteer you were. Overall I had an amazing experience, and I would definitely keep completing my service hours at the Austin-Irving Branch Library!

I used my Seer techniques to vision how my community service project will have turned out. 
Here is a picture of what I thought I would be doing at the library. 


Created by JV 2015*

Friday, May 30, 2014

Anti GMO!

In the last unit of Food, an integrated math and science course, we studied plant genetics and genetic engineering. For our last action project, we had a debate whether to allow GM seeds in our rural community in Illinois. I am anti GMO because I believe in letting nature be itself. GMOs change nature’s habits, making food not natural or organic.The USDA approves GM seeds but have not included the after effects of GM foods on our bodies. This is scary because we have no idea what GMOs can do to us in the long run. One Field Experience that I went on during this term I visited an organic farm. That experience really opened my eyes and made me more proud of eating healthy. I will definitely shop at farmers markets this summer to support local and organic produce. What I am most proud of is my argument. I think they are really strong and will give people something to think about!



What would you rather have? A tomato that has been injected with fish DNA to last longer, which is a GM tomato or an organic tomato to put in your dinner pasta? Well I would rather have the organic one because it is so much healthier. We eat GMOs every day. It is basically in everything. Wouldn't you want to change that? Wouldn't you want to know where your food comes from, and what's in it right? I am just saying that organic is a better option. I know it can be expensive but it is so much better for your health, and you won’t be eating different organisms at once. You will be eating wholesome vegetable and getting the nutrients that you need. Trying to make food “better” when scientists are just making food worse, by adding so many chemicals and sugar. Food should be left alone with nature. Scientist are doing all theses experiments. They don’t know what could happen in the future, GMOs can cause so many problems. I am pro organic seeds. I chose this position because I think mixing foods together is wrong. Coming up with different ways for food to last longer is so wrong because that is causing people to become sick. I do accept that GMOs are in everyday foods that we eat and provides other foods, but I do think there should be another option. That option is to ban GMOs from the United States. My reasoning for that is scientist are getting out of hand with all of these experiments making food into chemicals.

 My classmates and I went to an organic farm, where we met a farmer, Marc, who practices organic farming. He states, "GMOs are bad, we do not approve putting chemicals in our fields. It is not right to change nature.” Marc does not believe in adding fertilizers, which kills nature’s habits. Nature gives us such beautiful and healthy foods so why change them? Marc eats healthy every day because of his organic farm. His body is clean and he saves a lot of money by not going to the grocery store as often. He is also outdoors a lot working on his garden, getting vitamin D and enjoying nature. Not only is he eating healthy and getting vitamins, he is also building physical, and mental health. Gardening burns so many calories, Marc is getting so many benefits by just having one thing. That is an organic garden.

 Eating healthier, and the highest quality of vegetables keeps your body clean. Organic vegetables have more taste and also more nutrition. It can help with body growth and can help your brain grow as well. It can save lots of money if you plant your own organic garden. It gives families a hand on supply of fresh foods.Being Outdoors, will do more for your mental and physical health. It can give your body vitamin D and can help maintain bone mass. It will also give you more activities to do rather than sitting inside with the air conditioning on or the heat, which can cause headaches and dizziness because of natural gas that controls them. Being outdoors will be better than in a lab testing foods to last longer or taste better. People sit all day trying to change good healthy foods adding chemicals and putting different types of DNA in the foods. 

Getting Exercise, each garden task can burn 200- 400 calories per hour. Over a six month growing season, a gardener can burn 35,000 calories enough to lose 10 pounds. Working the arms, legs, and abs all at once! This can help with a humans mind and making them more active! It will also provide a care for the environment for organic farmers. They start to see what natural can provide healthy and fresher foods, that GMOs cannot and take better care of it. GMOs can make lots of food, to travel from country from country without going bad. This could help developing countries, which malnutrition is a big problem adding vitamins to other foods can help save over 2 million lives, and to prevent becoming permanently blind. With that I think there should be another option, in developing countries should be a organic garden, a local place where different villages can have local and fresher foods, that doesn't have so many chemicals in it. That can save so many lives and make people healthier. People in the villages can also have jobs to support families and different organic groups can help support with seeds and money.

 My brother eats chips, lunchables, candy, foods that a regular seven year old would eat. The down side to that is he is getting hives every time he eats those types of foods. He is allergic to a chemical that is in junk foods. It is sad to see that because now we need to give him foods that cause the hives so we can see what foods he can’t eat. Since he has stopped eating junk food, he is now eating organic and healthy foods. We can see the difference. He has more energy. He is happier. And his skin looks glowy and healthy. This is a big reason why scientists should stop their experiments. To stop this from happening please vote for NO More GMOs in our community!

Friday, November 15, 2013

Lack of Business & Communication in Portage/Jefferson Park.

 The purpose of this action project is to write a constructive protest letter to a representative, bringing attention to a problem that affects the local economy and making suggestions of how to address it. In Global Peace we are learning about Swadeshi which is Gandhi principles for nonviolence. Swa means me as in myself and deshi means location. We used Swadeshi to understand what was going on in our community. What I learned during this action project was that every Neighborhood can be fixed even if it was the best Neighborhood, there will always be a problem. The most challenging part for this project was getting a picture that really explained what the problem was. What I am most proud of is sending this letter so my community so it can become a better community.

John Arena Alderman for Portage/Jefferson Park.
45th Ward Service Office.
4754 N. Milwaukee Avenue.
Chicago, IL 60630.


November 14, 2013
Photography JV 6 Corners 2013*


Dear Alderman Arena:

My name is JV I attend Global Citizenship Experience High School in the Lincoln Park area in Chicago. I am taking a course called Global Peace, we are learning about Gandhi and his principles for the Indian independence movement. One word that we are learning is Swadeshi Swa means me as in my self, and Deshi mean place as in location. In this course we had to find problems in our Neighborhood which for me was Portage Park/ Jefferson Park and I am very lucky to be a part of it.

I have observed some problems in the community which was lack of communication, no connection with one another, and lack of business. The Neighborhood is very beautiful and quiet without a lot of crime. There is also little attraction in the neighborhood, when I am on my way to school so many business and restaurants are apart of the Lincoln Park area. The restaurants are always packed and bring so much attraction to the community. I also see in my neighborhood many empty buildings in 6 Corners. Which takes up useless space, but also makes the neighborhood look poor and worthless. There is also no connection in the community which is very quiet and not a lot of safety with one another. My class also went on a Field Experience to Andersonville which I observed was very connected with one another. They had many local businesses and look like a well connected neighborhood to live in. 


If my neighborhood is still lacking businesses and connection with one another Portage/Jefferson Park will fall apart. These two sample problems that could be fixed affects the local economy because nobody is taking action and raising together. If we do not stop this now Chicago's beautiful neighborhood will diminish.

I will suggest possible solutions for the problem. The community can come together and hold meetings to open local businesses. With you coming to the meetings will show the community that you care. We can possibly open a local Polish Bakery, since there are strong European roots, this can benefit the community very well. When I went to Andersonville I went to a Swedish Bakery which is only in Andersonville. It has been open for 80 plus years and really brings attention and the community together. I think this idea will be great for my neighborhood.

If these problems can be solved the community will rise, there will be a better connection. There will also be a lot of business in 6 Corners and a lot more in Jefferson Park area as well. That will bring a lot more attraction and business to my neighborhood. I think the local bakery idea will help the community so much. Please consider my solutions.

Sincerely,

JV

1535 N. Dayton St, Chicago, IL 60642.

              Photography JV 6 Corners 2013*