Amanda Adolfo

I found this fundraiser on GoFundMe. Basically, these partners, Ashley and Andy turned an old lot into a community garden with fruits and vegetables. They named it Barcelo Gardens. Ashley shared that their passion started for growing a garden started when they grew their own curbside plot on an abandoned bit of sidewalk in LA. They said that they were inspired by a technique coined by green activist Ron Finley, called "guerilla gardening." Guerilla gardening, described by Ron, is an adaptable way to garden. His philosophy is that you can use any open soil, whether it's a parkway or a sidewalk plot, to grow fresh fruits and vegetables. Honestly, I think this is a great idea because there is so much space and soil to start a garden! 

I looked into Ron Finley's work in his community in South Central LA. Basically, he and fellow green activists created a petition to demand the right to garden and grow food in his neighborhood. He also addressed, "the lack of fresh produce" and how hard it was to "drive 45 minutes to get a fresh tomato." To me, it's absurd that the community had to petition for their right to grow food on empty soil. Fortunately, they earned the right to grow these fruits and vegetables on any lot. I've attached a photo below of some plants in the bottom of an empty swimming pool, so you can better see Ron Finley's work and the idea of guerilla gardening.

After Ashley and Andy followed Ron Finley's garden growing tips, they eventually relocated to the 9th ward of New Orleans and realized there were not many real grocery stores there, which gave them the idea of starting a community garden. Also, local co-ops in the area had expensive and inaccessible fresh produce. They were describing a food desert, or a lack of access to healthy foods. 

I donated to this GoFundMe because I saw how the creators of this community garden/farmer's market were helping their community in many ways. They also described how during the pandemic, Black businesses were hit hard. Their farmer's market features, "Black farmers, growers, and makers as their majority. It is a safe space for them to sell their food(s) and network."

Ultimately, my funds will help Ashley and Andy to build a community garden and create a space for a farmer's market. Along with carbon sequestration, this garden can help alleviate the food desert in this community. That way, the health of the community can also be improved and it fosters local economy. Low income and BIPOC communities are disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change, so it's important to address issues like food deserts, where accessibility and affordability can be barriers to getting healthy, sustainable food. These benefits matter to me because I believe healthy food should be accessible to everyone.

This weekend, my roommate and I went hiking in Solstice Canyon, which is located in the Santa Monica Mountains. This place is really interesting because it has architectural ruins from the 1920s. There were some houses up in these mountains that were destroyed by a wildfire. I'm intrigued that people lived this high up in the wilderness in the mountains, but the privacy and the nature seems nice. The houses are also in a prime location because they offer such a great view of the ocean. This would make me feel a greater appreciation for nature.

This past year, I spent a lot of time outside in the nature, either hiking or going to parks. It made me more in tune with my surroundings and appreciative of nature. Things that I had not noticed before, like birds chirping, running water, or even insects on the ground became more apparent to me. I guess I never noticed it as much because my life used to be so fast that I didn't have the time to stop and look around. I never hiked as much as I did this past year.

I realized how much of the outdoors is alive, even in man-made parks or on campus. This year, I finally noticed how many different species of plants and trees there are. I also noticed that there's a lot of animal life on campus like squirrels, birds, and lots of bugs. Sometimes I'll go out to do work in sculpture garden and I get so distracted by the squirrels running around. It's so interesting and fun to see them interact. There are also a lot of colors from the plants on campus. My favorite are the light purple flowers or bright yellow flowers on the trees. The pink flower bushes in front of Royce and around the quad are also very beautiful.

I think having a greater appreciation of nature makes me want to preserve it more. It would be really sad and disheartening to see the outdoor habitat get degraded or wither away. Nature is really grounding and a great stress reliever. Just being out in the sun for 15-20 minutes a day makes me in a better mood. In the morning I like to go out on my deck and do some yoga or meditation and at the end of my practice I lie down on my mat and look up at the big tree that provides shade on my deck. It's so beautiful looking up at this huge tree, the birds, and the sky. It's so relaxing, grounding, and stress-relieving that it's something I've incorporated into my daily routine. It's true that the dead leaves from the tree shed onto our deck, but honestly it does not even bother me anymore because I am so happy that the tree provides shade and brings the nice sound of chirping birds.

I think it's important for people to be more appreciative of nature because it is being threatened by human activities, such as fossil fuel emissions or pollution. Nature provides a lot of resources for us, but it's important that take care of it too because we just keep taking from it. It needs nourishment and care too, so that we can restore its health and beauty.

The picture below is an ocean view from our hike this weekend.

 

I hope that micro energy solutions can reduce inequities. From what I learned, they are one of many great solutions for climate change, however, these solutions are often not afforded to low income or BIPOC communities first, due to existing racial and social inequities.

I donated to a company called GRID Alternatives. They thrive to offer community-based solutions through installing renewable energy power grids. They strive for economic and environmental justice. They make solar energy affordable and accessible for low-income communities, as well as creating jobs. GRID is addresses and acknowledges upstream, systemic inequities are a part of the problem in climate change and that the affected to communities need to be a part of the solution. Hence, they are targeting their solutions at the community level, which is a huge part of microgeneration. Overall, they reduce inequities by providing affordable solar power and increasing jobs.

This is important to me, because as I have said before, climate change is a multiplier of racial and environmental injustice. I learned this from my climate action event, a speaker series at UCSF Population Health & Health Equity: Climate Change and Health. They really stressed that affected communities need to be involved in planning and carrying out climate solutions. Not only does microgeneration create jobs, it also creates opportunity for leadership.

 

It is important for girls to have equal access to education for so many reasons, GHG's being only one of them. As I have learned, girls in poverty are the most vulnerable to impacts of climate change. It is also sad because these girls are often not included in climate change solutions. 

Girls' education can reduce climate change because it can empower and advance their reproductive health and rights. In low and middle income countries, some girls skip attending school when they have menstruation. The reason is that they cannot afford/do not have access to menstrual products (pads, tampons, etc). When they miss a lot of school, sometimes they do not end up finishing the course of their education. Also, at school girls can learn more about family planning and sexual education. With these tools, they can reclaim their sexuality and have control over their own bodies. 

Empowering young girls is important for leadership as well. First, their representation is needed in planning and executing climate change solutions. Women also go to school so that they can learn about green jobs and possibly enter green career fields.

People in richer countries eat more meat than people in other places because meat is overall more expensive that plant-based foods. Meat is considered a delicacy/a luxury. I think it is more expensive because it's arguably harder and more expensive to farm animals than plant vegetables/fruits. Animals require a lot of resources like water, food, and land, so that would probably make them more expensive. 

Both my parents are from the Philippines and my mom told me that when she was growing up, she didn't have a lot of meat in her diet because it was expensive. The staples that were more inexpensive were meatless products, like rice and local vegetables. Although inexpensive, this diet was healthy. I remember that she told me that her grandparents lived into their 90's because all they ate was this traditional veggie soup. 

For me, I noticed eating meat makes me more tired and full (but like a heaviness). Meat also has higher cholesterol levels and if you don't cook it through it's dangerous. Animal agriculture is a large driver for climate change because it contributes greatly to carbon emissions through water wastage, destruction of land, erosion, and deforestation amongst other things. I didn't really realize it until college, but basically all the meat we consume comes from large, condensed animal "farms." I use the word farms because I'm not really sure what else you would call the land that animals for agriculture are raised on, but it's not the kind of farm that has a lot of space and grazing area. In fact it's quite the opposite. 

I still eat meat sometimes because I was raised eating meat and I've become so accustomed to the taste, but, over the past few years I've realized that I could go for a long time without consuming meat and eating plant-based. Especially in LA, I've enjoyed some vegan food and I can see that with a little research and experimentation, eating plant-based can taste so good. It also makes you feel healthier because you're nourishing your body with vitamins and minerals and your body doesn't feel as heavy or tired after.

Like I said in my earlier post for this challenge, it's important to reflect on where there is a lot of extra water coming from. We use a lot of extra water when we wash the dishes, especially big pots, so it's nice to try and save it and water the plants outside. In my earlier post, I said my dad collects the water in a large Home Depot bucket and waters the trees outside since we don't get much rain in the desert.

Another way my family has been saving water is to take out the grass. As aforementioned, we live in the desert so we opted for desert landscaping. It is still really nice because we have some succulents that don't require a lot of water and the grass was replaced with stone. Lawn grass takes a lot of water because it requires sprinklers and is somewhat high maintenance.

Another source of water wastage is the shower or faucets. I never let the water run when I'm brushing my teeth or washing my face. It's something that I've always had a habit of doing and it feels wrong if I let the water run for a long time because I know it is quite a bit of water! I remember in the dorms at UCLA, they had stickers up on the mirror that recommend taking shorter showers. I think this is also a great way to save water, plus, shorter showers are better for your skin (I have heard).