Student Blogs

So, It’s Thanksgiving. This time serves as a moment to slow down our busy lives, be with family, and recollect on what we are thankful for. This Thanksgiving especially, Sc3 has not left my mind when thinking about things I am grateful for. I am so fortunate to still be connected to many of my close friends from Sc3 after two years. They never fail to ... more

This episode of Chef’s Table (found on Netflix) discussed the idea of cooking in the world that we live in today through the lens of Dan Barber, the head chef of the Blue Hill Restaurants in Hudson Valley, New York (Stone Hill Farm) and in New York City. Dan is described as the ‘modern chef’ of our day and age and he thinks about not only how to feed his customers, but what experience they have when they come to his restaurant and what impact the food they eat there has on the rest of their life. Dan sees food from not only an artistic culinary view, but also through an ethical and biological view, asking: what is the responsibility we are supposed to have with the food we consume and how are we supposed to use the Earth? more

Living as an environmentalist in a wasteful world can be at worst incredibly frustrating and at best rewarding and full of opportunities for improvement. I am frustrated constantly by the prevalence of single-use plastic and the normalcy of living in a society that creates such excessive waste. Sometimes, this frustration fuels the initiation of a passionate solution-oriented action plan. Other times, the overwhelming wastefulness inspires bitter ranting, long, guilt-filled showers, and binge-eating vegan desserts. On one of the more productive occasions, I turned my rage into a letter to the CEO of Hilton. Due to the fact that my dad is a Hilton Honors member, I realized that Hilton hotels give out two complimentary plastic water bottles to each of their honors guests. Upon noticing this, I pointed the issue out to my dad and began one of my rants about single-use plastic, the horrors of Nestle, etcetera. My dad, as usual, stopped my rant and cleverly redirected my anger toward the idea of writing a letter to Hilton about the issue. Together we brainstormed about alternatives for the plastic water bottles, and after some thought and research, I finished writing this letter to the CEO of Hilton. more

Before walking into Ten Thousand Villages, signs ensured purchases in the store were a communal and moral claim. Quotes such as:  “You’re preserving artistic traditions” “Come check out what they've been working on!” and “For the Mindful” filled their window. Does this store know how to be sustainable? In other words, do they support the needs of the  community -equitably, economically and environmentally- while supporting the needs of the future inhabitants of the system?  I talked to a spunky Junior from the University of Vermont who works at the shop on Church Street part-time. He said the problem is “we live in a bubble,” our minds never think about the effects of being a consumer-which is why he loves to work for Ten Thousand Villages. Products, their makers, and getting a product to the consumer, affect the greater world we live in. In these three areas, I found that Ten Thousand Villages gives its best effort to make this process sustainable. more

At Princeton Day School, there is a plethora of clubs and groups created with the sole intention to nurture and further enhance the passions of the student body. One such organization is EnAct, or Environmental Action club, which is one of the oldest clubs on campus.     more

As the twenty-first century continues on, the effects of climate change drastically alter the planet’s conditions, making it less habitable. Polluting the air with more emissions furthers the greenhouse effect that heats up the planet. While a majority of the greenhouse gases that are released stay in the air to continue the greenhouse effect, a large chunk of these gases, approximately twenty-six percent of emissions each year, are absorbed by the oceans. Ocean life has existed for a much longer period than human life, and roughly seventy-one percent of the earth's surface is covered with water. However, in our world today, scientists are in agreement that we are amidst a sixth mass extinction whose cause is anthropogenic. Meaning that humans are the cause and catalyst for the environmental destruction, extinction of wildlife, and loss of biodiversity that is occurring across the globe.       more

Each fall, Kenyon College’s sole dining hall, Peirce Hall, has a full stock of bowls, dishes, cutlery, and most notably, Peirce cups. The Peirce cups and their tendency to disappear from the dining hall are something of a long-running joke among students. During orientation, upperclassmen beg the freshmen not to thieve the cups during a spirited series of skits, and clubs on campus sell buttons that read “bring our boys home” with a picture of the famous red cup, in the early days of the spring semester. Despite these efforts, at the same point each year-- around mid-April-- there are just not enough cups to go around. more

April 22nd, Earth Day, serves as a time for people everywhere to pay attention to the world around them and take action towards preserving our planet for the future. Schools across New Jersey celebrate Earth Day by educating their students on the importance of being conscious of their impacts on the environment. For example, in elementary school, students are taught about the “3 Rs” (reduce, reuse, recycle) to help them live more sustainably.       As an environmental activist, I sought to take action on a day that is regarded by many as the epitome of environmental protection, Earth Day. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has established the week surrounding Earth Day to be known as the Environmental Education Week in New Jersey. The environmental concepts and ideas introduced in classrooms during this period are designed to go more in depth and to last more than just one day. This year, with the help of many along the way, including Tanya Oznowich at the Department of Environmental Protection, I drafted a proclamation to promote education on environmental sustainability in schools across New Jersey. Once it was brought to the governor's office, this proclamation was signed and put into effect by the governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy.      The proclamation served to further advance actions that were being taken to promote Earth Day and sustainability in New Jersey. At the same time, it helped me learn more about myself and my passions in the field of environmental policy. I was able to further my skills as an activist and take action on a larger scale, this time at the governor's office. more

By preaching about anything controversial, you are bound to receive criticism. Often this criticism can be constructive and valid if it is received properly and offered with good intentions. Throughout my growth as an environmental activist, I’ve been fortunate enough to be surrounded by other like-minded leaders. In observing the habits of others, I am always noticing ways that I can improve my own habits to more closely fit the ideals that I am trying to convince others to take on. more

On March 1, the importance of food from field to fork was highlighted during the first annual Food Justice Summit in upstate New York. Here farmers struggled to understand why their work isn’t considered a public service. more