Forks Washington

For action project 3 in H2O the class was assigned to create a slide show presentation about a specific location and how global warming is affecting them. The location I chose was Forks Washington. Forks has a lot of risks when it comes to Global Warming, many of them because of how much rainfall they get.  The Earth is being exposed to many gases and chemicals that are let into the air. Air pollution messes with the natural environment, which can cause acidic rain. Forks Washington is known to get heavy rainfall so when I heard about how people are careless about how the Earth handles gases and chemicals I was worried for Forks Washington. Acidic rain can affect many things including, oceans, animals, forests and even people. The most challenging  part about this project was having to understand what was going on with the Earth and how Global Warming really is damaging it. I always thought that my help would not really make a difference, but thanks to this project I was finally able to realize that we all can. 

Beautiful, but deadly

For Action project 4 our class was assigned to write a poem about one of the 5 topics that have to do with one of the Millennium Development Goals number 7, which is to Ensure Environmental sustainability. The issue I chose was Deforestation. I studied a specific plant named buckthorn. This plant not only takes over plant species and animals but it also kills them, not allowing native plants to grow, which makes the future of Forests look weak. To get a better understanding about this deadly plant, I talked to Dan a former Archaeologist, he explained to me how this invasive species is like a disease that will not stop growing in the Forest Preserves of Cook County. This inspired me to write a passionate poem to help out the helpless species and forests being invaded by this deadly plant. The most challenging part about this project was having to draw and still show what the issue is all about. As I got more into my poem, the easier it became to get inspired with my visual understanding about this issue.

Photography RD  Buckthorn 2013

The image above represents a Buckthorn tree symbolized as a bully. I chose to represent it in that way because in reality a Buckthorn tree is a bully, kicking out all the native species living in the forest. The tree shows all the beautiful berries falling down and tricking the animals. In the corner I drew a chainsaw and fire because those two are the only ways to get rid of Buckthorn.

Beautiful, but deadly

Greedy as can be, not allowing other plants to grow near

tricking the world’s animals and plants

Born to North America in the 1880’s

100 species of Buckthorn invading 27 states

beautifully growing up to 25 feet

burned or chainsawed being deadly as can be
needing 37 trained people to kill it's beauty and deciet
birds and deer put under it's evil spell
not knowing that their end is right around the corner
this beautiful plant is the bully of the forest

If we don’t take action it will only keep growing and hurting Earth’s creations

Chicago Wilderness corporation day service giving animals and forest a second chance

by ripping out the evil hearts of Buckthorn
We can all make a difference if we step up and help
Together we can help bring back the beauty of the forests.

Citations:

Melone, Dan, personal interview with former Archaeologist from the forest preserve district of Cook County. 13 October. 2013.

"Corporate Council". chicagowilderness.org. 2012. Web. October 16, 2013.

"Forest Preserves of Cook County". fpdcc.com. Thornton C. Ralph. N.P. N.D. Web. October 11, 2013.

Water Filter

The purpose of this action project was to build our own water filter. I had to filter non-potable water into drinkable water. Thanks to this unit I learned how to purify water and find it's pH. I have had many challenges when it came to building the filter but it was all rewarding at the end. Not only do I now know the difference between many waters but I now know what kind of water is safe to drink.

 Photograph RD, Water Filter Graph. 2013

The picture above represents my understanding of how a water filter looks and how it works. First to start off I had to gather some materials. Luckily most of the resources I used were natural, so it was very easy having access to them.The highest I payed was $2.10. I needed one Jelly Jar, a pop bottle, sand, gravel, soil and coffee filters. Building this filter, I had to organize and follow each step carefully. The steps that I took to build this was to first of course gather everything I had. The second step I took was to carefully poke holes on the cap on my pop bottle in order for the water to get through. I then put 2 coffee filters in the pop bottle, after that I started filling up the bottle with sand, dirt and gravel.

 Photograph RD. Water Filter. 2013

My filter worked by it being layered with all my materials. I used the coffee filters so it can drain out all the contaminated particles in the water. My water filter worked because all my sources were natural. Each source has its own job to do in the cleaning process of this water. This filter is similar to groundwater because it filters the water will all natural materials. I chose this design of a filter because it looked like it would be the simplest and most productive way to filter the water.


Before filtering the river and pond water I tested the pH by putting it on Litmus paper. It had a pH of 4, which is acidic. After filtering the water the pH came out to be 7.2, which is somewhat basic but still drinkable. I calculated the pH’s differences which was 2.8(7.2-4). I know that the equation for pH is -log[H+]. If I convert to a power form and plug in the pH I will get 106^2.8 (631). This would mean that my water was 631 times more basic before filtering. That simply means that the number of hydroxyl ions was increased. Based on my observations and calculations I expect the water to taste fresh and clean.

 Photograph RD Water Filter. 2013

Citation

• "Practical Primitive". practicalprimitive.com. Starnater, Eddie. Martin, Julie.LLC. 2012. Web. 28 September 2013.
  
  

Letter Profile by RD

The purpose for this MDG's action project was to chose a indicator that focuses on the Millennium Development Goal. The indicator I chose was 3.2 which is Share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector. I chose this indicator because I feel like that problem can affect me in the future. For this project I had to research another country that has a better or no wage gender gap in salaries then the U.S. This project opened my eyes to such an inequality that I didn't even know was an issue. It disappointed me, but at the same time made me think of ideas to help end this kind of inequality.

                                                                                                            RD's Salary graph. 2013

The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton 

2136 Rayburn House Office Building 

Washington, D.C. 20515. 

Dear Mrs. Norton 

I am RD and I attend Global Citizenship Experience High School in Chicago. I am writing to ask for your support to help end gender inequality in the United States workforce. I know that you worked with the Equal Employment opportunity commission (EEOC) and that is why i'm writing to you because I know you're one of the strongest people that could help me out. The wage gender gap in the U.S is very high. The difference of one chromosome can determine how much a person can get paid working in the same position. 

I did some research that would help me get a better understanding of what is going on in the United States'workforce. In specific I researched the wage gender gap in the teaching profession. In 2012 a male teacher made a weekly earning of $1,128.(bls.gov) Female teachers make a weekly earning of $921. (bls.gov) This is a difference of $207! When I saw the difference I was shocked and worried. There is a stereotype that most of the teachers in the U.S are female because of many natural unique skills a woman has, so why are female teachers getting payed less?

I chose Norway as a country to compare the weekly earnings as a teacher by gender. The weekly salary for a female teacher in Norway were much more closer to male teacher's salary in Norway. The more recent weekly earning I saw was in 2008. In that year male teachers made a weekly earning of $1262.25.(www.ssb.no) A female teacher made a weekly earning of $1262.(www.ssb.no) There really is no difference. 

In 2003 Norway became the first country in the world to pass a gender quota. The law stated that women must make up 40% of their workforce(The New York Times), since then the numbers have gone up. America needs to use Norway as an example.  I am very impressed at what Norway is doing to keep their workforce equal. Not only is Norway the best place for women to get close to equal pay, but it is considered to be one of the best places for people to live (USA today.com) Norwegian women are taking roles of some jobs that many U.S women would not even attempt to do. I still have hope that the U.S can change something about this huge inequality.   

The graph above represents all the data I collected representing the United States teacher salary and Norway’s teacher salary by gender. As you can see there really is no difference when it comes to the teacher salary in Norway by gender,which is a very good sign. One disappointing thing that caught my eye was that when you see the United States side of the graph the numbers look very far apart, which means that the wage gap is huge. 

I still have hope that the U.S can change something about this huge inequality. America needs to take action before the wage gap gets bigger. Since this issue is not very popular in the media, the U.S can hold many special groups to educate people about this unfair act. As a female I am worried. I do not want to grow up and have to deal with this unequal treatment. I would not want to move to Norway just to get the same pay as someone who has the same abilities I do. I decided The U.S needs more people like you who realize and see the unfair treatment women get in the workforce.

Thank you,

RD

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"Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey". bls.gov. N.P. Web. 5 Febuary 2013. 1 October 2013

"Norway is good for women". thejanedough.com. N.p. Simmons, Laura. Web. 13 June 2013. 1 October 2013.

“Earnings in municipalities and county authorities”. ssb.no. N.p. Web. 1 October 2103.



“Norway tops U.N. list of best place to live, while U.S. jumps from 13th to 4th”. usatoday.com. Stanglin, Douglas. Web. 5 November 2010. 1 October 2013.

Lakeview Pantry Profile by RD

For my MDG's action project, I chose to research an organization that tries to reduce the number of people who suffer from hunger. I was studying MDG target number 1, which is to eradicate the number of people who suffer from hunger. To get a better understanding about this topic, I went to Lakeview Pantry. This pantry helps people get food, clothes and counseling. This made me realize that people in other countries are going through the same problems but they do not have access to that kind of help. I am very passionate about trying to end this problem and I plan on volunteering in the future.

Rd, Lakeview Pantry, Chicago, Illinois, 2013

Rd,Lakeview Pantry,Chicago, Illinois, 2013

The topic I chose was Target number one, which is to reduce the number of people who suffer from hunger. I chose this target because I feel very passionate about trying to end it. To be able to better understand the target, I went to Lakeview Pantry and talked to one of their executives, Erin Stephans. Lakeview Pantry addresses my target by distributing food to people who do not have access to it. Having food access is something that all humans need in order to survive. Lakeview Pantry not only tries to help end food hunger in the community, but it also tries to educate people about it. The organization believes if people are having a hard time trying to get food, chances are they are having a hard time with something else in life, and because of this they offer counseling for people to attend. Since this organization’s main focus is to help end hunger it would go under Malsow's physiological needs.

I talked to Erin Stephens, who is the director of the volunteering team and she said that they are able to access that human need by being open to donations, volunteering opportunities and also by fundraisers. Lakeview Pantry receives its food and produce through donations from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. While at the pantry I asked Erin some questions that I thought would give me a better understanding of what she does to help this cause. One of the questions I asked her was, "what made her want to work there?" She responded by saying, her mother was a social worker, and all her life she had been surrounded in that kind of environment, and she knew when she got older she wanted to do the same by helping out others. Another question I asked was, "how does dealing and helping out in unfortunate cases and people affect her personal life?" She said it can be very hard on her at times, and there are days where work really stresses her out, but she is glad that her mom worked with social services for so many years because her mom is who helps her get through hard times at work since they can both relate to one another. I also asked her "how she liked working there", and with a big smile on her face she said she loved it, and it was a very rewarding job. Erin also said that having a very warm heart helps out a lot during work. One thing I really liked hearing from her was, “regardless of what I feel, I’m just happy to know that I help out so many people”(Stephans).Throughout this interview I was able to learn so many things. I learned that all kinds of people go to Lakeview Pantry, and not just "poor" people. Erin told me that many people who come in are not poor, but what they call “food insecure.” Food insecure describes people who have jobs, but after paying bills and other expenses they just don't have enough money for food. I also learned that the Pantry gets in about 100 people a day. The organization distributes 1.5 million pounds of food per year (Lakeview Pantry).


When I walked in and saw all the people waiting for their food I felt really bad. It made me feel guilty because I am always complaining about the food that I have at home, but the people at the Pantry are happy and grateful of whatever they can get. Erin also gave me a tour around the Pantry, and I was able to see where they kept all the food and produce and how hard volunteers and staff work to keep Lakeview Pantry the best place it can be. Thanks to this project I have a better understanding of how I, and many other people can do to help end world hunger.






Citations

Interview:

Stephens, Erin. Personal Interview. 13 September. 2013.

Photograph:

Dorantes, Rebecca. Lakeview Pantry. 2013. Original Photograph. Chicago, Illinois.

Dorantes, Rebecca. Lakeview closet. 2013. Original Photograph. Chicago, Illinois.

Website:

"495,000 Chicagoans are suffering from food insecurity." Lakeview Pantry. 16 Sept. 2013 <http://www.lakeviewpantry.org/>.

My Water Usage VS. Australia's Water Usage.

The purpose of this H2O project was to compare my daily water usage to Australia's daily water usage. In order to compare both, I had to record the number of gallons I use and research the number of gallons Australia uses. I thought it was very interesting finding out my own water usage because I never had a reason to do so before this project. I also had to find the closest water source to me and figure out how long it would take to carry my total amount of gallons (85)back to my house. This project taught me how hard people have to work in order to get clean water to drink and  how water is not always available to everyone.

RD SAVE H2O MATES.(2013)

On my poster the first thing I have is the title of my action project, which is “Save H20 mates”. I chose that title because I am comparing my daily water usage to Australia’s daily water usage. I divided up my poster into four categories. The first one shows my total daily water usage in gallons (85) and in a graph as percentages. The second box shows how many gallons Australia uses per capita (132) and its percents also. The third box shows the closest water source, which is the Chicago River(3.78 miles away) and how long it would take me to carry 85 gallons. According to my calculations it would take me about 170 hours to carry 85 gallons for 170 miles. The last box shows the differences between my water usage and Australia’s water usage.

There are many ways we can all save water and some of those ways are very easy. Since doing this project, I learned that I have been wasting unnecessary water. One easy step that I try to do every day, is trying to take a shorter shower. For me, Hygiene was the one thing that I kept wasting water on. Another way I can help lower the number of gallons I use for Hygiene is to turn off the water while i’m brushing my teeth. That would help save up to 10 gallons of water that i'm not even using.

I found out many interesting things about water usage around the world and Australia in particular during this project. One thing that I found really interesting was that I thought most of the water consumption in Australia would be for Yard work/ Agriculture purposes but it came out that the most water used was for Hygiene which was 54 gallons. I think they use that much water in Hygiene because they aren't as conscious about the water they use. I did not know much about water usage around the world before this project, but now that I do I will definitely be more responsible about the water I use.