"Be the change you wish to see in the world." - Gandhi

I must agree that a sustainable diet and lifestyle can make you a healthier and happier person overall. From all of the research that I’ve read and done, it seems to be a healthy alternative to the normal hustle and bustle lifestyle that I, myself, lead. I really want to stay as committed as I can to a sustainable lifestyle, but I know it will be hard. I know that I probably will never live a 100% sustainable lifestyle, but I can do small things to help the earth! I’m definitely committed to planting a garden, going to the farmer’s market all summer (which opens in Bloomington/Normal May 14), eating less meat and buying food locally at food co-ops.

During this project, I really wanted to go work for PrairiErth Farms, in exchange for locally grown goods, but unfortunately, we were only in contact for a short time. I still wish to do this and hope I can during my summer in Bloomington/Normal. I also really hope to keep up with my blog and post more about living sustainably and any other food news (a-la Eng 308) I can find!

I know that with the help of my friends (i.e. Jenny Goodwine), I can work to make the earth a better place. It is absolutely going to be a hard journey because living sustainably isn’t the norm, but it’s one I hope to continue on, at least in small ways. I will continue to read literature about food and sustainability in the hopes of learning even more. I know I’m not perfect – I still enjoy a little Taco Bell in my life (our little secret!), but I can still do many things to help out the earth!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my blog and I hope that at least one thing I’ve said has inspired you to try and live the same! Thank you!

Best wishes,

Julia Frederick

Recipes & Dairy

For one of my last blog posts, I really wanted to talk more about food and how to make food in a sustainable fashion. You can always make and eat food sustainably, by using locally grown goods, but the website SustainableTable.org has taken this one step further. There are a plethora of delicious sounding recipes that I definitely want to sample.

One recipe in particular that sounds the most delicious is, Apple Honey Pie. I suddenly have the urge to bake and it doesn’t even look like that much of a challenge! I may not be able to cook, but I can definitely bake. J

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This site also has quite a large list of the problems with not eating sustainably. For example, they talk about dairy and cows and the issues in this industry. I’ve always had a place in my heart for cows, and after I watched a documentary about the dairy industry and Monsanto, I stopped drinking milk for a very long time and switched to soy milk because of all the awful things the cows go through and because the milk can sometimes be infected.

Although new technologies help cows produce more milk, this is unnatural and it’s killing the cows. Cows diets are being changed,  

“Pasture grasses are replaced with an unnatural diet high in fat and protein-rich grains to increase milk production, and to replace energy lost by producing such large quantities of milk. When fed large amounts of grains like soy and corn (often genetically engineered and heavily sprayed with pesticides),  this diet can cause cows to develop digestive problems and diseases that can lead to death. To keep animals alive, a continuous low dose of antibiotics, in conjunction with methods to relieve gas caused by lack of rumen use, is necessary” (SustainableTable).

After seeing all the information about what happens to cows, it’s hard to stomach what is going on. Unfortunately, I know that I will continue to use regular milk in my cereal because I share it with my roommates, or else I would just waste the soy milk by myself. Sort of a lose-lose situation.

SustainableTable’s solution to all of the issues they present? Simply eat in a sustainable fashion and you won’t have to worry about all the problems of factory-processed food.

Sincerely,

Julia

"Corn Sugar"

Something that recently caught my attention was a commercial for the website – http://www.cornsugar.com. The reason this caught my attention is because in class we had a debate about the change in words – high fructose corn syrup vs. corn sugar. In all honesty, there is no real difference between the words, the only real difference is that it seems as though they are “dumbing down” this word for us into corn sugar so as to make it more “recognizable” on labels. High fructose corn syrup and corn sugar are the exact same things, so why change the name? Is it because HFCS sounds too much like a chemical? Is it because we know what corn is and we know what sugar is, so why not just call it corn sugar?

According to CornSugar.com, “Relabeling high fructose corn syrup as “corn sugar” clears up confusion and enables consumers to easily identify added sugars in the diet” (CornSugar).  But why? Well, “Consumers need to know what is in their foods and where their foods come from. Corn sugar succinctly and simply describes what this ingredient is and where it comes from: corn” (CornSugar).

I’m sorry, but the ingredients of high fructose corn syrup, or corn sugar, are not exactly that simple. I understand what the website is trying to say, but I think we’re all smarter than to think that it is just corn and sugar, so why change the name now? It’s as processed as it’s always going to be, they’re not petitioning to change the ingredients, just the name.

Concerning high fructose corn syrup itself, there are many for it and many against it.

CornSugar.com quotes Phil Lempert, The supermarket guru,

“In addition to providing sweetness, HFCS acts to preserve and protect food from water activity, improves texture and reduces freezer burn. It imparts browning to breads, cakes and cookies and provides a soft, moist texture in the production of items like snack bars. And liquid HFCS blends easily with other ingredients.” (Lempert).

Although HFCS does all of these things, many disagree with the use of HFCS. According to research on rats at Princeton University,

“In addition to causing significant weight gain in lab animals, long-term consumption of high-fructose corn syrup also led to abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the abdomen, and a rise in circulating blood fats called triglycerides. The researchers say the work sheds light on the factors contributing to obesity trends in the United States” (Princeton University). 

This information is disheartening, but sugar is sugar and should be eaten in moderation for a healthy lifestyle. There are going to be different opinions for “corn sugar” because different research will be done regarding HFCS. I don’t think High Fructose Corn Syrup will be going anywhere because it’s such a huge part of our food system today, but in the end, it’s your choice if you want to eat it or not.

Take care,

Julia

Vegetarians & Sustainability

Something that has really interested me recently is vegetarianism and its relation to sustainability. Freshman year of high school I tried to be a vegetarian, but it only lasted about two weeks. Now, I only really eat chicken or turkey due to preference.

Becoming a vegetarian is one definite way to help the environment – even just cutting down your meat intake can have a positive effect on the environment! According to lettuceleaf.org, “the livestock industry is one of the biggest contributors to environmental degradation worldwide” (lettuceleaf).

From the Official Blog of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “There are a variety of different environmental impacts that occur due to the production of meat:

• Air pollution due to dust and liquid manures.
• Fossil fuels, water, and land over-use
• Rainforest erosion and destruction for pasture land
• Water contamination due to animal waste
• Grain and corn grown for animal feed instead of addressing world hunger” (Reising).

As we can see, the production of meat is not very earth-friendly, even if it it’s produced organically. I’m not at all trying to push vegetarianism on anyone because I myself am not one, but I think that it’s important to look at all aspects of food sustainability. Also, as I posted before, our meat, although it’s mandatory that is inspected, doesn’t have to receive a grade. If you’re not convinced that vegetarianism can help the earth – at least you can see that it can possibly help your body.

One of my goals of this blog was to strongly reduce my intake of meat in order to live a more sustainable life, and I think I’ve done a very good job at that, to be honest, I’m not very good at cooking – and I definitely am not good at cooking meat, so it has not been much of a challenge for me to reduce my intake. The one meat though that I love and could probably never give up fully is turkey. Turkey is one of the staples in my diet and try as I might, I just don’t think I could give it up.

Best Wishes!

Julia

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

I really think it is pertinent that I talk about the book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. There were mixed reviews on this book in our classroom, but I found there to be some good information within the pages. I truly think that any person (or family!) who can give up certain foods, and who try their hardest to live a sustainable lifestyle is someone to learn more about!

Barbara Kingsolver and her family, somewhat like the No Impact Project, decided to give up the industrialized food that we all hold so near and dear to our hearts, to only buy and grow local foods. If they could not buy or grow what they wanted locally – they simply did without.

There are three main components to this book.

1.       Barbara Kingsolver’s running narrative about their journey with food.

2.       Steven Hopp’s interjections on the more scientific side of what Barbara Kingsolver writes about. And,

3.       Camille Kingsolver’s personal outlook on food and what brought her family to this point, with a few delicious-sounding recipes piled in.

I was most interested in learning about what they did during the “hungry month” from February to March, because they had to eat food they had canned during the growing months and wait out the winter. Kingsolver writes, “January is widely held to be the bugbear of local food, but the hungriest month is March, if you plan to see this thing through” (Kingsolver 322). In the month of March, there is not much new being grown, but her family made it through. I wish there would have been more information on this topic, but alas, it wasn’t much touched upon.

Like I said earlier, Camille Kingsolver had a lot of delicious sounding recipes. One in particular that I am dying to try (from freshly grown vegetables, of course! Because there is nothing like a home-grown tomato) is her Summertime Salad. All it consists of is 2 large tomatoes, 1 ball of mozzarella, basil leaves, olive oil and salt to taste – but doesn’t that sound absolutely amazing?

In the end, although this was just meant to be a year-long endeavor, the Kingsolver’s continued to live this lifestyle. Kingsolver explains, “it was a deeply enjoyable conversion, so yes, it did stick.  We still organize our meals around what’s locally available, when it comes into season.  We don’t eat industrially-produced feedlot meats, and frankly can’t imagine it.  Our garden expands every year, and our local farmer’s market also keeps growing” (Kingsolver).

Overall, although I may talk the talk, I definitely don’t think I could walk the walk with the Kingsolver family. I definitely want to change my life for the better, but I know that I couldn’t do what they did, I don’t even think I could strive for it, but I still respect them for changing their lives in the ways that they have!

Have a great day!

Julia

King Corn

“King Corn” is a documentary made by mosaic films incorporated. This film is about two men – Ian Cheney and Kurt Ellis – and their journey to find out where their food comes from. They move from the east coast to the town of Greene, Iowa to plant an acre of corn and see where it takes them.

I learned many interesting and somewhat shocking things from this film that I had never known before. Like I said in a previous post, I’ve become more and more interested in corn and its uses, and obviously this is what the film was all about – corn.

Some things I learned that you may not know:

1.       Most of the corn found in corn fields surrounding us is not meant to be picked and eaten – it is used as feed corn, and corn that will be changed into high fructose corn syrup and other processed corn materials.

2.       Cows are not supposed to be corn-fed; rather, they are supposed to be grass-fed! Grass-fed beef is healthier to eat than corn-fed, too, “corn-fed beef contains much more saturated fat than those raised on grass” (King Corn)

3.       You can make high-fructose corn syrup in your own kitchen – though I’m not sure why you’d want to! Although, according to the men of King Corn, “it’s not really possible to make an exact homemade replica of high-fructose corn syrup. Three enzymes are required to make HFCS, and the third one, glucose-isomerase, is so expensive that it is not readily available to consumers” (King Corn).

4.       We generally have an enormous excess of corn every year.

5.       Grading for our meat is voluntary. Gross. Here’s what I found out about this from the USDA, “Inspection for wholesomeness is mandatory and is paid for out of tax dollars. Grading for quality is voluntary, and the service is requested and paid for by meat and poultry producers/processors” (USDA). So while there is a mandatory inspection for wholesomeness of meat, there is not grade for quality that is mandatory – what are we eating?! More information can be found at the USDA site about different grading techniques and the mandatory/voluntary issues.  

I thought the facts that King Corn portrayed were very real, and I was surprised to learn about the aspects of corn that they showed. I think their story is interesting, but most people wouldn’t leave their homes to go and plant an acre of corn to see what’s going to happen with it – though I guess I can say the same for the Kingsolver family or for the No Impact Project.

I think that all of these people are incredibly remarkable to go and see what’s in our food and to also try to live sustainably – their experiences have really shown me that there’s more to our food than meets the eye and we should be more concerned.

Take care,

Julia

Food for Thought

I thought that I would touch a little bit on the history of sustainability and the EPA’s stance on Sustainability in Agriculture.

The words sustainable development, “has been widely used in scientific, business, and public institutions since it was first defined in the Bruntland Commission's "Our Common Future" in 1987” (EPA). “Our Common Future” was a call for environmental change on a global level.

The term, sustainability, is a relatively new one, but now we see it virtually everywhere. Although it’s everywhere, the Environmental Protection Agency realizes that many people don’t know all of the facts about sustainability. The EPA’s main goal for sustainability is to have the

“federal, state, tribal, and local governments working together to achieve environmental protection goals [which] will set the standard for cooperation between communities, businesses, and governments. This new collaborative decision making process will ensure better decisions, create more rapid change, and promote more sensible use of human, natural, and financial resources.” (EPA)

The ultimate goals for the EPA regarding sustainability are to change what we’re doing to the earth; to help save natural resources; to help our future generations live a healthy and safe life; and to help ourselves now reduce the pollution and energy that we are creating, but not putting back.

On the EPAs Sustainability Topics – Agriculture page, there are a plethora of links that are meant to help explain some of the actions that the government takes and that others can take to help with sustainability in agriculture (for example, Organic Farming and Composting are on the list).

There is even an entire page promoted to Food Safety on the EPA website. They mostly talk about the use of pesticides on food and what they are doing to ensure our safety as consumers. I do know though, that most organic farmers don’t use pesticides (unless highly needed), “Organic farming, by definition, does not use environmentally harmful chemicals that may contaminate rain and groundwater” (Whole Foods).

But I also know that the traditional way of farming is to use pesticides to be safe under all regulations from the government. According to the EPA,

“Chemical pest control plays a major role in modern agriculture, and has contributed to dramatic increases in crop yields over the past four decades for most field, fruit and vegetable crops. Pesticides have enabled growers to produce some crops profitably in otherwise unsuitable locations, extend growing seasons, maintain product quality and extend shelf life. Nevertheless, these chemicals also pose some risks if used improperly or too frequently” (EPA).

The EPA goes on to say how much and what kind of pesticide is allowed to be used by farmers, etc. Although I know that because of convenience I will buy most of my vegetables/fruits in grocery stores, I still can’t help but feel that the use of pesticides and the overabundance of food that we produce is not a good thing, it’s not helpful to the environment.

Overall, the EPA is committed to helping us eat safer and live better lives through their food regulations and the tips that they provide for us.

Another great place to look for more information about food and sustainability is the United States Department of Agriculture. I specifically chose to look at the ‘Food Quality’ section of the USDA site. They do have a way of grading fresh food (i.e. fruits and vegetables), but “Grading is paid for by user fees and is voluntary except for commodities that are regulated for quality by a marketing order or marketing agreement, subject to import or export requirements, or purchased by USDA or certain other Government agencies” (USDA). What does this mean for what we are eating? What this means is that, not everything we eat is being inspected – this goes directly back to Pollan and caring about what we are consuming.

This semester, I’ve learned so much more about food than I probably would have ever wanted to know, but now that I know more about the production techniques, I at least have the choice now for healthier alternatives to what we’re given. I think it’s incredibly important to learn about what goes into our food, because if you don’t know, then why would the people producing it care about what they’re doing to it?

Just some food for thought!

Take care,

Julia

Interview : Jenny Goodwine

Jenny Goodwine is a 21 year old, born and raised in Champaign-Urbana, IL. She is employed at an environmentally-driven, open and democratic co-op, called Common Ground Food Co-Operative. She is currently a Junior, Social Work major at the University of Illinois, who is extremely interested in non-profits or direct practice with clients. She is very interested in local food movement and organic farming – she even worked on an organic farm two summers ago.  She is hell-bent on eating well, fresh, unprocessed foods – mostly plants. She is a former bacon-lover turned vegetarian, and soon to turn vegan. Jenny is inspired by simplistic lifestyles, a desire to be self-sufficient, and live on a need basis.

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1. What is your definition of sustainability?
Simply, sustainability to me is living in such a way that can sustain healthy environmental, animal, and human life for the present and future.

2. What do you do to maintain a sustainable lifestyle? Do you think you live a sustainable lifestyle?
To live a sustainable lifestyle means to consider the greater implications of every action you do: driving your car, throwing your pop can away, buying things with excess packaging, and to realize the result of all of those separate actions added up.  I'm sure that I could live a more sustainable lifestyle - we all could; but I think I do an admirable job, and I hope to gradually develop as an ever-more sustainable person.  Currently, I am a die-hard recycler (who admittedly picks up pop cans and plastic during my walks); I avoid driving cars whenever possible, and have a personal goal of never owning a car (I rely on my own two feet, or my own two bike tires!); I almost exclusively wear used clothing - whether hand-me-downs or thrift store items; I occasionally hold "Clothing Swaps" as well as "Free Stuff Swaps" where my friends bring any unwanted clothes or other household objects, and we simply trade.  Reusing clothing and other items cuts down on what we would otherwise have to buy at the store (which involves a consumption of resources to create those new things, to create excess packaging, it may use up gas to drive ourselves to the store, and also uses up our hard earned cash!).  I compost all of my organic material in something called a vermicompost pile - a bin that contains worms that eat the food I dump in there (this prevents all my uneaten food ending up in the landfill, where it gets so compact that there's not enough air to even decompose our food).  I do other small things like bring my own bags to the grocery store, and I often explicitly ask for no bag if I buy something at a retail store (Today I walked out of TJ Maxx with two bras in my hand - no bag).

3. Tell me about your work at a food co-op.
I work at one of the most satisfying jobs ever because my value of sustainability is upheld on a business level.  I work at a wonderful grocery store called the Common Ground Food Co-op, which specifically sells organic, local, and natural foods.  It is food cooperative, and many food cooperatives tend to have very similar values - not the least of which, and indeed one of the most important, is maintaining a high level of environmental sustainability.  The ways in which we practice sustainability is aplenty, and we are constantly actively seeking new ways to become more green.  By principle, we do not provide new plastic bags for customers; instead, they can use the ones we've collected in the "recycle grocery bags" bin, or bring their own.  We compost everything, and give that compost to local farms who use it to enrich their soil.  We buy our various equipment from environmentally friendly distributors.  Perhaps one of the most important ways that we encourage sustainability is the food itself: nearly all of it, save a couple of items, is certified organic (anything not organic is "natural" - which is an official label put onto foods that must be upheld to certain healthy standards, as well).  Organic basically means that no artificial fertilizers or pesticides were used by the farms when growing the food, which keeps our land and bodies healthy and free of harmful chemicals.  Furthermore, the co-op also buy as many products from local businesses and farms as it can, which has COUNTLESS benefits: it greatly cuts down on the amount of fuel it takes to bring the food to us; it puts money back into our local economy; it supports the business people of our local community; and finally, our produce is fresher, tastier, and plain old looks prettier as a result! 

4. Do you buy food locally? Where? What do you buy?
YES, I buy food locally!  The best place to buy locally is from your local farmer's market!  Urbana, where I was raised and currently live, has one of the best, most community-oriented, and most delicious farmer's markets I've been to.  Farmers from around Illinois (thought most are from right around Urbana) meet in the parking lot next to the Common Ground Food Co-op every Saturday morning from May to September to sell their produce or other locally made goods.  The options range from the early-spring options of asparagus, alfalfa sprouts, kale, lettuce, artichokes, and arugula, to the mid-summer options of basil, tomatoes, peppers, corn, and peaches to the early fall options of apples, beets, carrots, cucumbers, or squash.... but the list goes on.  You can even buy local cheese, meat, honey, bread, eggs, grains, and flour.  
    When the farmer's market is not in season, I buy my local supplies from the Common Ground Food Co-op.  All year round, the co-op sells that same locally made cheese, honey, grains, flour, meat, eggs, and bread that you can buy at the farmer's markets!  Even in winter time, some produce from local farms is available, such as root vegetables which can be kept in root cellars all winter, and some local farms have green houses which can grow some leafy produce in winter, such as spinach and sprouts.  Though still early in the season, the co-op currently has local kales, lettuces, sunchokes, asparagus, napini, spinach, and sometimes basil.  The local foods come mainly from Blue Moon Farm in Urbana, IL; Tiny Greens farm in Urbana; Triple S farm in Stewardson, IL; Moore Family Farm in Watseka, IL, and Prairie Fruits Farm in Urbana (the last one is our local goat cheese farm!).  The co-op even sometimes carries produce grown in the gardens of locals!  While it's not certified organic like most of our goods, it's naturally grown and very much local!
    The best part about buying locally is that you know where your food is coming from.  If you go to farmer's markets, you can meet the farmers who grow it, you can ask them questions, you can become their friends, and you can visit the land where it's grown.  In a word, you can know your food is safe.

5. What is your favorite food?
BEETS!  I used to haaaaate them, because I thought they only came in a can.  But I had my first roasted beets last summer, and it was out of this world.  They taste so earthy, so delectable.  Mmmm.  It really depends on how you prepare things - everything is better when it's fresh, AKA not from a can!

6. How do you feel about the term organic?
I like it!  In all of its senses!  But it's especially important in regards to how food is grown.  The use of fertilizers and pesticides releases toxic chemicals and metals into the soil and onto (and into) the food grown on farms; furthermore, agricultural runoff causes these toxic chemicals to seep into our rivers, lakes, and water systems!  So, refraining from the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers is VERY beneficial to our land, our food, our plants, our animals, and our bodily health!
    And to be clear, it takes a lot for something to be officially labeled "organic" in stores.  There are very strict regulations that farms (and companies that sell food labeled as "organic") must abide by in order to be deemed certified organic.  For instance, the land itself must have been fertilizer and pesticide-free for three years prior to certification.  It also takes many years, much money, and extremely detailed record-keeping in order for farms to be certified as organic by the USDA.  As a result, small farms often cannot afford to pay the fees or go through the entire certification process, even if they meet or exceed the rules.

7. How do you feel about CSA?
I just recently learned about CSA, and immediately after, I bookmarked the website which talked about Urbana's local CSA chapter!  Because those who decide to support CSA buy a share at the beginning of each season, it ensures that the farmers get a stable wage that's not dependent on how good or bad the weather ends up being.  It's an excellent way to support farming as a much needed and appreciated occupation, and to really make it a community-driven and supported enterprise.  Furthermore, CSA farms often employ sustainable farming methods; they provide recipes for the food that you can get each week; you get produce for slightly cheaper than farmer's market prices; and again, it supports the local economy, as well as small farms!

(more info on urbana's CSA here: http://www.prairielandcsa.org/whatisacsa.html)

8. Tell me about freegans!
I don't know anyone that's a self-proclaimed freegan, but from what I understand, it's a lifestyle for those who do not want to participate in the capitalist, consumer-driven economy because they think it is wasteful, evil, or they simply can't afford it.  As a result, they live only off of things they find for free.  For instance, instead of buying food at the grocery store, they will "dumpster dive" - that is, seek out food that has been thrown out in local business's dumpsters to eat!  I am guilty of doing just that (especially at the local bakery!).

(see http://freegan.info/)

9. What is the effect of being a vegetarian on the environment?
can i just give you this website that explains it really well?  it's pretty succinct and clear.
http://www.lettuceleaf.org/help_the_environment/

10. What are your tips for normal college students (like me) on how to live a more sustainable lifestyle?
Waste not, want not!  Buy second hand. Compost food. Decline grocery or retail bags.  Bring your own bags to the store. Have clothing or "stuff" swaps with friends.  Unplug your phone or computer chargers when you are not using them. Buy locally. Walk or ride your bike to get from place to place (this is especially easy as a student!). Enjoy your town's farmer's market. Eat less meat, eat more vegetables. Recycle.  Buy a reusable water bottle and fill it with tap water instead of buying big packs of water bottles. Buy and use less things that are "disposable." Buy less that has excessive packaging. Buy less things in general. Instead, share with friends.  Borrow from friends.  Lend to friends. We don't always need to go out and buy something brand new when we need it; it uses more and more natural resources to create a new thing. Try and borrow! Use the library instead of buying new books. Go outside. Take a walk. Find ways to enjoy yourself away from technology. Think critically. Live critically. Live by example, others will follow.

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I was incredibly fortunate and honored to interview one of my best friends, and the person who has taught me the most about living a sustainable lifestyle, Jenny Goodwine. Jenny was the inspiration behind my blog, and why I first became so interested in a sustainable lifestyle.

Thank you again, Jenny, for your help and allowing me to interview you!

Best Wishes!

Julia



You=Corn; Corn=You

As promised, and I’m sure, much anticipated, I’m finally going to talk about The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan.

I must be honest, I’ve recently become obsessed with corn and its uses, because of English 308. I honestly had no idea that corn was so important to our lives, and this would explain why my favorite part of Pollan’s book is Chapter One-The Plant-Corn’s Conquest. This is the chapter I most want to focus on.

Pollan begins this chapter with an examination of grocery stores and supermarkets. He writes about how the only portion of a supermarket that has any resemblance of its original self, is in fact, the Produce aisle. I believe we can all agree with this statement. Pollan writes,

“Venture farther, though, and you come to regions of the supermarket where the very notion of species seems increasingly obscure…Thought it might not always seem that way, even the deathless Twinkie is constructed out of…ultimately some sort of formerly living creature, i.e., a species” (Pollan 16).

Pollan is quick to point out that even though our foods have become more and more synthetic, they all began as a plant “…every edible item in the supermarket is a link in a food chain…” (Pollan 17).

Pollan decided to figure out not only what he was eating from grocery stores, but where those stores were getting their food from. He ended up, in many cases, in the American Corn Belt.

Corn is everywhere and in almost everything. It’s amazing how many different things corn is in – I honestly had no idea. We really are all “the corn people” or are “corn walking”. Pollan is able to pull in some of the history about the descendents of the Maya still living in Mexico. These people refer to themselves sometimes as “the corn people” or they say “corn walking”. These statements are, “meant to acknowledge their abiding dependence on this miraculous grass” (19). Corn walking is, “simply a statement of fact: The very substance of the Mexican’s body is to a considerable extent a manifestation of this plant” (19).

The things that we eat make up who we are, and the thing that makes up what we eat – is mostly corn.

Pollan is able to convey that corn is in everything, from the meat that we eat, to our dairy items, even to our processed foods. Concerning a chicken nugget, “…the modified corn starch that glues the thing together, the corn flour in the batter that coats it, and the corn oil in which it gets fried” are all part of a chicken nugget, these are all made from or derived from corn, as are many of our processed foods (Pollan 18).

You and me? We are all linked to corn, considering we are all living in Illinois, in the middle of many corn fields. My back yard is a giant cornfield, I see cornfields every day and now I can constantly be reminded that I am corn and corn is me. Pretty deep, huh?

I actually very much like Pollan’s style of writing. He’s quick to get out facts and is able to back them up without pushing his opinion too much. I strongly suggest reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma. It is a huge eye-opener for what we are putting in our bodies. We need to treat ourselves well and learn about what we are eating.

I guess the old saying is right – “you are what you eat!”

-Julia

WWDJD?

Hello there!

Throughout this past week, I really tried my hardest to live as sustainably as I could. But it proved to be a very difficult task. My two main goals were to

1.       Not eat out at restaurants/fast food places.

2.       Eat the food that I have in my apartment.

I’ve been successful at eating the rest of the food that I have in my apartment, because I don’t really have a lot of things left.

I’m not sure what it is, but since it’s the end of the school year, all of my friends want to go out to eat and celebrate the end of school, so as hard as I tried, I did eat out twice this week. I really tried my hardest to resist, but who am I to turn down delicious food and good company? I thought to myself – WWDJD? What would Dr. Justice Do? And I thought...she would want me to go!

Although I did happen to eat out a couple of times, we did do our part to help mother earth by carpooling to where we ate, rather than taking many different cars.

I’ve also been walking…a lot. I tend to not drive my car while I’m at school because most things are within walking distance, but today is a GREAT day for a walk – so ditch the car and work out your legs!

As promised, I will have posts up ASAP about Kingsolver, King Corn and Pollan. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a very stressful, busy week. I seem to half-write entries and plan on getting back to them afterwards and then I end up forgetting about them! So I promise, I will get those up! I never go back on a promise!

I told some of my friends that I was starting a blog about sustainability, and one of them offered me a link to the No Impact Project. It was all started by a man named Colin Beavan, also known as “No Impact Man”. Beavan decided that, with his family, he would live a completely sustainable lifestyle for one year in New York City. This means that they walked or biked everywhere, bought only locally grown food, produced absolutely no trash, AND lived without electricity. They shrunk their energy output and truly lived a happy, sustainable lifestyle.

I find this project so amazing by the fact that people could actually live that way today and it makes me want to try it, but I know how incredibly difficult it would be. I know it’s important to live a sustainable lifestyle, but I just don’t see how a regular college student, like myself, could life a 100% sustainable lifestyle as the Beavan’s did. His website has a lot of tips on how to live a sustainable lifestyle and steps to take, so definitely check it out.

ISU even did the No Impact Experiment, which is based off of Colin Beavan’s project. They did this during Earth Week, and I thought it was a good way to see how normal college students could actually live this project. The No Impact Experiment is “a week-long carbon cleanse” which asked students to give up some of the necessities in our lives, so you can see how they did here in our own town!

Have a wonderful Saturday! Good luck with the end of the semester!

Sustainability tip of the day: Ditch the paper or plastic option at your local grocery store and instead buy re-useable bags for your grocery shopping needs! Have an abundance of plastic bags? Take them with you to the store and re-use them!

Take Care,

Julia

Beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy.

Hey out there!

This past week, I decided to take a close look at what I was doing with my life – concerning sustainability. The biggest things that I’ve realized are:

1.       That I eat out at restaurants/fast food places WAY too much, and

2.       I also tend to waste the food that I buy because I don’t eat it fast enough.

This week, I’m going to try my hardest to not eat out AT ALL; to eat the food that I have left for my time here at ISU before summer break; and to eat less meat!

I don’t generally eat a lot of meat, mostly because I just don’t enjoy it that much, I even tried to be a vegetarian for awhile, but I just couldn’t cut it. But, did you know…”if you cut out one meal of chicken every week for a year and replaced it with vegetarian food, it would be equivalent to taking half a million cars off the road?” (6 Ways to Live a Sustainable Lifestyle). This is something I can easily do, since I already don’t eat a lot of meat!

I’m also going to go buy some locally grown food to enjoy this week! If you are interested in finding locally grown foods/local food places in the Bloomington/Normal area, you can visit -- http://hlfn.org/BFBL%20DIRECTORY%202010%20Bloomington%20Web%20PDF.pdf

I hope this will help in my fight to be a more sustainable person!

I also found that I have been doing some good things:

1.       I recycle at home, and I try to recycle often at school.

2.       I use power strips for many of the outlets in my apartment – which means I’m able to cut off the energy used! I learned that even if an appliance is off, it can still use electricity from your wall, so using power strips is superb because it cuts off the energy completely!

I will definitely keep up with these two, easy ways to live sustainably!

Also, I wrote in my last entry that I was going to visit the Food Co-Op in Champaign (my hometown), I unfortunately was unable to make it because of my crazy Easter weekend, BUT I did happen to make my way into The Blind Pig Brewery. My sister had the American Pale Ale and my sister’s fiancé had the Hard Cider. I must say, although I’m not a huge beer drinker, the Hard Cider was pretty delicious!

Anyways, how does The Blind Pig Brewery factor into sustainability? Well, I’ll explain how!

Home brewing beer can be incredibly sustainable. While perusing the internet, I stumbled across a blog called “Brewess: The Blog for Women Who Brew Beer” and found an article about a man named Chris O’Brien, who is the sustainability director at American U. The article states, “… the craft-beer movement has exploded, and beers of that kind often support pillars of sustainability ethics: reliance on local ingredients and labor, a regard for community values, and a love of the artistry and authenticity of the brewing process” (http://brewess.wordpress.com/category/sustainable-brewing/)

In class, we talked about home-brewing beer with Chef Keith, and the sustainability aspect of it, so if you think about it…it can be a win-win situation! You’ll have beer AND you’ll have done it in a more sustainable fashion.

Have a wonderful, healthy week!

-Julia

Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

Today is the ultimate holiday for those who choose to live a sustainable lifestyle.

The first Earth Day was celebrated April 22, 1970. “Earth Day 1970 capitalized on the emerging consciousness, channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and putting environmental concerns front and center” (Earth Day Network). Earth day was supported by all types of people, the rich, the poor, farmers, businessmen, even democrats and republicans.

 According to http://www.earthday.org/, on the first ever Earth Day, “…20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.”

This awesome day and these amazing ideas were brought together by so many different types of people who are all concerned about one thing…the health of the earth!

 Here, you can find a video and more information about the very first Earth Day: http://www.earthday.org/earth-day-history-movement.

So although the weather outside has been a bit frightful today, I’ve tried to do my part in living a sustainable lifestyle, but have not been very successful. I unfortunately have a six page paper due tonight, so I’ve been on my computer using up more energy than I’ve put out for most of the day.

I can however pledge an act of green (and so can you!) at http://act.earthday.org/. I am pledging to plant a home garden so that I can do my part in living a more sustainable lifestyle and helping mother earth!

I’m also planning on heading over to our local food co-op later today to buy some local goods! I will let you all know what I come out with!

Have a wonderful Earth Day! Go hug a tree!
-Julia

Sustainability ISU

Hey! Just a really quick post! Check out this awesome site I found, provided by our very own, ISU! Check out what's going on through our university, to help become a more sustainable you!

oh yes, and...
HAPPY EARTH WEEK!

http://sustainability.illinoisstate.edu/involved/earth_day.shtml

-Julia

Corn Walking

**More to come on the topics of The Omnivore's Dilemma and the movie "King Corn"!

The Basics

Sustainability. This is a word we’ve heard a lot in our ENG 308 class and one that looms over our heads every day. I hear more and more people say “live a more sustainable lifestyle!” but really, what does it mean? And what does it mean for a college student living on a fixed budget?

According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) , sustainability is reflected by public and private policy perspectives…

“A public policy perspective would define sustainability as the satisfaction of basic economic, social, and security needs now and in the future without undermining the natural resource base and environmental quality on which life depends. From a business perspective, the goal of sustainability is to increase long-term shareholder and social value, while decreasing industry’s use of materials and reducing negative impacts on the environment.” (EPA)

In a nut-shell, living your life in a way that does not hurt the environment and does not uselessly use up our natural resources; or trying to live a simpler life!

Our guest speaker, Dave, from PrairiErth Farms explained sustainability, concerning food systems, like so…

“1. Your food system must not consume more energy than it creates in the production and processing.

2. The food system must not be dependent on any non-renewable energy source

3. It must not degrade the environment.”

Sounds simple enough, right? Well…not so much. For a college student like myself, I rely on the every day, non-sustainable lifestyle that I’ve grown up on. I buy my groceries at Walmart, I LOVE fast food, and I keep my fan on…all night.

I’m going to try to change this, though. Although I’m not completely sold on all of the facts of sustainability and the benefits of simply buying locally, I’m all for helping out mother earth and making her a happier and healthier place!

Sustainability tip of the day: Support local foods and goods! If you’re in the Bloomington/Normal area, be sure to hit up the Farmer’s Market in downtown Bloomington every Saturday starting May 14th.

Have a wonderful night!

-Julia

1st Post!

Hey out there!

My name is Julia Frederick and this is my blog for my final project for my ENG 308 class at Illinois State University. This is my journey on inventing a more sustainable me! I'll be offering up different ideas, trying to change my lifestyle (especially concerning food), and giving out tips for normal, college students like myself!

Enjoy!
-Julia