For as much my family does do its part in trying to promote an environmentally conscious way of living, I am learning that it is important to educate yourself and understand why <\/em>such efforts need to be made in the first place.\u00a0 Taking something for granted is not something anyone likes to admit, but I must be honest in saying that I think until this point, I took the wilderness for granted a bit.\u00a0 It is easy to go to national parks and get lost in the beauty and the escape into a more sublime state, but I never really stopped to think about the environments themselves.\u00a0 I never in a million years would have considered what trees were growing in the park, or why they grow where they do, or about the possible upstream pollution flowing into the breathtaking streams and rivers throughout the park.\u00a0 These are all things I just aesthetically absorbed and enjoyed, but really did not question.\u00a0 My sister is an environmental studies major at the University of Delaware, and she is constantly rambling on about the environmental effects of this or that, and while I nod my head and agree, part of me has always just kind of tuned her out.\u00a0 Being in this class, reading articles about the James River and its surrounding riparian zones and applying some of the broader ideas to additional observations and reflections on other water sources and issues, has spurred an inquisitive side to me that I have never really felt before when it comes to the environment.\u00a0 Earth Lodge has certainly opened my eyes and infiltrated my life in more ways than I ever thought it would.<\/p>\n I catch myself looking at the different trees and identifying how wide the riparian zone is now when I am down at different portions of the river.\u00a0 I look at landscaping more now, and think about the astounding amount of pesticides that must be used to keep lawns so artificially green.\u00a0 I cringe over the fact that these pesticides will undoubtedly flow into the rivers people all over the country love and cherish, and more frightening than that, they will seep into the ground and into our underground water sources as well as contaminate our drinking water.\u00a0 Just today in my philosophy class we were watching the movie Food, Inc.<\/em> and a major point that was made about the corporate meatpacking industry was the huge contribution they make to the agricultural run-off that pollutes our country\u2019s water sources.\u00a0 Not many people in my class probably clung to this revelation like I did.\u00a0 I am certain the majority of them were focused purely on the gruesome images of the suffering cows, but because of Earth Lodge, I clung to this knowledge, and more crucial than that, I understood the implications.<\/p>\n (One view of the James River taken on our Downtown adventure)<\/p>\n Earth Lodge and the class geography of the James River have given me the resources and knowledge to understand the myriad of factors affecting the James River on a daily basis, but I have also learned how these factors are not issues solely for the James River.\u00a0 Many of these issues are universal for many rivers all over the United States.\u00a0 There are too many people who, like my previous self, do not question the health of their local water sources or what they may be doing on a daily basis that has the potential to negatively affect the water sources that need to be preserved.\u00a0 The aspect of this course that has made me so inquisitive has been the field trips to different portions of the river.\u00a0 Connecting the things we read about in class to the real-life observations we make when we go on trips is what has cultivated my inquisitive nature and taught me what to search for when observing and trying to understand my surrounding environment.\u00a0 Previously, I was a passive observer, but now my mind is constantly active with thoughts about the environment and what makes it work in the way it does, whether it be thriving or struggling to survive.\u00a0 Earth Lodge has completely changed my way of thinking, which was something I never expected from a geography class, but I have been pleasantly surprised, to say the very least.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My family has always camped; it is just what we do.\u00a0 Even this past weekend when most families were taking the time to dress up and go out on the town in the city of Richmond, my family and I … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/james\/files\/2013\/09\/IMG_0512-300x105.jpg\")
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