Journal 13

There is so much to reflect upon the trip to ECHO it was just such an overwhelming trip in a way for me. I was able to see sustainability in a whole different light. Not just one that talks about limiting cars emissions and getting sun panels for a roof. This was sustainability in the purest and cleanest sense. Using nature to keep a natural cycle. I thought it was really neat how they used the ducks to send "food" to the tilapia pond. I actually have had so many experiences that related to this field trip it brought back a lot of memories and stimulated a lot of new ideas. I have traveled to places such as Belize, Haiti, Dominican Republic, and Uganda all on service trips and I have seen environments such as these. In ALL of these places they could have used many of the techniques and animal and plant life. In Uganda I saw conditions that were very dry but also had the ability to grow in the winter months. Also, with the dry conditions they showed what was possible to do using carpets and tires which was unbelievable. In Belize, Uganda, and Haiti I was in classrooms just like the one they had set up at ECHO. All of these places could have used the "Miracle Plant" with many of the children suffering from malnutrition. Also, there was a plant that could help rid people of Worms and this was also a huge problem in all of these countries. In the Dominican Republic I witnessed an entire village living off the pure scrappings of a dump from the main city of Santiago. Some people used the items in the dump to eat, others used them to sell. Either way, I could see that the seeds ECHO has as extremely beneficial to a place like that. They could continue to sell the items from the dump but they would have good healthy plant life to eat.
Clean water was a huge problem in all of these places as well. In Haiti people would get water from a river that ran up the mountains and into the ocean. This river was used for bathing purposes and for waste. People swam in and drank this water. There is a huge problem with children getting diseases that cause extreme diarreah and exauhstion. The water saving techniques from rain and clean water from the "miracle plant" and also cleaning from the plastic bottles was just amazing to see and could be implemented in the mountain villages that I visited.
Finally, being at ECHO inspired me for my final project to try and come up with a curriculum for third world country students that could teach them the base courses of education like math, science, reading, and writing all while learning about sustaining their lives in a healthy way. Educating children is one of the most necessary things to focus on in the world if we plan on making any sort of difference in the world's very bleak future. If we could get a curriculum or area of study that could teach kids, and in turn they could teach their parents, it would be such an amazing thing and could send waves throughout the developing world. I have already filled out my application to go back and learn more because I know my future will involve understanding these concepts and putting them into practice somewhere. It was great.