Year in Review

The highlight of my ENR scholars experience over the past two years has to be the camping trip we went on to Hocking Hills last year. I learned a lot over this trip as I had never gone camping before and it has inspired me to go on multiple camping trips including one I will go on with friends in a few weeks! Not only was I able to experience camping for the first time, but I was also able to form valuable friendships. I found this trip to happen at the perfect time during the year because I knew people but hadn’t made any close friends yet. However, this camping trip is really how I bonded with people and made lasting friendships.

Through ENR scholars, I learned how to plan an event and encourage attendance. I planned the Tree Identification Workshop with another member and learned some valuable lessons from it. We learned not only what goes into the planning process, but also how to make an event successful while it is occurring.

I really cut down on my plastic consumption over the past two years. This is most definitely something I will continue and I will hopefully be able to entirely cut out single-use plastic in the future. With my move off campus next year, I am really hoping to begin composting and buy more locally sourced foods. With what I have learned over the past two years, even disposing of biodegradable waste in a landfill is still detrimental to the environment. I think by composting I will be able to have that much more of a positive impact on the planet. Similarly, buying locally will cut down on emissions from shipping and will allow me to really know what is going into the production of my food.

I would advise the incoming class of ENR scholars to do their best to make friends within the group as well as really try to make the most out of the different events that scholars has. You will regret it if you don’t!

Before coming to Ohio State, I was a little bit worried about joining the Environment and Natural Resources Scholars program because I thought that I wasn’t “outdoorsy” enough. So, when it came time for the camping trip I was not sure how it would go. However, I realized that I really enjoyed living outdoors for a couple of days. I have made a decision to devote more of my time to being outdoors. In fact, my friends and I are planning another camping trip to Hocking Hills during the month of May. I think spending time outside is always an amazing experience and has allowed me to develop a deeper connection with myself as well as those around me.

While it is good to spend time outdoors, before my year with ENR Scholars I was not aware of all of the ways I affect Earth during my time outdoors. For example, I did not know that when hiking, it is very important to stay on the man-made trails and not stray from them. I didn’t consider how walking off the path could affect the surrounding environment and organisms. I think this newfound knowledge has made me become a much more responsible citizen of the world.

Prior to this year, I considered myself to make environmentally-friendly food choices as I do not eat any animal products. The animal agriculture industry has a huge negative impact on the environment. However, I did not consider the impact of where I was buying my food from. Buying locally could mean better treatment of farm workers and the food would also be more sustainable. I have learned more about human-welfare than I expected to learn through ENR. So, I plan to become more sustainable in my food choices in the future. I think there are many more things I can do in making sustainable choices that I have yet to learn.

During my time at Ohio State, I have also become much more conscious about the amount of waste I am producing. Due to this, I have begun to recycle much more than I did in the past. I have also become much more educated on what materials are able to be recycled and why there are limits at OSU on what we can recycle. This has inspired me to work more in the coming years to educate other students on campus about these regulations. I have discovered that many people do not know what is able to and not able to be recycled. There needs to be better broadcasting of this information to the students and faculty at Ohio State.

The actions I performed for the Earth Month Action Plan were really cool to do and good learning experiences. However, they will be hard to incorporate into everyday life as they were specifically one time actions. By doing this project, I have gained an even deeper appreciation for the ocean as well as a deeper understanding of the issues with dead zones. I think this will translate into everyday life and has inspired me to look into environmental careers and internships focused specifically on the ocean.

[ “Year in Review”  is where you should reflect on the past year and show how you have evolved as a person and as a student.  You may want to focus on your growth in a particular area (as a leader, scholar, researcher, etc.) or you may want to talk about your overall experience over the past year.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]