Had my first class tonight for "Concepts in Environmental Health." We (the class) weren't sure whether to be excited or scared when the prof Ken Still told us that he has studied and taught at Harvard, MIT and some other schools like that and therefore there will be substantial reading, "After all, you're not taking any other classes right?"
Super interesting class (so far), which is what makes the workload forgivable for me.
After class, I asked him about why "the city" went and sprayed the wild blackberry bushes across the street from the house and posted a sign, "Invasive Species have been treated here." Why? The berries were such a lovely treat when we first moved in this fall! This of course was before they were sprayed (unless they were sprayed last year). Having seen an abundance of pamphlets in the community center about eradicating invasive species, I thought "the city" must have some lofty goals to revive the more natural ecosystem here. I can see that. But why use chemicals to enhance the ecosystem? Apparently not all pesticides are "bad," according to Dr. Still and Dr. Schreiber.
But before Dr. Still brought up the rationale of protecting the environment/ecosystem, he said that the wild raspberries don' t fit into the "urban landscape." hmmm. They make the urban landscape yummier if you ask me. He's says that they aren't everyone's idea of what fits into the beautifully manicured lawn, plus they have thorns that could puncture a child's eye! Hence, "the city" wants to protect it's future generations by moving fresh berries further away (how is distancing children from seeing how food grows good for their wellbeing?) and acting as one big mother.
I'm being awfully sarcastic here, but Dr. Still was asking me to think big picture and from more perspectives than my own (without kids or a manicured lawn). Good idea. Looking forward to more concepts in environmental health.
And he gave me some tips where I can look for phone numbers to ask what they sprayed- most local USDA office for starters.
Sweet Dreams!
