Guest Writer: Genetically Modified Foods

Today I am happy to have my new found college friend, Aama Harwood, on Viridorari to talk about the problems with having genetically modified organisms (or GMOs) in our food. In her article, Aama provides a very impassioned and convincing argument against GMOs. If you have an opposing viewpoint to hers, be sure to leave a comment. While I personally do not support GMOs, I know the importance of comparing viewpoints so everyone can understand the full story. Also, feel free to comment if you agree with Aama. Comments are just awesome in general.

Now, to introduce Aama, here is a short bio she provided me about herself:

I am a Neuroscience and Psychology major at Ithaca College. I love to hike, bike, backpack, and do yoga. My biggest passions in life are healthy food and helping others. I am a strong advocate for the things I believe in and hope that my ideas and opinions encourage you to ask questions. 

Aama's article was published earlier this year in the Durango Herald. I was able to republish it here on Viridorari with her permission. You can find her article here on the Durango Herald's website. If you have any questions about her article that you'd like to ask her directly, you can contact her at aharwoo1@ithaca.edu. 

Guest Writer: IC Sustainably Conscious Community

Today on Viridorari I am excited to have my Ithaca College residential hall RA, Rachel Gray, on the blog to talk about the floor that her and I both live on. Our floor is designated as the Sustainably Conscious Community, and unlike normal residential floors, we partake in special activities and programs to learn how to live sustainably. We are also required to do community service, and at the end of the semester we’ll turn in an essay about our experiences. So far I’ve had an amazing time living in the Sustainably Conscious Community, and everyone here is friendly and welcoming. But, before I give too much away, I’ll turn you over to Rachel and let her talk about it.

Recycling Projects: Featuring Jennifer Kemper

Today, Viridorari's eighth Guest Writer, Jennifer Kemper, will provide you with four recycling projects!  I discovered Jennifer at an arts and crafts show in Cazenovia, NY.

Jennifer Kemper has been an artist and potter all of her life. Though pottery is her main work, she has fun using other media as well.  A junk-collector from early on, she learned through experimentation to make various things using items that might have been thrown away. Her creations include wind chimes, hurricane lamps, garden totems, terrariums, candles, jewelry, lampworked glass beads, masks, clothing, and more. Some of these items can be found on her website www.kemperpottery.webs.com.
You can also see her work at The Artisans Guild in Oneonta, NY and at her studio at 120 Taylor Rd, Morris, NY.

Suggested Reading & Activism Spotlight: Featuring Stephanie Khoury

Activism Spotlight Featuring Guest Writer

Today, I am honored to have an Ithaca College student as this week’s Guest Writer on Viridorari! Stephanie Khoury is a junior Documentary Studies and Production Major at Ithaca College. If found her through an awesome environmental edition of Ithaca’s student publication, Buzzsaw, in which she wrote an article. Today she is featuring DivestIC for today’s “Activism Spotlight.”

Divestment is an ongoing environmental movement in the United States toted by Bill McKibben and 350.org that encourages cities, states, business, and (mainly) colleges and universities to withdraw their investments from fossil fuel companies that are damaging the environment. Although withdrawing these investments won’t necessarily make a big dent in this multi-billion dollar industry, the goal is to show big businesses and governments that we are determined to start focusing on a future that relies more heavily on renewable energy and that wreaking havoc on the environment to make profit is no longer acceptable, socially, politically, or economically.

    I asked Stephanie to provide some information about herself, and this was her response:

    A lover of all things related to ducks, marshmallows and polka-dots, my name is Stephanie Khoury and I hate grammar and bottled water. One of my favorite places is Ithaca College. As a junior I am kinda getting the whole college thing by making some room for friends and family, but sometimes I breathe, so that’s good. In between editing and interning for the All-American High School Film Festival, by Andrew Jenks (MTV's World of Jenks) I love making documentaries. If you’re an avid Googler, check out some of my docs, including "Expressions of Hope", which recently won the Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award at College Television Awards!

    Stephanie also included some cool videos in her writing for you to watch. I encourage you to view them to enhance your knowledge on this topic! Congratulations to all of the people around the country who have successfully obtained or are currently rallying for divestment. Keep fighting the good fight for our tomorrow!

    So, without further ado, I give you Stephanie and her DivestIC spotlight.

Guest Writer: Sustainable Living and Business

Today I'd like to welcome a wonderful and caring person onto my blog; Beth Aust. Beth and my grandmother are both small business owners, and when they met each other at an event, my grandmother told her about Viridorari and she was immediately interested in becoming a Guest Writer. (To read grandma's post about owning a Hybrid Prius, go here.)

After working in the nursing field for twenty years, Beth Aust RN was divinely guided to follow a more holistic path. She studied nutrition through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and became a Holistic Health Coach. Drawing on her nursing background and nutrition knowledge, Beth provides one on one programs, group programs, workshops and cooking demonstrations to show others how to cook healthy, shop savvy and live freely through a creative approach. In an effort to provide the community healthier options, she also is opening a natural foods shop in Oneida, NY June of 2013. The shop will focus on non-GMO and organic products as well as providing gluten free, vegan, RAW, and nut-free foods. A member of the National Association of Professional Woman, Board certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioner’s, supporter of the NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association), Young Living essential oil distributor, and board member of the Madison County Habitat for Humanity, she is passionate about health, wellness and community.

Beth strives to combine her desire to help people lead healthier lives with sustainability. With greenhouse gas levels rising in our atmosphere all the time and the constant loss of natural areas around the globe, environmentally-conscious business owners who see beyond their wallet, like Beth, are needed more and more. 

In her guest writing piece, Beth will discuss what she does to be sustainable, keeping the future in mind. Business owners and average Joes alike: I hope you are all inspired by her determination and mindfulness. In order to secure a better future for this planet, we must take action now.

Guest Writer: Tell a Story...

Unfortunately, I was unable to find a Guest Writer for last week, and I thought I wasn't going to have one this week either. Just a couple of days ago, one my school's Spanish teachers, Diane Genovese, agreed to be this week's Guest Writer, churning out an awesome piece about her students the very same night I asked her and saving the day. I want to give Mrs. Genovese a special thanks for working with such a last minute deadline while maintaining her infamous enthusiasm.

I take French, so I've never had Mrs. Genovese as a teacher. However, I did meet her at an open house with my younger step sister, who has her for Spanish, and when I'm in the language hallway I often hear her singing Spanish songs with her students. I know that she is one of those people who loves what she does, and her students can only benefit from her wholehearted approach to teaching.

I asked Mrs. Genovese about guest writing after I saw a bunch of Spanish posters pop up around the school on Earth Day. Her students' posters included environmental terms in Spanish and colorful, splendid artwork of plants and animals. When I saw all of the creative, bright posters in the halls, I knew that she was behind them. To read Viridorari's Earth Day post, go here.

Guest Writer: Owning a Toyota Prius

This week, I am honored to invite my grandmother, Betty Green, onto Viridorari to talk about owning a hybrid vehicle. Grandma decided, after many years of having discussions about her car with other people, that there are several misconceptions about hybrid vehicles. She wanted the opportunity to clear those up, and advocate the use of vehicles like her Toyota Prius.

Grandma (Betty Green) worked for over twenty years as a quality manager at an international company located in Fairport, NY before retiring in 2012.  She lives with her husband, Ron, in Geneva, NY. She is the owner of B’s Garden Treasures, her pressed flower art business. She also serves as the Public Relations Director for the Worldwide Pressed Flower Guild, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting public education to unite pressed flower artists from around the world.  You can see her art at www.BGTreasures.com and http://blog.bgtreasures.com/. You can contact Betty at info@BGTreasures.com with questions and comments about her article and with inquiries about purchasing her artwork.

I strongly encourage you to take the time to look at some of Grandma's artwork. Only in recent years has she developed a passion for pressed flower art, and even in that short time she has become so talented. Every time I visit her and see her new pieces, it seems that she has only improved. For those of you who love the beautiful scenery of nature, I know you will love her art. 

Without further ado, please enjoy Betty's article about owning a hybrid vehicle!

Recycling Projects: Featuring Ellen Lennon!

A Viridorari viewer and close friend of mine, Bruno, decided to try out last week's project (making apples out of plastic water bottles) and sent in pictures of his finished product! His apple became a gift for his favorite teacher.

Pictures courtesy of: Bruno

This week's Guest Writer, Ellen Lennon, will be providing Viridorari with a fun project that takes an old hoodie and turns it into a new backpack! This project will require a lot of adult help, as it involves sewing. However, the kids can have a fun time decorating the end result with fabric markers and puffy paint. 

Guest Writer: The Future of Solar Energy

Please welcome this week's Guest Writer, Chris, who will be sharing his knowledge about photovoltaic cells, or as they're commonly known as, solar panels. Chris is a close friend of mine and he was excited to have an opportunity to write on this subject. The result was an intriguing article about solar energy that I can hardly wait to share!

Chris is a student from Penfield, New York. He is actively engaged in music, and was accepted to the All-Eastern Honors choir. He is an accomplished swimmer, as a sectional champion and second place state finalist. In addition, he has been actively involved in many medical interniships at the University of Rochester, as he intends to pursue a career in medical research. Though his career interest is in medicine, he has been interested in green technology and alternative energy since a young age. In 5th grade, he created a hydrogen fuel cell dispaly, with a hydrogen fuel cell he constructed himself. He has done amateur experimentation in fuel cell technology, as well as with photovoltaic cells and carbon zinc batteries. He is a strong advocate for alternative energy, and believes the future of global energy will come from human ingenuity.

Without further ado, I give you Chris's article, "The Future of Solar Energy."

Weekly Green Challenge: Featuring Alexandra

First, I want to say that I’ve immensely enjoyed my first week of maintaining Viridorari and providing information to the masses about the importance of the environment and being greener. Already I have been getting positive feedback from people, and I’m excited to start a second week of posting.  

This week’s Green Challenge is something my mom and I have been talking about doing for a while. My challenge to you is to start a compost pile, if you haven’t already. If you do have a compost pile, then sometime this week I want you to A) have a discussion with someone who doesn’t compost about the benefits of composting, or B) direct someone who doesn’t compost to this post on Viridorari.

Composting is an easy and efficient way to reduce your negative impact on the planet, and just for the sake of convincing you how awesome and simple it is, today I will feature Viridorari’s second weekly Guest Writer. Please welcome Alexandra to Viridorari! 

Suggested Reading: Featuring Rebecca DeSol

Suggested Reading

It is my pleasure to introduce Viridorari’s first guest writer, my eleventh grade English teacher, Rebecca DeSol! Mrs. DeSol is an inspirational and insightful human being with an unprecedented amount of devotion to her students. When I leave high school and head off into the world, I will remember her for her caring soul and our shared enjoyment for deep, philosophical conversation. She is one of the best high school teachers there is, and I can’t think of anyone better to kick off Viridorari’s “Suggested Reading” section. Today, she will be sharing Feed with you, a futuristic fiction novel by M.T. Anderson she teaches her students. While the focus of this book is the influence of technology on society, it also provides a horrifying view of what our future planet could be like if we keep traveling on our path of environmental destruction. First, I’ll get you started with some information about Mrs. DeSol, and then I’ll let her sweep you away with her prolific and thought-provoking writing. 

    Mrs. DeSol teaches at Pal-Mac High School, and she wishes she had the time and energy to ride her bike to work, she would like to see renewable energy made more available, and she needs to save her money for a house with a bigger backyard so she can grow more vegetables to eat and share with friends in the summer.  In the meantime, she composts when she can (trudging through a foot of snow makes a garbage can appealing sometimes), avoids eating meat, and believes her students will not only find the answers they seek, but act upon their questions, continuing to change our world for the better.