Celebration, FL: Creepytown, USA

So this week’s Roseland reading talked about new urbanism as one component of land use and urban form.  New urbanism is a great concept, based on the idea of re-organizing urban areas to make them more inclusive, complete, and neighborly for residents.  Along with the many examples they give of new urban designs in the textbook, they mention some failed attempts at the concept that have drawn public criticism.  One example they give is that of the unincorporated town of Celebration, in Kissimmee, FL.  Some pics:









I immediately knew that I had to delve a bit deeper into this town for my blog this week, as Celebration has always held a creepy sort of fascination for me.  I have visited the town several times during family trips to Disney World, and have heard stories about the rigidity of their homeowner rules, town appearance, and general way of living.  Here is more information on the town, for those who are interested.  The town was originally conceptualized as an extenuation of Walt Disney’s idea of the Experimental Prototype Communities of Tomorrow (EPCOT).  I didn’t realize that it was also attempting to fall into the “new urban” category, as well.  As the book points out, a main reason why it fails to qualify as a new urban town is that it doesn’t incorporate one of the major functions that a new urban town is designed to address: transportation.  The town is connected directly to the Disney parks and resorts by World Drive, but residents would still need to drive about ten minutes to get there.  It also does not connect in any sustainable way to the outlying roads and highways of Kissimmee.  The town is a relatively exclusive, separate entity from the rest of the city, which violates the concept of community planning and urban organization that new urbanism strives to achieve.  Compared to this example of San Jose's future city development plans, taken from the Smart Growth America website, Celebration is fairly wide of the mark.  Although it is easy for the residents to move throughout the town itself on foot, bike, etc., it is necessary for them to drive virtually any time they want to venture out for work and other activities.  The town has been recognized by some in the community to be designed to meet some of the new urban specifications by incorporating different housing types throughout the town, and staying open to people with varying levels of income, but it is still not known for maintaining a consistent base of affordable housing that would contribute to the ‘lasting’ community feel.  Upon first opening, it was named the “new community of the year” in 2001 by the Urban Land Institute; however, the overall effect of the town has more to do with Disney’s visualization to make history with the continuation of the Disney brand, and less to do with a conscientious effort to establish an urban town within the larger city that facilitates effective land use, social capital, and transportation diversity.  Not to mention, it’s just creepy!  As visually appealing as I have found the town when I’ve visited, it’s equally eerie; the Stepford Wives analogy is great in relaying its perfect creepiness.  You walk down the main street (which is called Market Street instead of Main Street, because apparently there’s already a Main Street in Kissimmee, and there can’t be duplicate street names in the same city…), and you’re almost bowled over by the quaint, Disney-esqueness of it all.  It’s almost identical to walking down Main Street at the Magic Kingdom.  While that is desirable and expected when you’re visiting a theme park, its translation to an actual town is a bit disconcerting.  Also, I learned from the Wikipedia link that throughout autumn and during holiday events, the lampposts along Market Street are rigged to spurt leaf-shaped confetti and synthetic snow to emulate the seasons.  Whaaaaaaat?  That is just damn creepy!!!  So, now you all know my feelings on the town… and yet, during all my shuddering and gawking as I’ve walked through the town, I still have a *slight* desire to live there someday.  It’s just so perfect, and quaint… I would be a perfect candidate for brainwashing, I think.  Regardless of what you think of the town, it stands as an example of what can be achieved by visionaries in the architectural, business, and development fields… but in terms of qualifying for the new urbanism stamp, it has some re-developing to do.

Personal Project Update

So, for my second dish, I took another recipe out of the ‘Zucchini to Asparagus’ book, which was really more of just a side.  It was for herb-roasted red potatoes, which (being an Irish girl), really appealed to me.  I just love potatoes, period!  Another very easy recipe to make, and it turned out to be absolutely delicious:

·         1lb. red potatoes, cut in ½ inch pieces

                  ·         1-4 cloves garlic, chopped
                  ·         3-4 tbsp. of your fave fresh herb; parsley for me)
                  ·         3-4 tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

Once everything is chopped and prepared, you simply coat the potatoes with the other ingredients, spread them out on a shallow baking dish, and roast for about 45 minutes.  They were ever so yummy and crispy!  But, I didn’t just eat roasted potatoes for dinner (although I would’ve been perfectly content to)…  I added an organic chicken breast, some salad, and bread to complete my dinner.  Here are some pics of the process: 

The ingredients for the potatoes came from the farmer's market

Fresh from the oven!

The chicken was purchased at Kroger

The complete meal- so good!

In terms of project critique, I still need to delve into some deeper research on Kroger and Marsh’s local and sustainable food policies (if any), as well as Bloomingfood’s.  Thus far, I have been to the farmer’s market a couple of times, and have completed two recipes from the ‘Zucchini to Asparagus’ cookbook.  My goal at the beginning of this project was to learn to make between five to ten recipes, as well as learn the basics of buying local/organic/sustainable foods.  At this point in the semester, I feel I still have a ways to go in terms of completing the tasks I have set to my satisfaction.  This next week, I plan to devote my time to simply conducting some deeper research into my topic, and blog about what I’ve found at the end.  Then, for each of the remaining weeks of the semester, I plan to try to cook one new recipe each week, as well as blog about additional information I’ve found to supplement my research.  I think that this should put me on track to complete about seven recipes total, and develop a good base of knowledge about the local food market in Bloomington.

World Population Nears Major Milestone

I came across this article on msn.com today, and thought it fit well with our discussions on population growth and its economic and environmental impacts.  If you have about five minutes to read the full article, I highly suggest it:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44928812/ns/world_news/?GT1=43001

The article, written by David Crary of the Associated Press, takes a hard look at the concern of over-population, stating that by October 31^st of this year, the world population will reach 7 million people.  While this is no surprise to those of us in this class, (and others in the sustainability field), and we’ve had conversations about earth’s carrying capacity and ways to reduce the human footprint, this does bring the urgency of action to the forefront for environmental, social, and economic professionals.  While growth in developed nations means contributing to greater levels of climate change and ozone layer depletion through our extensive burning of fossil fuels, emission of carbon dioxide, halocarbons, and methane, growth in developing nations means a direct depletion of the food, water, and jobs needed to support the burgeoning population.  The article asks the all-consuming question of our course: “Is catastrophe inevitable? Not necessarily. But experts say most of Africa — and other high-growth developing nations such as Afghanistan and Pakistan — will be hard-pressed to furnish enough food, water and jobs for their people, especially without major new family-planning initiatives” (Crary, 2011).

                    http://audreyandthane.wordpress.com/2010/01/01/dharavi-touring-the-slums/

 Not to suggest, by any means, that one concern outweighs the other, but the article suggests (and I agree) that one of the first steps to take (in terms of creating an immediate and drastic effect of change) is to implement “major new family-planning initiatives”.  For such poverty-stricken countries as Africa, it will be difficult to override the social mores that dictate certain family practices, such as polygamy, that reward a man who has a large family, and represents an abundant and rich life. 

Godfrey Olukya / AP

Ahmed Kasadha, center, on the porch of his house in Iganga, Uganda, with one of his wives and six of his 14 children on Oct. 1. A polygamist, Kasadha says large families are a sign of success and God's blessing.

    By DAVID CRARY

However, focusing on educational programs for adolescents and young women that empower them to make better decisions would prove to be a powerful tool in the fight against overpopulation.  “The executive director of the U.N. Population Fund, former Nigerian health minister Babatunde Osotimehin, describes the 7 billion milestone as a call to action — especially in the realm of enabling adolescent girls to stay in school and empowering women to control the number of children they have” (Crary, 2011).  These types of efforts create cascading effects; what is learned in the fight against overpopulation and other social constructs will trickle down to effect changes in economic problems and environmental stressors, as well.

Personal Project Update

This past Saturday, October 8^th, I went to the Bloomington farmer’s market for the first time to buy some ingredients to make my first recipe.  The farmer’s market is a wonderful environment, and I strongly advise any of you that haven’t been to go!  There were rows of booths selling freshly-grown produce, as well as an area selling crafts and other homemade objects.  People were very open to discussion, and willing to share information on how their food was grown and produced.  Buying from a farmer’s market ensures that your food is fresher and has more taste, is higher in nutritional value, and also gives you a much wider variety and selection than a grocery store.  It was a wonderful experience for me, and I will be sharing more of the information I learn as I progress... but for now, here are a few pics:

 Now, on to my first dish!  I made a recipe that I found in the vegetarian cookbook that Amy loaned to me, entitled “From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce”.  This recipe was ‘camp-style sunny-side up eggs with sun gold tomatoes and tarragon’.  The ingredients were:

·         1&1/2 tbsp butter

·         8 large brown eggs

·         12-16 sun gold tomatoes, quartered

·         2-3 tsp chopped, fresh tarragon

·         2-3 tbsp finely chopped green onions

·         Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

The actual cooking of the recipe was incredibly simple (I figured it might be a good idea to start easy…!).  You just melt butter into a large, non-stick cooking pan and crack the eight eggs into it so that the eggs nicely cover the bottom of the pan.  Then you cover it and let it cook for about five minutes, until the eggs are mostly set.  In the meantime, you chop up your other ingredients, and then add them to the top when the eggs are done.  It makes 4-6 servings.  I ended up leaving the eggs in the pan a bit too long, so they were more like hard-boiled than sunny-side up… but they were still delicious!  And such a pretty dish to make, check it out:

 I had a good friend accompany me on the farmer’s market trip, and she was all too happy to help me eat my first creation!  This is definitely something I will be making again… perfect for a delicious Sunday brunch (or anytime, really!).

Personal Project Update

I have done some initial research regarding the basic concepts surrounding the purchase and support of local/organic foods in Bloomington.  One resource that has been immensely helpful and informative for me so far is the Local Growers' Guide, produced by the Local Growers Guild (who, coincidentally, we are doing a fiscal analysis project for in another class).  This guide has helped me formulate some of the more specific questions I want to ask, and research I want to do.  I also borrowed a recipe book from a kind classmate (thanks Amy!) from which I will select my favorite five to ten recipes that I want to attempt to cook.  I plan on going to the Bloomington farmer's market this week to purchase the specific ingredients that I will need to produce my first dish!  From there, I will attempt to plan out the dates that I will be cooking the rest of my dishes, and blog along the way.

Soda Addicts Unite... for the Environment!

In our Roseland reading this week, he talks about the differences in municipal (individual) solid waste production and industrial solid waste production.  This probably sounds weird, but I was a little disheartened to learn that municipal solid waste accounts for less than 2% of all solid waste that is produced and regulated.  Of course, industrial solid waste is the winner (booooo!).  Here I thought I was making an impact by recycling empty cereal boxes and milk cartons, only to wonder (after reading this), is what I’m doing really adding up to…. anything?  Considering the billions of people on the planet, and my pathetic effort to recycle my cat food cans every couple of weeks, my recycling adds up to a tiny, TINY fraction of that total 2% of the waste producing populous.  Not even factoring in the pollution I add to the atmosphere when I have to drive to the recycling center (no, unfortunately my apartment doesn’t have recycling pick-up), and any number of other disheartening variables that cancel out my efforts completely.

Waaaaaahhhhhh!  But then, reading on a bit, I was slightly more heartened when Roseland reinforced the idea that consumer decisions really DO make a difference.  Most of the waste produced by the big industries comes from the manufacturing and distribution phases of the product cycle.  Therefore, we as consumers can make active choices that will reduce the amount of waste produced just by selecting packaging types of our favorite products.  This got me thinking of all the soda drinking students on campus (myself included-Diet Coke fiends anonymous), and what type of an impact there may be in choosing a can of soda versus a 16oz. plastic bottle.  Neither are preferable, right?  Just like the ‘paper or plastic’ question at the grocery store… you have to pick one, even though they’re both terrible options (but not us- we all use our cloth reusable bags, right??).  Regardless, I ended up finding an interesting article online, which talks about the environmental impact of soft drink packaging and delivery:

http://www.napcor.com/pdf/Env_Impact.pdf

To summarize, NAPCOR (the National Association for Plastic Container Recovery) commissioned a study that compared the environmental impact of three different packaging materials for soft drinks- either aluminum, glass, or  polyethylene terephthalate plastic (PET).  The study then conducted a “cradle-to-grave” analysis of the energy consumed and wastes produced through the entire life cycle of each type of material.  Interestingly (at least to me), they found that the PET containers were the most environmentally efficient of the three container types.  Definitely not what I would have guessed!  Specifically, the study produced four conclusions:

1)      When comparing the energy efficiency of like-sized PET (16-

       ounce), glass (16-ounce) and aluminum (12-ounce) soft drink
       containers, PET and aluminum containers are 32 percent more
       efficient than glass in delivering 1,000 gallons of soft drink to the
       consumer. 16-ounce PET bottles are equivalent to aluminum
       cans in terms of energy efficiency. Because of their superior
       packaging-to-product ratio, however, two-liter and three-liter
       PET bottles are 47 percent more energy efficient that 12-ounce
       aluminum cans and 63 percent more energy efficient than 16-
       ounce glass bottles (NAPCOR, 1995).

2)      PET containers have the least environmental impact of all soft
       drink container systems in terms of the total weight of both total
       air emissions and total waterborne wastes (NAPCOR, 1995).

3)      16-ounce PET bottles contribute 68 percent less solid waste
       than 16-ounce glass by weight and are statistically equivalent to
       glass by volume. 16-ounce PET bottles contain 18 percent less
       solid waste by weight, when compared to the 12-ounce
       aluminum can (NAPCOR, 1995).

4)      Custom PET containers for liquor, fruit juices, and salad
       dressing consistently consume less energy and generate fewer
       solid, atmospheric and waterborne wastes than like-size glass
       containers (NAPCOR, 1995).

These were all very interesting to me, as I had always kind of perceived plastic as the be-all, end-all evil of packaging options.  Yet, realizing that just my simple decision to purchase an 8oz can or a 16oz bottle of Diet Coke can add up over time, I am more apt to change my purchasing behavior in the future.  Knowledge is definitely power when it comes to sustainability, and I thought this article provided pretty interesting drink for thought.       (…so sorry for that!)