Activists gather to discuss environmental problems

For student and resident activists in Bloomington, sustainable practices and community cooperation go hand-in-hand.

Members of local organizations Oasis Spasis, Sprouts, Bloomington Urban Gardening Society (B.U.G.S.) and the IU Forest Protection Alliance organized a panel discussion and concert Saturday in Dunn Meadow. The goal of the show was to promote sustainability awareness, urban gardening and forest protection.

Participants took advantage of the opportunity to question expert environmentalists about what they and others could do to help.

“Its really about relocalization, connecting with your local place and trying to see how many of your needs can be met — your food needs, your water needs, your fiber needs, your building material needs — within your local place,” said Heather Reynolds, panel member and ecologist for Strangers Hill Farm.

Reynolds said that people have become consumers, and they need to find ways to also become producers, giving back to their community and natural ecosystem.

The panel also addressed the reasons many students find organic foods too expensive to buy on a regular basis.

“Conventional foods are subsidized, so organic products are more expensive because it internalizes a lot of its cost,” Reynolds said.

Steve Akers, associate director of environmental operations for Residential Programs and Services, said he has been trying to promote local food in the dining halls.

“The logistics get really difficult, but we need to think about where that food is coming from,” Akers said. “You guys as students have the power to start asking for those things so that we can change the way that we do business.”

Consumer awareness is important from an international perspective as well, according to junior Andreina Sweitzer, a member of the IU Forest Protection Alliance and Oasis Spasis.

As an individualized major student, Sweitzer has incorporated her passion for orangutan conservation into her education.

“What is going on with orangutans in Indonesia, their natural habitat, is that big companies come to this economically developing country, the rainforest, and just cut it down by logging or by setting it on fire, which can last for months,” said Sweitzer.

She said palm oil from the trees is in high demand in the United States.

“Orangutans have a hard time because they spend most of their time in trees. So, when the trees are gone for palm oil, so are they,” she said.

Another member of the panel was David Haberman, a member of the IU Department of Religious Studies, a board member of the Indiana Forest Alliance and a deep ecologist.

Haberman said he’s still old fashioned to believe the purpose of education is to live life more consciously.

“The first thing you can do is become aware of yourself and what’s going on around you,” he said. “Ask big questions, pursue those, and find lots of possibilities.”

After the panel answered questions, participants could listen to local music or take advantage of the booths that shared information about urban gardening with the student organization Sprouts or issues like rainforest conservation and sustainable
living.

“Something like this is always a grass roots effort,” said participant David Wright. “So if you care about it and you’re looking to learn about it, you’ll probably be at the next event.”