Well! How exciting was yesterday re: climate change?? If I wasn't passionate about it already, listening to Leonardo DiCaprio saying "For the economy itself will die if our ecological system collapses" at the UN Climate Summit would have definitely inspired me to really start thinking. I am aware that there have been many passionate and exciting speeches surround the real threat that climate change is, but it is the way that the media, and social media have grasped this Leo speech that is exciting me most. We need to talk about it, and open conversations, the more people get talking, the more ideas can start flowing. It is not something that needs to be left to the ideas of just scientists, it needs to be opened up to everyone,new innovations are needed.
Climate change is a huge threat to our continuing to live on this planet. It is looming and there isn't enough being done. I've always thought that there is a feeling of "why does recycling matter?" and "there's no point, what difference can one person make?", but the information about that difference, and why recycling matters needs to be disseminated and communicated to everyone, clearly. We know that we should, and we know that it is 'good for the environment', but is that enough?
There can't be the change in thinking and the shift of ideas that is so desperately needed if we don't know WHY it is we need to do it. Not just the why of 'or else we're going to be submerged by the sea, and all of the planets creatures are going to become extinct', but the why behind the actions. How recycling relates to climate change, why turning the tap off whilst brushing your teeth is important, why you should turn the lights off when leaving a room, and why you probably shouldn't hire a hot tub for your birthday weekend even though you super want to!
I think that might be my next blog, all the things that we are constantly told to do, and why?
Wednesday 24 September 2014
Monday 15 September 2014
Gloucester Services
I had an amazing weekend in Bristol celebrating my best friend turning old, and since her birthday has passed, I can officially begin the countdown to mine (6 weeks 6 days).
On the journey back up to Leicester we stopped off at Gloucester Services on the M5. And what a treat it was. It got me excited, as it shows that although we have to have services stations, they don't have to be eyesores full of fast food! They can have green roofs, vegetable patches and ponds, and be full of local produce. I do have a bit of a love for green and brown roofs, they require a little bit more work in the beginning, but they are an amazing way to capture carbon, create habitats, improve air quality, absorb water and they are great insulators. After a quick Google I found that the staff are even bussed in, a great way to keep emissions down.
Obviously, I don't have the expertise to know whether it's all just green bells and eco whistles, but I think it is definitely a step in the right direction. I don't think it is going to increase traffic, people drive cars, a lot, and having less service stations isn't going to change that. But if we can improve those service stations, to move them forward in this kind of direction, then wouldn't that be brill?
On the journey back up to Leicester we stopped off at Gloucester Services on the M5. And what a treat it was. It got me excited, as it shows that although we have to have services stations, they don't have to be eyesores full of fast food! They can have green roofs, vegetable patches and ponds, and be full of local produce. I do have a bit of a love for green and brown roofs, they require a little bit more work in the beginning, but they are an amazing way to capture carbon, create habitats, improve air quality, absorb water and they are great insulators. After a quick Google I found that the staff are even bussed in, a great way to keep emissions down.
Obviously, I don't have the expertise to know whether it's all just green bells and eco whistles, but I think it is definitely a step in the right direction. I don't think it is going to increase traffic, people drive cars, a lot, and having less service stations isn't going to change that. But if we can improve those service stations, to move them forward in this kind of direction, then wouldn't that be brill?
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Thursday 11 September 2014
I'm Back
Hello again, so I'm back, and hopefully back to stay! I only really left because I thought that maybe I should blog less and work more, but I'm now feeling more confident in what I am doing, and how it is going, so I'm back!
What really spurred me on to start blogging again, is wanting to document my experiences of MSc supervision.
It was so fun, I loved it. I loved seeing the two students that I had through from the beginning to the end of their projects. I feel really lucky to have had two completely different students too.
I had KC who, like me, likes to know his targets and goals and exactly what is expected of him. He started off slow, but then once he had a clear picture in his head he ran with it.
Then there was Joshua, who had written about 2000 words before our first meeting, he had his head down and was focussed, and never thought that what he had done was enough. He was constantly looking for more to do.
I was so immensely proud of them when I went to see them at the Cranfield Masters Research Exhibition yesterday!
Well done guys, and thank you so much for throwing me into the process of supervision at the deep end!
What really spurred me on to start blogging again, is wanting to document my experiences of MSc supervision.
It was so fun, I loved it. I loved seeing the two students that I had through from the beginning to the end of their projects. I feel really lucky to have had two completely different students too.
I had KC who, like me, likes to know his targets and goals and exactly what is expected of him. He started off slow, but then once he had a clear picture in his head he ran with it.
Then there was Joshua, who had written about 2000 words before our first meeting, he had his head down and was focussed, and never thought that what he had done was enough. He was constantly looking for more to do.
I was so immensely proud of them when I went to see them at the Cranfield Masters Research Exhibition yesterday!
Well done guys, and thank you so much for throwing me into the process of supervision at the deep end!
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