The day following our return from the field trip I wrote about in the third installation of this most excellent blog, we were paid a visit by Colorado’s Commissioner of Agriculture, Kate Greenberg. She directs 300 employees at Colorado’s Agriculture Department, so it was a real privilege for her to speak to a class of …
Continue reading ““Food, Agriculture, and the Environment”. Wrap Up.”
After visiting the Colorado Springs Food Rescue and speaking to Zac Chapman and Shane Lory on Tuesday of last week, we moved on from studying food security, justice, access, and sovereignty to studying the influence of politics on the agricultural sector and the experience of farming in America (or at least in Colorado). This …
Continue reading ““Food, Agriculture, and the Environment”. Update #3 (a good, long read!).”
On Friday, June 28th, to round out the first week of the class, we met first to discuss agricultural biotechnology and then walked over to the Fine Arts Center at Colorado College to visit an exhibit about the acequias of New Mexico. Genetically modified organisms are the subject of much heated debate for good reason. The …
Continue reading ““Food, Agriculture, and the Environment”. Update #2.”
Food and agriculture play a role in nearly every social and political issue facing the United States and the world at large. And, although farmers now represent just 1% of the US population, the nation’s health, environment, security, and economy hinge on how those farmers tend their land and what they produce. This course (EV …
Suddenly fourth week is in full swing. It is amazing that we have only been weaving for less than a month! The works we have produced are ones to be proud of for sure. We have spent late nights avidly weaving many yards, problem solving, and eating an unreasonable amount of freeze pops to arrive where we …
Throughout the whole block, we have been learning the many ways to dye various fiber materials. Fibers can be relatively picky about how they want to be dyed, and dyes take careful measuring and planning to come out the desired color. At first it all seemed overwhelmingly mysterious to me. All of the chemicals and …
The adventure into the mysterious basement of the Fine Arts center was an unforgettable one. Michael led us behind the scenes, into the basement where priceless art waits on its way in or out of the museum. We held our breaths as the grille of the massive elevator screeched into position, locking us in for the …
This week has been a whirlwind of learning. It is amazing to work our way through the many steps of creating fabric—something we are in contact with every day. Textiles are such an integral part of cultures all over the world and the craft of weaving is a specialized and versatile one. Somehow handling the …
Oi Gente! Our group recently just returned from a wonderful experience in Lençóis, Bahia! The trip started on Friday morning, bright and early as it takes 7 hours to get to Lençóis from Salvador. I was asleep for most of the bus ride, but when I woke up, I realized for the first time since I …
Photo Credit: Angela Kong Waiting for my film to show up on the big screen was absolutely terrifying, and as I looked at the other students’ faces, I could tell they were doing a pretty awful job hiding their terror too. I exported my film at about 6:00 for the 7:00 screening. That’t not okay. …
