This week we dove deep into our Action Project as we began to define the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) issue. Because this is a very broad topic, we began to analyze the issue by answering a few questions to further define the problem. On Tuesday we began to go through the Action Process by defining who or what was causing the issue, who were the stakeholders, what were their positions, what was our position as a class, what would happen if the issue were not addressed, and finally, what were some sustainable solutions to address the issue at hand.

Since we didn’t get through all of those questions during Tuesday’s class, we picked up where we left off on Wednesday. There are many stakeholders with a variety of pro and anti-SUV positions, but we realized that we were passionate about exploring the alternative fuel source technologies and vehicles on the market so that we may help persuade potential SUV buyers to purchase a more environmentally and sustainable vehicle.

Because of the weather, we had to take a rain check on our Wednesday afternoon field trip. There was a combination of rain and snow and we really weren’t prepared to be outside in those conditions for a few hours. So, we had to postpone our ecology hike with naturalist Tom Moore from the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks. Instead, we explored what it meant to have a Sense of Place by reading Wallace Stegner’s short story called “Crossing into Eden,” from his book Where the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs. We then completed a journal exercise reflecting on a special place in the outdoors where we felt a strong sense of place. After that, we participated in a Sense of Place Quiz where many students realized that they were not as connected with the land as they thought they were in terms of being able to name edible and medicinal plants in the community, identify animal tracks, make natural shelters, or friction fire. While humans have evolving for millions of years, we have become increasingly disconnected from the skills that humans have used to connect with the land in order to live, thrive, and survive. This weekend, we will work on our fire building and fire making skills in order to help reconnect ourselves to the land and re-remember the skills of our ancestors.

On Friday, we made final preparations to make sure that everyone has the right gear and equipment for our first overnight. Temperatures will dip down to about 15 degrees in the mountains, so we discussed our safety concerns for the weekend and made sure that we were ready for action for the weekend. For many students, this will be their first winter camping experience, so we are all excited to get outside this weekend!