ECHO Farms

Echo Farms is the only place on our field trip list that I had never been before... Coming in I was very interested in how they took the little amount of materials that various groups of people would have readily available and design highly effective tools and methods to grow and harvest food. As an engineering major I liked the problem solving aspect of it.

Clay oven deigned to reduce smoke output and cook food at a high temperature

Well Designed using primitive materials that can pump a good amount of water without much effort.

They also came up with interesting ways to use animal waste to fertilize crops more effectively than methods that are currently used.

Picture of a pond where they have bred ducks to lose there ability to fly so they can constantly fertilize the lake to provide food for the talapia that are being raised there. This is a great idea to provide a solid supply of protein for people the only thing they need to do is feed the ducks and provide shelter for them.

       It is things like these that I believe that Echos way of thinking towards solving word hunger is so effective. Instead of just giving them food, they teach them to grow food so they can help them so they can help themselves and others in the area.

 

 Overall I thought ECHO Farms was a pretty interesting place... Even more so since it was located in
Ft. Myers. Along with Algenol and FGCU the Ft. Myers area is getting more into progressive and green ways of thinking and its been very interesting seeing all three of them grow and thrive over the years.

First Class

Welcome to my blog!

This is my first post of many so here goes...

Ill start off by saying I am coming into this class with  fairly low expectations that I will gain any new knowledge or some info that is going to "open my my eyes" for many reasons. I have lived in Bonita Springs my entire life and enjoy doing all sorts of outdoor activities, so in terms of info on wildlife/habitats I have a pretty good background in the subject. Next being that I have lived in the area for all of my life and attended school in the area we were all taught about our local ecosystem and ways we as humans are impacting it so I just feel like its going to be more of the same stuff I have been taught since grade school. Finally this course is required by the university.... I understand what the principal of this class is to expose students from all disciplines to things they may have not heard of before, but as a civil engineering student we have to take so many classes on environmental impacts that go in so much more depth than this class will that we only need to take one or two more classes to graduate with a minor in environmental engineering. I just feel like this class and "Understanding Visual and Performing Arts" are going to be one and the same; save this one you go on field trips.

Now even after all this I will try and get as much as I can out of this course. Since I am here may as well try to enjoy it, and who knows I may learn a little something.

Mahi Mahi (Dolphin) that I caught in the Florida Keys

Picture of a Bull Shark that I took this summer 

Me cocking my spear gun

Me with a Red Grouper that I had Speared

Fishing In the Gulf Of Mexico

My Fish From that Day

Picture of a school of Goliath Grouper (Jew Fish) on a wreck that I took this summer.