Conserving Water Creatively

“When you drink the water, remember the spring” ~Chinese Proverb

• How much water do you use everyday?
• Where does your water come from?
• How long could you survive without water?

The second quarter CAP class chose “water” as their environmental issue. Students got excited about this issue after reading the New York Time article “The Future is Drying Up” by Joe Gertner. The article addresses water rights in the West and the imminent water shortage that Coloradans face if we continue to use water at our current rate of consumption.

After some initial conversations, much research, and feelings of being overwhelmed by such a big issue, students came up with the following problem statement:

In North America, the average American uses 600 liters of water a day, while the average African uses 6. In reality, humans need to use about 50 liters per day. Over consumption of water does not just mean taking long showers, leaving the tap running while you brush your teeth, or watering the lawn. One of our biggest consumers of water is industrial agriculture. To make one cotton T-shirt it takes 9oz of cotton. To make that t-shirt from that cotton it takes 25 bathtubs full of water. In homes, businesses, and industrial agriculture, our water is being polluted and unnecessarily used. As a result of the high demand for water we are putting our scarce supply of fresh water, and ourselves, at risk.

The students did a lot of research to be sure they were well-informed about water issues. The class met with the Keep It Clean Partnership, and took a tour of Boulder’s waste water treatment plant. They also read many articles from water experts. Students researched the sources of their own water and mapped their watersheds.

After much deliberation students decided to address this problem through an educational campaign at their school. The class divided into four groups:

• The art group created educational posters and a collaborative mural using provocative art
• A second group created educational pamphlets
• A third created a movie about water in arid Colorado
• And to tie it all together the class wrote and performed a skit for the whole school.

The students aim to have their mural displayed in the City of Boulder’s water office. They distributed their pamphlets after their presentation to the whole school. The movie, an animated film which shows what the future might look like if we don’t change our habits was a hit, with one teacher exclaiming, “That was one of the best CAP presentations I’ve ever seen.”

The students worked hard to create a fantastic educational campaign and their water posters remain posted around the school on bathroom doors, above water fountains, and over sinks.

Well Done CAP!

CAP Pre-Course Survey, 3rd Quarter 2010

Welcome to the Community Adventure Program. Before we get started, we need to get some feedback about the outdoors, the environment, your community, etc. Please answer this survey honestly and to the best of your ability. The good folks who fund this class use this information to assess the performance of the class and this information will help us acquire new grants. Please Click Here To Take The Survey.

Through water issues, new friendships, and freezing cold temps

The 2nd quarter CAP class of the 2009-10 school year have been on quite a journey. While our first overnight in November boasted balmy fall temperatures, our second in December had record lows! Another group might not have been able to handle it, but 2nd quarter CAP pulled through. Our action project–Conserving Water Creatively was a smash hit at exhibition day, with one teacher exclaiming “That was the best CAP presentation I have ever seen.” Here are some photos and quotes from all of the students who made this quarter such a success.

“This quarter I have been so fortunate to have an incredibly positive and fun environment to look forward to at the end of each day. This class has been one of the most rewarding, irreplaceable school experiences I’ve ever had. The overnights were such remarkable experiences for me. Each trip made me feel invigorated. I left feeling refreshed, passionate for environmental conservation, and conscious of my ability to slow down and take on thing at a time.” ~Marissa Bramlett

“CAP class has changed my point of view on so many things about the environment that I never would have thought of before. It brought new ideas to my attention. What I can do with the information I learned is just spread what I learned to others and hope they learn from it like me. The overnights were so great and they helped me out so much. If I could take CAP every quarter I would.” ~Taylor McQueeney

“The class as a whole was one giant new experience for me. I did and learned a lot of things that I otherwise would have never got the chance for. I went camping for the first time in my life! Twice, one of which was in freezing cold temperatures, that was a skill I never thought I had. I got to make music for a movie, and I really branched out and got to know my classmates a lot better. I feel like we developed a family like group since we were all so diverse yet had to interact with each other and I’m really glad I got to know all these amazing people that I otherwise wouldn’t have bother to get to know. ~Benza Maman

“This quarter I learned a lot, from helping the environment, to reducing my human footprint, to the one match fire! When I joined CAP I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I found out I really liked it. Overall this quarter I learned to look at people differently and to think differently, and how I can make a difference in the world.” ~Halsey Black

“Our CAP class has learned a lot about a lot of things and done quite a lot too! We’ve learned and discussed the human footprint, including water issues and what we can do about it. We learned wilderness skills and about the electrical and heating system in our school and how to save on energy in our houses. I think we’ve really gotten a chance to think about what we cand o personally and in bigger ways to change some problems in our community and really look at those problems we would otherwise never realize.” ~Bayani Kawal

“I enjoyed doing the action project because I realized how big the environmental issue “water” can be, as well as some of the things I need to start doing to improve my environmental footprint. Working on the action project got me aware of the issues that we face today concerning water, energy, CO2 emissions and many more. After taking this class I will start changing some of my habits that impact the world even if they are small, every little thing counts and adds up. I will encourage my family to change their habits too.” ~Nick Smith

“The CAP program is a very unique and interesting class. I feel privileged to have participate in this class. One thing I didn’t expect what that I got to know everyone in the class extremely well. This class has taught me a great deal about myself and how I work in a group dynamic. I’ve never had to rely on the other members of my group they way I had to for this class.  This class forces you to make friends, it is almost impossible to just hide back and do the work, which I am used to. Being an informed member of our global community makes wasting and polluting much more difficult. I have found that because I know more it makes it much harder because I can’t make the claim that I didn’t know what I was doing.” ~Thomas Regur

“CAP has been a great opportunity for me. It’s allowed me to expand my horizons. I enjoyed all the activities and projects we’ve done. I honestly wish I didn’t pick CAP this quarter because it is one of the shortest quarters and I want more. I want more time to do things, and to bring more awareness to our action project.” ~Yaxa deLaGrange

“I started this class in all truthfulness because I am a senior and I thought it would be an easy way to kill time. First of all I want to say that it has not been easy, I have been forced to use every aspect of my being to lead myself through waht I thought would be my final walk in the park at New Vista. [It was] on the first overnight that I realized the power of this class…the overnight allowed me to believe that no matter what happened we would have a strong enough foundation to succeed [on our action project]. Throughout the project I found out that you don’t really have to care about something to put your heart into it, and also sometimes when you put your heart into something you realize you do care about it. Throughout this class I have had the chance to be myself and also to try to step out of my comfort zone and work on things that I never would have. What I love about CAP is that it is so much: it’s a chance to be yourself, a chance to learn about the environment, a chance to work with others, but most of all it’s a chance to make a change… I have even started to write about the environment in my college essays, and found myself talking to my whole family. Thoreau said ‘As if you could kill time without injuring eternity,” so while I started this class to kill some time, in some way I believe my life will never be the same.” ~Julien Scherliss

“This class has helped me to feel jazzed about being kind to the earth, and I feel inspired to take better care of my environment. Throughout my life, am here and now committing to do as much work to heal the earth as I can. It is a big task and the world needs all the helping hands it can get.” ~Tzuria Malpica

“I think the biggest thing I learned this quarter is that knowledge is power and you should abuse it. If you research something like water issues that everyone is a part of and don’t tell people about the affects that they obviously aren’t aware of, then you are not doing your part. Knowledge is the first step to change. When people understand that their 20 minute shower isn’t just excessive it’s also, in a way, stealing water from other people and animals downstream, you put the power in their hands.” ~Henry Giebler

“This class has given me hope for our future. It’s stunning to me that CAP is not taught in every school. It feels like it is essential to receive an education about the harsh wounds our earth is suffering. How are we supposed to mend the problem if we’re not given the tools to do so. In addition, I fear that this generation is losing it’s connection with nature. Technology has infected like the plague. CAP reminds us that we are a collective. Through CAP I have developed an increased awareness of my footprint. I also have a heightened appreciation for the rapidly fading natural world that we often take advantage of. Ernest Becker writes, ‘When we understand that man is the only animal who must create meaning, who must open a wedge into neutral nature, we already understand the essence of love. Love is the problem of an animal who must find life, create a dialogue with nature in order to experience his own being.’ Thanks to CAP, I can’t wait to hear the rest of my conversation with nature.” ~Tess Eckert