This week I take my final exam in my Food Industry class, a class which has been challenging, enlightening, and is the reason I stare at my computer for 3 days straight taking notes from the powerpoints. So, while I take a break, some thoughts on comparing European and American school systems.
In ecological terms, American students are generalists. We take two years worth of general education classes, in the most random subjects, on the most random topics, with the intention that we will be well rounded students. We also spend about 4 years getting our Bachelors, take a year off, and maybe go to grad school, often going straight to college from high school (if you grew up in the community I did, this is not an option, but a requirement. Otherwise, you are perceived as not doing anything with your life).
Europeans, however, are specialists. Most Danes take a few years break after gymnasium (an intense version of high school), waiting until they absolutely know what they want to study at university. Once in, studies are very specialized, and most stay five years, for the three year bachelors-two year master's degree. Also, the Danish government pays for students to go to school. My friends get stipends from the government just to study. I don't even get a scholarship.
My brain is a generalist. My major is a generalist. The Environmental Studies dept at UCSC has taught me the most random things, in topics not quite related to each other, so studying in the Faculty of Life at Kobenhavn University is challenging, because I don't have detailed knowledge and background. I signed up for a class on Biological Control of Pests for the next block because I'd taken a class on Integrated Pest Management and thought I would be prepared. But looking at the syllabus, I'm terrified. I don't know details about insects and chemicals. I know basic concepts of agroecology, and effects of pesticides in the environment. And I am not going to be a specialist in my field, at least not yet. Even my extracurriculars at Santa Cruz have no direct relation to each other or my studies (ocean advocacy internship and grant allocating while taking classes that involve food and agriculture. And hopefully teaching a class on Ecology and Religion through ESLP).
My major has taught me that everything is connected. For example, in my Environmental Policy class, I applied knowledge learned in Biogeochemistry and Agroecology to think about policies that would control nitrogenous fertilizer. And in Copenhagen, it is most refreshing to learn about the food industry from mainstream scholars and business men so I can learn what it is actually like, as opposed to the idealist Banana slugs who want to "F***ing change the system, man!!" (me included of course).
And so ends my persapitation, persapitating being a wonderful word Heather taught me that means doing something you have to do to avoid something you REALLY have to do. And I had to write this entry, right? ;-)
Monday, October 26, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Some Thoughts
It is 521 pm. I am standing at a computer in a cafe in the Humanitites building, after having just finished a 2 hour lecture on Thor, and with 1 1/2 hours until my Danish class. These are the thoughts in my head.
-That stupid project on Nordic Sugar is FINISHED. Cool, now I have a vague idea on how companies are structured... but what's its environmental impact? And must I really listen to my classmates present their companies for 4 hours tomorrow?
-The friends that I've made here are extremely casual and I've run out of things to talk to them about. Nor do people actually follow through when I initiate hanging out. The other option, however, is meeting more new people, and having the same conversation of 'What's your name? Where are you from? How long are you here for? What do you study?' And maybe insert another conversation you've had a million times before of how distances in Europe are completely different than they are in the states, a litany of all the places you've traveled while in Europe and where you want to go, how Copenhagen is different from [insert your city here], or maybe the ever favorite discussion on drinking ages and culture in different countries. (Please, DO NOT ask me about drinking ages in different countries when I return. It's got to be the most shallow conversation ever).
-meeting Danish students is intimidating. They sit in groups or pairs around the campus and in the Kantines. And I don't know if I've mentioned this yet, but there are multiple campuses throughout the city, so there is no central location. And all the flyers posted in the hallways are in Danish, so I have NO idea what events are going on. That is, events or activities that aren't drinking.
Ironically, when I left my dorm this afternoon to take the train to Amagar for my Nordic Mythology class, I was really excited about being back in Copenhagen. Russia was such a culture shock, it was almost comforting to be back in City Center surrounded by familiarity: takig the metro at Nørreport Station, the smell of the pølser wagons, listening to people speak Danish and understanding only 3 words. And I was even feeling excited about my life, about how cliche it is but true that living abroad opens up your world (though I wouldn't exactly call running around Europe and living in a country that has less crime than my neighborhood in the nineties the world). Yes, I´ve been dragged far far away from my comfort zone, but I'm not sure if I was up for the challenge.
-That stupid project on Nordic Sugar is FINISHED. Cool, now I have a vague idea on how companies are structured... but what's its environmental impact? And must I really listen to my classmates present their companies for 4 hours tomorrow?
-The friends that I've made here are extremely casual and I've run out of things to talk to them about. Nor do people actually follow through when I initiate hanging out. The other option, however, is meeting more new people, and having the same conversation of 'What's your name? Where are you from? How long are you here for? What do you study?' And maybe insert another conversation you've had a million times before of how distances in Europe are completely different than they are in the states, a litany of all the places you've traveled while in Europe and where you want to go, how Copenhagen is different from [insert your city here], or maybe the ever favorite discussion on drinking ages and culture in different countries. (Please, DO NOT ask me about drinking ages in different countries when I return. It's got to be the most shallow conversation ever).
-meeting Danish students is intimidating. They sit in groups or pairs around the campus and in the Kantines. And I don't know if I've mentioned this yet, but there are multiple campuses throughout the city, so there is no central location. And all the flyers posted in the hallways are in Danish, so I have NO idea what events are going on. That is, events or activities that aren't drinking.
Ironically, when I left my dorm this afternoon to take the train to Amagar for my Nordic Mythology class, I was really excited about being back in Copenhagen. Russia was such a culture shock, it was almost comforting to be back in City Center surrounded by familiarity: takig the metro at Nørreport Station, the smell of the pølser wagons, listening to people speak Danish and understanding only 3 words. And I was even feeling excited about my life, about how cliche it is but true that living abroad opens up your world (though I wouldn't exactly call running around Europe and living in a country that has less crime than my neighborhood in the nineties the world). Yes, I´ve been dragged far far away from my comfort zone, but I'm not sure if I was up for the challenge.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Rusland
Russia is different. You need a visa to enter, and a visa to leave. The alphabet is different (cyricllic). The language is different. People are different. Buildings are different. Clothing is different. Food is different. Yes, you can say the same for nearly any country, but honestly, most of Western Europe is the same, and as is most of Canada, America, and Aus. Russia was the biggest culture shock I've ever experienced. St. Petersberg is built to look like a European city, but is still undeniably different. Moscow, on the other hand, was chaotic, with buildings from nearly every century, no organization, giant Soviet looking buildings, and more people.
The guided trip itself was a disappointment, because I was expecting more organization and more guidance, and so did not prepare myself with more knowledge of sights I wanted to see, and since we were in a large group, spontaneous excursions took way more time than they needed (I never want to travel in such a large group AGAIN). I got very frustrated that I wasn't able to see as much were I traveling by myself, and more frustrating that I didn't have my glasses because they were being prepared and that the alphabet was different.
BUT people on the trip were really nice and I made friends easily. Not so many warm fuzzy affectionate bonding that I experience in Jewish and Environmental trips, but interesting to travel with people of different nationalities.
I also have Russian heritage, making this trip slightly more meaningful. Despite my family coming from Minsk and Odessa, it's still a big deal to visit the Motherland. And Russia is COLD.
Some more anecdotes of my trip:
-I love black heeled shoes. This is a country of women wearing black high heeled boots. I was ecstatic.
-I grew up eating "Jewish" foods like kasha (buckweat) and blintzes (crepes stuffed with curded cheese). Then I come to Russia and am frequently served kasha and eat blini (Russian pancakes) nearly every day. Not to mention how much I love beets and how much Russians eat them.... Needless to say, eating familiar foods in a very unfamiliar country is a bizarre experience.
-competed with my friends to see how many times you could get yelled at by old Russian women, in a manner similar to Natalya when she's angry (as Zac said, this is a country of Natalya's <3 )
-Russian Orthodox churches are BEAUTIFUL. I always gasped whenever I saw the colorful onion shaped domes of Church of the Spilled Blood in St. Petersberg and St. Basil's cathedral in Moscow.
-I also thought that after visiting Notre Dame and Versailles I'd never see a more beautiful building. Until I entered the Winter Palace of the Hermitage in St Petersberg.
-After the Hermitage, which is a grand collection of fine art, I followed some Danes to an abandoned barracks with a collection of Non-Conformist art. While wandering the "galleries" I encountered a small room with couches and funky art on the walls, with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the coffee table. I decided I needed to smoke one in that room, but while doing so the guy whom they belonged to walked in. So then we had an awkward conversation in his halted English.
-As I walked with a group of my friends on the outer edge of the Red Square in Moscow, viewing the beautiful domed church ahead, all in somber silence as we noted the graves of Russian presidents on either side of us, about to view the entombed body of Lenin in his masoleum guarded by uniformed Russian policemen, my friend turns to me and says, "So you've never been skiing?"
The guided trip itself was a disappointment, because I was expecting more organization and more guidance, and so did not prepare myself with more knowledge of sights I wanted to see, and since we were in a large group, spontaneous excursions took way more time than they needed (I never want to travel in such a large group AGAIN). I got very frustrated that I wasn't able to see as much were I traveling by myself, and more frustrating that I didn't have my glasses because they were being prepared and that the alphabet was different.
BUT people on the trip were really nice and I made friends easily. Not so many warm fuzzy affectionate bonding that I experience in Jewish and Environmental trips, but interesting to travel with people of different nationalities.
I also have Russian heritage, making this trip slightly more meaningful. Despite my family coming from Minsk and Odessa, it's still a big deal to visit the Motherland. And Russia is COLD.
Some more anecdotes of my trip:
-I love black heeled shoes. This is a country of women wearing black high heeled boots. I was ecstatic.
-I grew up eating "Jewish" foods like kasha (buckweat) and blintzes (crepes stuffed with curded cheese). Then I come to Russia and am frequently served kasha and eat blini (Russian pancakes) nearly every day. Not to mention how much I love beets and how much Russians eat them.... Needless to say, eating familiar foods in a very unfamiliar country is a bizarre experience.
-competed with my friends to see how many times you could get yelled at by old Russian women, in a manner similar to Natalya when she's angry (as Zac said, this is a country of Natalya's <3 )
-Russian Orthodox churches are BEAUTIFUL. I always gasped whenever I saw the colorful onion shaped domes of Church of the Spilled Blood in St. Petersberg and St. Basil's cathedral in Moscow.
-I also thought that after visiting Notre Dame and Versailles I'd never see a more beautiful building. Until I entered the Winter Palace of the Hermitage in St Petersberg.
-After the Hermitage, which is a grand collection of fine art, I followed some Danes to an abandoned barracks with a collection of Non-Conformist art. While wandering the "galleries" I encountered a small room with couches and funky art on the walls, with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the coffee table. I decided I needed to smoke one in that room, but while doing so the guy whom they belonged to walked in. So then we had an awkward conversation in his halted English.
-As I walked with a group of my friends on the outer edge of the Red Square in Moscow, viewing the beautiful domed church ahead, all in somber silence as we noted the graves of Russian presidents on either side of us, about to view the entombed body of Lenin in his masoleum guarded by uniformed Russian policemen, my friend turns to me and says, "So you've never been skiing?"
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Did you know Lizzy's going to Russia?
For the next ten days, I will be visiting Moscow and St. Petersburg on an organized tour with other students. I am SO excited for this. My dad went in 1979, now I get to go in 2009.
Not much else has been going on. I missed a trip to some cliffs last week because I was convinced the bus left at 10, only to discover it left at 830 (needless to say, I was BEYOND pissed off). I spend a lot of time hanging out with Danish Jews, and working on an epic project. Things are.... going ok.
Not much else has been going on. I missed a trip to some cliffs last week because I was convinced the bus left at 10, only to discover it left at 830 (needless to say, I was BEYOND pissed off). I spend a lot of time hanging out with Danish Jews, and working on an epic project. Things are.... going ok.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
New Address
Someone turns 21 in a month, and has a new address after moving:
Ny Emdrupborg Kollegium
Emdrupvej 54 A, Room 1
2400 Kobenhavn NV
DANMARK
Ny Emdrupborg Kollegium
Emdrupvej 54 A, Room 1
2400 Kobenhavn NV
DANMARK
Olympics
On Friday Copenhagen hosted the International Olympics Committee's decision for who to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Tokyo, Chicago, Madrid, and Rio de Janeiro were in the running. Obama even came to CPH for five hours (I am ecstatic to have even be in the same city as him). The city hosted a festival at the Radhusplasden, which is a plaza in front of City Hall. I hung out with sweet Japanese girls I knew in the crowd of Tokyo delegates, and even saw Aqua perform for the second time in my life for free (the first time was in August). I have to say, it was very exciting to be in the square as they officially announced Rio de Janeiro as the host for the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Climate Lecture
In class today, a girl turned around and asked if anyone wanted to go to a Climate Lecture this afternoon. Considering how big a headache my hw has been giving me, I figured, why not? The University of Copenhagen has been hosting a series of lectures on climate change by prestigious individuals in preparation for COP15. Professor Diana Liverman, Director of the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford, had a lot to say on how local governments have an impact on combatting climate change. In lieu of rehashing the lecture, I'll try to summarize important points.
First of all, she divided the U.S. into regions, where each grouping of states produced as much emissions as some countries (for example, New England emits as much CO2 has Canada). Already, that puts you in perspective of exactly HOW MUCH of an impact the States have.
She talked A LOT about California, how we did many things right in making strict measures and policies to reduce our GHG emissions, making me enormously proud to be an exchange student listening to a climate lecture in Copenhagen :-) An important point that California represents, however, is how much control does a state have vs national? Some may remember last year when CA wanted to make their car regulations more strict, and the US EPA vetoed it because it would effect American car sales because Japanese cars were so much more efficient. Obviously, that means that American car companies should build better cars, right? Fortunately, the veto was overturned and CA had its way. Dr. Liverman also pointed out that because CA is so powerful, it has a ripple effect. As in, if CA regulates the energy efficiency of certain products that it buys from other states, like Nevada, these states have to follow these more stringent policies for themselves in order to remain in business with CA. It's all fine and dandy if CA and the West Coast are making an effort, but what about the other states that don't care? That's where the Federal government comes in. They need to enforce stringent CO2 emissions policies on the other states.
Now what about cities? If you're from wonderful smoggy Southern California, which can pretty much be its own city considering how much development there is, you understand that cities are a major emittor of GHGs. However, cities don't have much control. Can you imagine our mayor trying to regulate LAX by saying that only planes that emit a certain ghg level are allowed to land? Apparently, cities can play a part by forming partnerships, or by investing in city development, but I think it's a bit too late to redevelop the City of Angels into a City of Sustainability. And many people would love to contribute more to sustainability, but their city does not make that a viable option. Everyone knows how much I'm dying for a car, because otherwise, getting around LA is impossible. Public transit isn't efficient, and biking is a death wish.
Non-Governmental Organizations. My dream employer. Do they have an impact on climate emissions? The sad truth, not really. They all have different agendas and are all focused on different things. Oftentimes, they usually can't agree on anything. (her rant about a group of NGOs in a meeting not making a decision reminded me sadly of activists in Santa Cruz). Mayhap certain ones that focus on pressuring governments into stringent programs have an impact.
I suppose I should conclude with "what is the best way to combat climate change?" I have always been a firm believer in citizen action, and still am. I have also always believed in the system (the most dreaded word in a Santa Cruz activists vocabulary). The system means governmental regulations on companies, on cities, EVERYBODY. Because we can't fight this battle alone.
First of all, she divided the U.S. into regions, where each grouping of states produced as much emissions as some countries (for example, New England emits as much CO2 has Canada). Already, that puts you in perspective of exactly HOW MUCH of an impact the States have.
She talked A LOT about California, how we did many things right in making strict measures and policies to reduce our GHG emissions, making me enormously proud to be an exchange student listening to a climate lecture in Copenhagen :-) An important point that California represents, however, is how much control does a state have vs national? Some may remember last year when CA wanted to make their car regulations more strict, and the US EPA vetoed it because it would effect American car sales because Japanese cars were so much more efficient. Obviously, that means that American car companies should build better cars, right? Fortunately, the veto was overturned and CA had its way. Dr. Liverman also pointed out that because CA is so powerful, it has a ripple effect. As in, if CA regulates the energy efficiency of certain products that it buys from other states, like Nevada, these states have to follow these more stringent policies for themselves in order to remain in business with CA. It's all fine and dandy if CA and the West Coast are making an effort, but what about the other states that don't care? That's where the Federal government comes in. They need to enforce stringent CO2 emissions policies on the other states.
Now what about cities? If you're from wonderful smoggy Southern California, which can pretty much be its own city considering how much development there is, you understand that cities are a major emittor of GHGs. However, cities don't have much control. Can you imagine our mayor trying to regulate LAX by saying that only planes that emit a certain ghg level are allowed to land? Apparently, cities can play a part by forming partnerships, or by investing in city development, but I think it's a bit too late to redevelop the City of Angels into a City of Sustainability. And many people would love to contribute more to sustainability, but their city does not make that a viable option. Everyone knows how much I'm dying for a car, because otherwise, getting around LA is impossible. Public transit isn't efficient, and biking is a death wish.
Non-Governmental Organizations. My dream employer. Do they have an impact on climate emissions? The sad truth, not really. They all have different agendas and are all focused on different things. Oftentimes, they usually can't agree on anything. (her rant about a group of NGOs in a meeting not making a decision reminded me sadly of activists in Santa Cruz). Mayhap certain ones that focus on pressuring governments into stringent programs have an impact.
I suppose I should conclude with "what is the best way to combat climate change?" I have always been a firm believer in citizen action, and still am. I have also always believed in the system (the most dreaded word in a Santa Cruz activists vocabulary). The system means governmental regulations on companies, on cities, EVERYBODY. Because we can't fight this battle alone.
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