Reflections of the Marina

In conclusion, on a early morning Saturday in April, I traveled to Eagle Trace retirement community and delivered my lecture on Marine and Coastal Biology with its connections to Biodiversity and how everyone on this plant must be proactive in protecting it against the harmful pollutants and biochemical spills (such as the one that happen in Louisiana last year). The audience seemed to be very receptive and asked questions on how they may get involved. I suggested that they go to the UN Biodiversity website to become more versed on the issues and also I suggest that they join the Sierra Club and get involved with the Houston Chapter. The Sierra Club as you may probably already know: "Since 1892, the Sierra Club has been working to protect communities, wild places, and the planet itself. We are the largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States."  I told the audience that I was an active member of the Sierra Club and believe that the organization really and truly tries to make United States and the various ecosystem cleaner and more efficient in the job they are suppose to do.

When asked "Would I do the Service Learning Project again?", my answer would be definitely. I learn so much about Marine and Coastal Biology and it gave me more practice on my public speaking skills-- which will help me in the long run!

Work Cited

The Roaring Forties

Lately I have been pondering what am I suppose to get from this service learning project. I know I am helping the community and enhancing my knowledge on a subject of biology that I am not familiar with, but as Oprah states, I was wondering when I would achieve that "A-ha" moment-- and then it came.

I felt this feeling when I first visited the retirement community of Eagle Trace. I felt as though, so many walks of life were there and they have seen so much history that I wish I could have witnessed. Frankly, just sitting there and listening to an elderly lady discuss how she lived in the 40s and how women acted and how the world was, hit me with so much gratitude for not only giving back to my community but to learn and listen to the various stories--- that did something to my outlook on life.

Description of the UN video

* Tried to get this in the post with the video but couldn't get it to work.

Above is the video that is place on the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity website. This video outlines the drastic need for action regarding biodiversity in all parts of the world and how its connects to the MDGs ( Millennium Development Goals). The narrator of the video also illustrates the different terrains and conditions around the world and how it has changed over the course of a few decades. This video personally taught me many important statistics surrounding the ecosystems and environmental changes that will help me bring about awareness to my audience.


Citation for the Video

United Nations Decade on Biodiversity - Official Video

Throughout this week I have been researching the topic I will present. I want to put an emphasis on a certain subtopic of Marine and Coastal Biodiversity: Land-based pollution and eutrophication. A major issue that is threatening the Gulf Coast is man made pollutants from nearby refineries and chemical plants. Eutrophication is the ecosystems natural response to the addition of artificial pollutants and/or natural substances that have reach peak levels. I have also been planning my presentation techniques that I will use during my presentation. Below is the definition from the UN decade of Biodiversity website, of the main topic that my subtopic is involved in. In the coming week, I will dive further into my sub-topic and start to research other ways to present my lecture in a interesting fun way.

What is Marine and Coastal Biodiversity?

The oceans cover 70% of the planet’s surface area, and marine and coastal environments contain diverse habitats that support an abundance of marine life. Life in our seas produces a third of the oxygen that we breathe, offers a valuable source of protein and moderates global climatic change. Some examples of marine and coastal habitats include mangrove forests; coral reefs; sea grass beds; estuaries in coastal areas; hydrothermal vents; and seamounts and soft sediments on the ocean floor a few kilometres below the surface.

Work Cited

For my Biology II class, I was prompted to do a service initiative project that dealt with the unprivileged community. I decided to merge two topics to create an event at my local retirement community called Eagle's Trace.
I will present a 30-45 minute program regarding one of the Thematic Programmes about Marine and Coastal Biology. Since we are located in the Gulf of Mexico I feel that this specific topic will be beneficial and interesting to my audience.