To Whom It May Concern,

Du to the current changes in my life( good changes ) I have to take a break from this blog. I Have to plot my next move go in the blogisphere and in life. But as soon as I do < you will be the first to know. Until my next post..........

Lifes a BEACH

Its Summer time and like so many urbanites, this blog needs to get out of the city and head to the local beach. So for the month of August, I will be visiting the beaches in Los Angeles from Malibu to Venice. These beaches are some of worlds most beautiful and recognized locations. Some are frequented by many from all over the world, and others cater to the locals and are exclusive and hard to find. I will start at Malibu and work my way south to Venice. Here is a sneak peak at Malibu

We are what we eat

If the title of post is true, Americans in big cities may be shocked at what they see in the proverbial mirror. The fact "fast food" is bad for you, and a steady diet of it could ruin your health, is a no-brainer. You can see examples of it at work, on the streets, and at home. The struggle to eat healthy, clean foods in a urban environment is one that many of us face daily. The fight to keep American food free of chemicals started around the time of the 20th century mechanical revolution that launched the USA into extraordinary economic prosperity and poised us as one of the worlds strongest superpowers. The American compulsion to mass produce and sell exponentially has served us well in many industries with the big exception of the food business.

Most people in cities either buy their foods from markets(Safeway,Ralphs,QFC,etc), or eat meals that are prepared for them buy some other source(restaurant,grocery store,etc). People concerned with the quality and social/political aspects of food chose to shop at co-ops or stores synonymous with "organic" goods like Whole Foods. The people who have access too and who can afford to shop at high end markets take pride in knowing that the food they feed to their friends and family is safe, and wont have any harmful side effects. Fat used to be the most serious side affect of eating the wrong foods, but as more chemicals are being introduced into the production of our foods, the long term effect of eating processed food is a topic of national debate. Most people would agree that a diet primarily of "organic" fruits and vegetables is the healthiest way to eat. Most people don't realize that the food at the burger joint and the produce at the market not only come from the same place, they go through the same production process in order to be sold.
When I heard the word 'irradiation' or the term 'dose effect', I thought of nuclear science and plant meltdowns like the recent one in japan. I was surprised to learn that these terms are some of the biggest concerns facing the big city food delihma. The urban need for massive amounts of food to sit on shelves, not age, and look its best indefinitely, has taken Americans on a slippery chemical slope over the past eighty years. Chemicals used to suppress pests and disease before and after food production has had deadly affects on our environment and ourselves, and some have been banned over time. Currently, food production is using a method that does not involve chemicals , but a method with just as much question about toxicity.

Let me give you a few definitions:
-Organic Foods:Organic foods are foods that are produced using methods that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, do not contain genetically modified organisms, and are not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or chemical food additives.Processed organic food usually contains only organic ingredients. If non-organic ingredients are present, at least a certain percentage of the food's total plant and animal ingredients must be organic (95% in the United States, Canada, and Australia) and any non-organically produced ingredients are subject to various agricultural requirements. Foods claiming to be organic must be free of artificial food additives, and are often processed with fewer artificial methods, materials and conditions, such as chemical ripening, food irradiation, and genetically modified ingredients. Pesticides are allowed so long as they are not synthetic.
-Irradiation:Food irradiation is the process of exposing food to ionizing radiation[1] to destroy microorganisms, bacteria, viruses, or insects that might be present in the food. Further applications include sprout inhibition, delay of ripening, increase of juice yield, and improvement of re-hydration. Irradiated food does not become radioactive, but in some cases there may be subtle chemical changes.Irradiation is a more general term of the exposure of materials to radiation to achieve a technical goal (in this context "ionizing radiation" is implied). As such it is also used on non-food items, such as medical devices, plastics, tubes for gas pipelines, hoses for floor heating, shrink-foils for food packaging, automobile parts, wires and cables (isolation), tires, and even gemstones.
Food irradiation acts by damaging the target organism's DNA beyond its ability to repair. Microorganisms can no longer proliferate and continue their malignant or pathogenic activities. Spoilage-causing microorganisms cannot continue their activities. Insects do not survive, or become incapable of reproduction. Plants cannot continue their natural ripening processes.
The energy density per atomic transition of ionizing radiation is very high; it can break apart molecules and induce ionization, which is not achieved by mere heating. This is the reason for both new effects and new concerns. The treatment of solid food by ionizing radiation can provide an effect similar to heat pasteurization of liquids, such as milk. The use of the term "cold pasteurization" to describe irradiated foods is controversial, since pasteurization and irradiation are fundamentally different processes.
Food irradiation is currently permitted by over 40 countries, and the volume of food treated is estimated to exceed 500,000 metric tons annually worldwide

From hamburger patties to spinach, nukeing our food a little before we sell it is the latest way to keep food fit for consumption. The problem isn't just a pesticide or a microwave, its the cumulative damage over time or the 'dose effect' that is harmful. If you start tracking the history of the food you eat and processes the food goes through, you realize that nothing we eat is hazard free. One food item could have a combination of chemical and radioactive processes done to it before you get it in the raw. A few of these foods together could become a toxic salad of chemicals designed to kill. Its tragically ironic that many people are exposed to these chemicals in an honest effort to escape them. You eat the salad instead of the big mac only to find out they both have been treated with radiation. Sure at different levels, but if you eat irradiated veggies 5 times a week, and steak once, it would seem the dose effect might be the same.

< I'm not one of those preachy doom and gloom environmentalist, I just want people to investigate and be pro-active about what they eat. REALLY eating healthy is difficult now days, and sometimes we feel like there is nothing we can do about it. I know I feel that way at times and I suspect I'm not the only one.

Waste not, Want not?

Human beings waste so much, that animal species have evolved to live off our waste. Squirrels, rats, and crows are the most visible, but their are plenty of animals that thrive on the waste we create. Recently I have started to notice the humans that thrive on the things we throw away or cast aside as "waste". I'm not talking about the homeless man rummaging through the trash to find something to eat, or the dumpster divers looking for a rare treasure someone tosses to get rid of, I'm talking about the people who make a living from our waste.

The notion to recycle has been in the American mainstream conscience since that native American guy shed a tear and told us to keep America beautiful in that commercial back in the 70's. Now days most people who live in cities have a sophisticated system of recycling that makes them sort the recyclables from the perishable waste. We have come a long way over the past 40 years and many products we use have a percentage or is 100 percent recycled material. Environmentalists today are focused on reducing the production and use of materials, like banning plastic bottles and grocery bags. This progressive view is not just about keeping America beautiful, but reducing climate change and cleaning up the atmosphere. The people on the front line of this movement are often invisible and marginalized in the US. In other countries like Brazil and South Africa, they are becoming part of their countries economy and environmental movements.
In Brazil they are called Catadores and in Uruguay they are called clasificadores. They are the men and woman who roam

the streets collecting glass and metal objects to recycle for money. For many people this is their job. They work it from whenever to whenever like the average working stiff. They don't get the credit or respect others do, and are often mistaken for "homeless" or "beggars" or the label we put on the people we consider "less than" in this society. The fear of poverty is strong in this economy, but the stigma is crumbling and falling to the rise of the idea of waste becoming big business. The people you see collecting cans or bottles in trucks and shopping carts, may be on the cusp of the next economic revolution.
I was walking down 8th avenue on the upper west side of Manhattan with a empty water bottle in my hand , and this well kept looking woman walked up to me and asked me for the bottle. I gave it to her and she thanked me and proceeded to rummage through a trash bin looking for more plastic. After my experience with this woman I started to notice just how many people collect "waste" for money, and how easy the picken's are. I'm currently living in the San Fernando Valley which is a text book example of the ills of suburban sprawl. I see countless people roaming the streets hauling carts and filling pickups with recyclable items they collect and exchange for money. They don't have to dig in dumpsters or cans to get them, they can just pick things up off the ground or ask strangers walking by. They remind me of the urban wildlife we call pests, living off the things we through away. Just like these animals, they are becoming a very important part of our society and becoming more visible. Some people look at these people the same way they look at crows in their garbage. I don't look at them as pests, but pioneers that may be leading us to a new economic prosperity in the future.

Franklin Canyon Park in Beverly Hills CA.

Welcome to world famous Beverly Hills were the rich and famous work and play. One of the most beautiful parts of this community is Franklin Canyon Park. Most people in LA have no Idea where FCP is because finding the entrances are tricky. One entrance is located at the top of Mulholland DR. and Coldwater Cyn tucked down a windy road littered with small houses, and the other entrance is on Beverly drive at the bottom of Coldwater Cyn tucked down a windy road littered with mansions. Once you enter the park you are greeted by sweeping views of Beverly Hills and the mega mansions it is famous for. It literally is like being on the set of "The Beverly Hillbillies" with Granny and Jethro out by the cement pond. Speaking of film sets, FCP has a long history with the motion picture industry. Many movies and TV shows have been filmed their, way to many to mention. One show in particular illustrates the uniqueness of FCP and what sets it apart from the countless canyons in greater Los Angeles.

Remember the opening of the "Andy Griffith Show" with Andy and Opie skipping rocks and fishing in a lake surrounded by mature evergreen trees? That's Franklin Canyon! One of the very few places in LA with a greenbelt filled with mature pines, and cedars of many varieties; most notably Atlas Cedar's and mature Coast Redwoods that are a rare site in most big cities( even Seattle ). Because of the environmental problems that plague southern California( drought,pests, smog), and the overall effects of global warming, The evergreens at FCP are fading fast. The trees that were once the main attraction in FCP have died due primarily to pest infestation, and have been removed to adhere to strict fire codes. FCP is starting to look like every other Canyon with its brown rolling hills speckled with Live Oaks and sage brush. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the Mediterranean landscape, However, The Evergreens in FCP give the park ecological diversity and it saddens me to see them vanish so fast.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority operate and maintain FCP, and in my opinion are dropping the ball when it comes to tree conservation. I understand the agency has funding issues and fire prevention is a MAJOR concern for them, but if they let the evergreens diaper from FCP, they not only could potentially be loosing revenue, but they are not living up to their " Conservation" duties. Finding hardy, resistant evergreens to replace the ones thy have removed is well within their means and responsibilities. The first rule of thumb when removing a tree in these situations is figuring out a suitable replacement. They also could loose potential film revenue because a natural evergreen landscape is hard to find in LA and makes FCP attractive to production companies looking to film on location and not look like their in southern California. Ironically, "Tree People", a famous community action agency dedicated to tree conservation in Los Angeles, is located right across the street from FCP on Coldwater and Mulholland, maybe they can help out.

In spite of my frustration with the way the park is maintained, I love FCP. It is truly one of the most beautiful places Los Angeles and will always have a special place in my heart. So hurry up and see FCP because its uniqueness is fading fast and soon it might be just another southern California canyon.

California Here I Come...... Again!

No sooner did I graduate from College when I get a call from the universe making me a offer I cant refuse. So I packed up my car and moved to Los Angeles( again) and excepted a temporary position to work at the parks in Malibu. I lived in los Angeles a few years ago and it was a bitter sweet experience. Moving back to LA is like finishing business with a past lover who almost broke your heart. But I can't say no to the ocean or another chance at love(LOL)! In the meantime I will visit some of my old favorite, and new interesting spots in the City of Angels. Wish me luck! I will keep you posted

Final Papers

Here are my final two papers concluding my research on parks.


Big City Sustainability Tour: New York City Paris Yates
During the past winter and spring quarter, I have been researching the question, “Do urban municipal parks in big cities in America facilitate sustainable connectedness in terms of ecological democracy?” As part of my research, I toured four parks in New York City to observe and gather data on how parks in this city facilitate connectedness in terms of ecological democracy. Connectedness is one of the fifteen principles of Ecological Democracy, a social movement written about by Randolph Hester in his book Design for Ecological Democracy. In the book, Hester gives his definition of ecological democracy: “Ecological democracy, then, is government by the people emphasizing direct, hands-on involvement. Actions are guided by understanding natural processes and social relationships within our locality and the larger environmental context. This causes us to creatively reassess individual needs, happiness, and long-term community goods in the places we inhibit.”(4)
Connectedness is the second principle in Randolph Hester’s fifteen principles of ecological democracy. In Design for Ecological Democracy, Hester explains what connectedness means to design “Connectedness in city designs counters disjointed and piecemeal environmental decision making. It is fundamental to the survival of the ecosystems. Heightened public understanding of how interrelated we are with the entirety of our urban ecosystems underlies comprehensive democratic decision making about nearby and faraway landscapes.”(50) I have taken Hester’s ecologically democratic design principles and applied them to anthropologic theory and ethnographic methods. I believe that true democracy hears and considers the voices of all who live and abide in the democracy. I also believe in order to achieve true ecological democracy, we have to hear and consider the voices of all in the ecosystem. The consideration of all who live and abide in the urban environment is what I have focused my park research around.
The four parks I visited were, Chelsea Park on the lower west side, Columbus Park on the lower east side, Battery Park on the lower tip of Manhattan, and Central Park on the upper end of Manhattan. I chose these parks because of their locations in the city and their populations and cultural make up. New York City is one of the most diverse cities in the world, and these parks are located in some of the most economic and culturally diverse neighborhoods in the city. The parks are relatively old, and due to the space constrictions in the city, they are designed in very traditional city park ways. The parks are square plots of land with athletic courts, playground equipment, and open spaces with lots of bench seating. The designs of the parks are classic examples of urban parks in dense cities that facilitate many forms of connectedness.
New York City is visited by millions of tourist every year and Battery Park facilitates many connections between them and the city. It is located on the water front and is the place where you catch the ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. It also is the temporary home of the globe that stood in the WTC complex. The park is surrounded by residential high-rise apartments and skyscrapers in the financial district. It connects tourists to the past, present, and future history of New York and reminds people of the principles the city is built on. Chelsea Park is primarily designed for children and is a playground for the students who attend the elementary school next door. The park has two big soccer fields, playground equipment, basketball courts, and a community health clinic. This park connects children to the environment and gives them a place in the crowded adult city that is their own.
Central Park is the mother of all urban parks. It was designed, built, and is maintained for the residents of Manhattan to make connections with each other and the city. The park is filled with rolling hills, sprawling lawns, and a lake that reflects the high-rise buildings that surround it. There are also athletic courts, an ice skating rink, and a children’s zoo. Central Park facilitates many connections between residents, tourists, business, wildlife and the environment. However, I don’t feel the connections promote ecological democracy or democracy in general. The park is located between two of the world’s wealthiest neighborhoods and its design and activities reflect that. From carriage rides to boating on the lake, the park has a uptown feel and the people who visit have a decidedly upscale look. Most of the visible diversity is in the animal wildlife that feasts on the garbage. Central Park is beautifully undemocratic.
In Design for Ecological Democracy, Hester talks about the need to put things we normally associate as opposites together. Here he gives reasons why there are social strifes in cities, and ways connectedness counter that: “Even as we become fragmented as a citizenry, our loyalties have been simultaneously stretched by the globalized economy. These forces create debilitating local social rifts that can be addressed through ecological thinking. Two actions are especially important in city design- creating settings of social mutualism and giving form to glocalization. Social mutualism is an association between groups that typically are in opposition- by age, race, religion, social class, and interest group… Glocalization is the design process whereby mutualism is extended from locality to locality across continents.’ The one park I visited that was a good example of social mutualism between people in New York City is Columbus Park
The one park on my visit to New York that had true ecologically democratic features was Columbus Park. The Park truly reflects the people and cultures that live and work in its neighborhood. The park is located between Chinatown and Little Italy on the lower east side. It also is across the street from the Manhattan criminal courthouse, so the park is filled with a mix of Chinese, Italian, Latin, and Black American people. The air was filled with the sounds of many languages and smells of food from around the world. The courtyard at the entrance of the park was filled with Chinese people playing cards, singing songs, and socializing with each other. The middle of the park had children of all races and creeds crawling over playground equipment, and right next to that is a rest area designed for street people called a “comfort station”. The fact that there was a place designated for street people, and it was right next to where children play, was democracy in action. Guys in suits who work in the courthouse play basketball with guys from the neighborhood on the courts in the back of the park. The games are competitive and you can hear them talking trash in English, Spanish, and Chinese. Even the wildlife in the park and the neighborhood pets roamed about and were fed and tolerated respectively. The park is crowded, noisy, and packed with people from all over and from every walk of life, yet no one person or group overpowers or dominates the park. Every color, age, gender, and economic background in that neighborhood was not only represented, but had what seemed to be an equal place and voice in the park.
I did not talk to anyone who worked for this park. However, I did talk to the citizens in the park and got a feeling the park facilitated the glocalization Hester talks about in his book. Hester explains what glocalization can foster: “ Glocalization can create positive social connections if the effects of global standardization, dominance, exploitation- social relations with harmful effects can be neutralized… Cross-cultural association among grass roots groups with mutual respect, comparable benefits, and a commitment to strengthen idiosyncrasies of local culture can create exceptional enabling form.” I did not talk to any employee who worked at Columbus park, but from the informal conversations I had with people in the park, and what I observed on my visits, I believe the park facilitates the glocalization Hester refers to.
The parks I visited in New York City facilitate connectedness between the community, the city, and the natural environment. Columbus Park not only facilitates connectedness, but seems to facilitate true ecological democracy. Not just because everyone was represented and had a voice, but because they communicated with each other. Some parks are crowded with a diversity of people who never say a word to each other. Central park is filled with people who only seem to speak to people they come to the park with and ignore everyone else. It is a defense mechanism urbanites use frequently. I didn’t observe that at Columbus Park. People acknowledged you with a nod or a wave, nothing fancy but an acknowledgment none the less. In order for us to achieve true ecological democracy, we have to start acknowledging each other and respecting each other’s rights and voices. The parks in New York City deepened my understanding of that and allowed me to observe one of the best examples of ecologically democratic connectedness I have seen in an urban park.

Hester, Randolph. Design for Ecological Democracy, The MIT Press. (2006)


Big City Sustainability Tour: Seattle Paris Yates
During the winter and spring quarter of this year I have been researching the question, “Do urban municipal parks in big cities in America facilitate sustainable connectedness in terms of ecological democracy?” As part of my research, I toured four parks in Seattle to observe and gather data on how parks in this city facilitate connectedness in terms of ecological democracy. Connectedness is one of the fifteen principles of Ecological Democracy, a social movement written about by Randolph Hester in his book Design for Ecological Democracy: In the book, Hester gives his definition of ecological democracy, “Ecological Democracy, then, is government by the people emphasizing direct, hands-on involvement. Actions are guieded by understanding natural processes and social relationships within our locality and larger environmental context. This causes us to creatively reassess individual needs, happiness, and long-term community goods in the places we inhabit.”(4)
Connectedness is the second principle in Randolph Hester’s fifteen principles of ecological democracy. In Design for Ecological Democracy Hester explains what connectedness means to design: “Connectedness in city designs counters disjointed and piecemeal environmental decision making. It is fundamental to the survival of the ecosystems. Heightened public understanding of how interrelated we are with the entirety of our urban ecosystems underlies comprehensive democratic decision making about nearby and faraway landscapes.”(50) I have taken Hester’s ecologically democratic design principles and applied them to anthropologic theory and ethnographic methods. I believe that true democracy hears and considers the voices of all who live and abide in the democracy. I also believe in order to achieve true ecological democracy, we have to hear and consider the voices of all in the ecosystem. The considering of all who live and abide in the urban environment is what I have focused my park research around.
The four parks I visited in Seattle were, Jose Rizal Park on Beacon Hill, Seward Park on Lake Washington, Freeway Park in Downtown, and Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill. I chose these parks because of their locations, individual sizes, and the population and cultural backgrounds of their neighborhoods. Before I visited the parks, I created a data sheet of criteria I would look for in each park based on the connectedness principle of ecological democracy. I used that data sheet to record what I observed in each park. I also took pictures of structures and activities in each park to record my findings. The criteria on the data sheet consisted of these questions: who does this park connect, who is this park designed for, who is represented, how is the park designed, what activities do the park facilitate, what type of transportation can be used to get to park, what facilities are for pets, what type of wildlife is in the park, and what outside of the box features are in the park. At the end of the data sheet I recorded my observations of what I thought were the overall connectedness features of the park I visited. After visiting each park, and looking over my written and photographed information, I have drawn some conclusions about how parks in Seattle facilitate sustainable connectedness and true ecological democracy.
The parks make connections in these four general ways: community and environment, community and municipality, community and wildlife, community and business. The connection between community and environment seems obvious when you look at the way the parks are designed. They are filled with trees, shrubs and lawns in open spaces that contrast the cramped steel and concrete spaces in the city. They also have some of the best views of the urban skyline. Jose Rizal and Volunteer Park in particular give the visitor sweeping views of downtown. The parks are designed as natural oases in urban deserts, and connect people to the city’s municipality through education programs, community work projects, and arts and cultural programs. They also give the public information about sustainable municipal projects, such as the CSO (Combined Sewer Overflow) Reduction Project in Seward Park planned for 2015, using a kiosk posted in the park designed to get residents involved in the planning process. All of the parks connect people to urban wildlife simply because they generate so much trash. Many of the visitors use the parks to picnic, eat lunch and relax in during the day. These people usually work in or around the neighborhoods the parks are located in and the parks facilitate a strong connection between business and the community. Restaurants and vendors are located near the parks and the consumption of food is a major activity. This creates plenty of food for urban wildlife to live on and plenty of opportunity for wildlife and humans to interact.
In Design for Ecological Democracy, Hester explains the negative effects of streets and highways on urban cities, “They generally discourage pedestrian movement, disrupt water and wildlife patterns, and divide neighborhoods into fragments. Isolated from previously adjacent areas, neighborhood fragments suffer island effects, disproportionate pollution, and loss of services. Over time disinvestment creates concentrated pockets of poverty.”(52) Freeway park was created, and in my opinion facilitates connectedness that counters the division Hester talks about. The park is a container garden set on top of I-5 in the middle of downtown Seattle. It was opened in 1976 in honor of the bicentennial and was the first park of its kind. It is designed to be a bridge and safe access between the downtown business district and capitol and First Hill neighborhoods. The park connects many ages, races, and classes of people. Capitol and First hill are culturally and economically diverse and the park reflects that. It’s also is a place for people who work in the skyscrapers next to the park relax and connect with a more natural environment. This park is a good example of how out of the box design can facilitate connectedness on many social and environmental levels.
Although I found plenty of evidence of connectedness in the parks I visited, I still do not believe the parks ultimately facilitate true ecological democracy. They are designed and equipped to represent most people and animals except for the homeless/street people that frequent, and often live in them. During every visit to each park that I toured, I witnessed many men and woman who have substance abuse or mental health issues. I talked to Kristen Spexarth, who is an employee of the Seattle Parks department, and has worked at freeway and Volunteer Park. When I asked her about the interaction between the homeless/street people and the other visitors to the park she said this “there is no interaction, they (visitors of the park) just walk right past them (homeless/street people) and act like they’re not even there, like they don’t exist”. I asked her if the parks department had any official programs or entities that deal with the homeless and she said “Nothing sponsored by the parks (department) itself, we just refer the people to the regular services the city has to offer. I made a list of resources and posted it on the door outside my office”. To her knowledge, the parks department doesn’t have any plans to create a program or entity that deals specifically with these park visitors.
I conclude by saying parks in Seattle facilitate many connections between the community and the urban environment. However, I don’t think these connections facilitate true ecological democracy. As long as we ignore the needs of the homeless/street people who use and often live in these parks, there is no way we can achieve the true representation needed to attain ecological democracy.

Hester, Randolph. Design for Ecological Democracy, The MIT Press (2006)