Environment Week

This week is Environment Week. It's funny, but I've found it harder to get into than Climate Change Awareness Week. I mean, I was really invested in Climate Change Awareness Week. For five days the most important thing, the objective right at the front of my mind, was convincing people to take action on global warming- in fact really that focus lasted pretty much till the end of term, only fading slightly with the rigours and demands of the Group Project. But, even though I still believe all that is really important, on Monday and Tuesday I found myself without any enthusiasm or desire to throw myself into it, and though I was sad to miss both evenings' events (computer classes on both days, for different courses, would you believe), because they looked to be particular highlights of the programme (a question session with MPs on Monday and a debate on animal testing on Tuesday), I wasn't sorry that I was too busy to make it down to help with the stall. (Though in fact I found out today that there isn't actually a stall run by People and Planet, the Green Party, or even CMCC in his capacity as Students' Union Enviroment and Ethics Officer- the stall where they were handing out the goody bags on Monday was run by the Independent, though probably arranged by or at least in liaison with CMCC. So I might not have been able to help anyway).

Maybe it's because I wasn't involved with the planning stages. I believe I was hard at work preparing the presentation for the project with the rest of my group when the meeting to plan Environment week happened (and then of course ironically I missed the presentation). So (a) I don't really know what's going on apart from the events and (b) even if I did I haven't been fired up about it or taken ownership of it in any way through having at least been present at a discussion of it, if not actually contributing anything. And I missed last week's People and Planet meeting where I believe a bit more planning might have taken place (I was working on my individual project). I actually had an idea that may have been a rubbish idea (though it may equally have been brilliant) that I would have liked to put forward if I had been able to attend the original meeting: to have an exhibit, either in the Quad or on a Houghton St stall, which consisted of the rubbish produced by a person living normally over the course of the week (or at least that portion of it which could be cleaned up enough to go on display, I'm not suggesting half eaten portions of chips should make it in there), so they would spend the week not throwing anything away but putting it in the exhibit each day instead, and then the same thing produced by someone trying to create as little waste as possible, to show (a) how much waste the average person actually generates, because I suspect it's more than we would instinctively guess it to be, and (b) how much of a difference we can make if we try, because it's hard to be inspired to do anything unless we feel that it is going to have a real effect.

Anyway, I did get into it a bit more today. I went to all three events, which happened to occur in order of increasing interest, and learnt quite a bit, and managed to make my first real contribution to the week after the evening's event (a showing of Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth in the Quad) by staying to help with the clearing up. The event was amazingly well attended. I thought a lot of people turned up to the rather interesting screening in Climate Change Awareness week of the documentary narrated by Alanis Morisette and Keanu Reeves, since there were four or five rows of seats all pretty much occupied. But that was nothing in comparison to tonight. The Quad was packed. Although I got there quite early, I was helping put food out and get plastic cups so I didn't get round to securing a place to sit until about the time it was due to start, and at that point R (who arrived about then) and I had to go for sitting on the floor at the front as all the seats were taken. If we'd left it about five minutes later I think there wouldn't have been room even on the floor.

If it hadn't been so crowded, I would have been faced with a difficult dilemma- both Flatmate 1 and SC2 (who don't know each other as far as I know though of course they're both in my halls) were there, at different tables, and I wouldn't have known which to go and sit with, but actually it was too crowded to get to either so I was spared that! I went to go and say hello at the end, but SC2 had disappeared. Flatmate 1 left with some friends- including some from halls that I hadn't met before, though one turned out to live across from me but one floor up- and I stayed to help with the clearing up, but I saw him again back at halls- we were both making late supper (though mine was just a case of heating up a can of soup- he made a stir fry). I'm actually quite getting to like him in a you-know kind of way- though he certainly isn't the only person who, if they asked me out, I would say yes. Then Flatmate 3 and her boyfriend came in and we all had a pretty interesting conversation- the kind of thing I really enjoy about living in halls, whilst it's actually happening and afterwards, though strangely enough frequently not before: I often take my supper into my room precisely so I don't have to put effort into talking to people...