Personal Philosophy

  1. Give three examples of something very interesting you learned from a friend that was a completely alien concept to you.
    1. I learned from a friend that some animal farming cooperations will spray pig feces onto their land as fertilizer. The issue is that these farms are usually located near low income families who cannot afford to move. This exposes them to a lot of bacteria and put them at a great risk for diseases and illnesses.
    2. I learned from a friend that in some cultures arranged marriages are the norm, where your parents will set you up with someone. This usually happens between ages of 18 to 23.
    3. I learned from a friend that although there is not much research on it yet, there may be a link between telomere length and aging. There is some evidence that shows there is a correlation between activities that prevent disease and that increase telomere length.
  2. List ten things that make you feel human.
    1. Running makes me feel human
    2. Talking to friends makes me feel human
    3. Laughing makes me feel human
    4. Crying makes me feel human
    5. Achieving goals makes me feel human
    6. Solving problems makes me feel human
    7. Working with others makes me feel human
    8. Spending time with my family makes me feel human
    9. Experiencing different sensations (temperature/texture) makes me feel human
    10. Breathing makes me feel human
  3. Articulate your philosophy of engagement as it pertains to your work with the Impact Fellowship. Specifically discuss:
    1. Why should I engage?
      1. I should engage in this project because it is working towards helping the environment, which is something I am passionate about. I have the time and recourses available to help, so there is no reason that I shouldn’t. Working on this project will be mutually beneficial because I hope to learn something, which also contributing good to the world.
    2. How must I engage?
      1. I will engage with this project by first doing my own research. I will need to do a lot of reading to get caught up on everything I should know in order to be productive. I will then dedicate time in the lab to work on creating a bioplastic pellet. This will include creating lab plans and carrying them out. I will then need to work on creating partnership with those in the Philippines so that we can implement the production of the bio pellet there.
    3. With whom must I engage?
      1. The most important people I will need to engage with will be my teammates. It is by working with them that will make the project successful. We will need to collaborate in the lab and while completing field work, and pool all of our knowledge. I will also need to engage with our stakeholders in the Philippines. We will need to cooperate with them in order to successfully create a system in the Philippines that creates the biodegradable packaging out of agricultural waste.
    4. What kinds of challenges, opportunities, and approaches should I care about?
      1. There will be many challenges and opportunities that arise throughout the project. The challenges that I should be most concerned with would be any ones that would drastically halt or diminish the progress of the project. We will address these challenges as a team by discussing the issue and collaborating on a solution. We will look into all of the opportunities presented to us throughout the duration of the project, but obviously it is not possible to pursue them all so we will have to consider which will be the most beneficial. Some of these opportunities may include grants or the chance to present our findings at a conference.
    5. How might I uphold the core principles of ethical engagement that were discussed in class?
      1. I will make sure to uphold the principals of ethical engagement by making sure that the work we are doing is actually wanted. We want to avoid the situation where we think we are helping, but in actuality our assistance is not wanted. One concern in regards to this is that agricultural waste is often already used by farmers for other purposes, such as fertilizer. We will have to make sure that if we buy waste from farmers that they truly do not need it at all, and that we are not just depriving them of a useful resource.
    6. What might my epitaph read?
      1. I would want my epitaph to be ‘kindness is your strongest superpower.’

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