Since I was 19 on an anthropology study abroad trip to Ecuador, I have searched for authentic intercultural experiences. It’s difficult, to be sure, and not everyone wants their travels to be difficult. My vacation in Fiji after the Climate Lab week came to an end raised some important questions: what is the value in striving for authenticity and is it even achievable?
I try to avoid touristy places when I travel, conveniently ignoring the fact that I am a tourist myself. In this post I wrestle with some external judgment related to how people “should” travel, including whether they should even travel in the first place. Seeking comfort (in addition to challenge) when I was in Fiji helped me realize there’s no clear black-and-white answer here.
The questions guiding our work in the Climate Lab focus on how to make climate action effective and inclusive, scalable and just – but the desire to craft the perfect approach can come at the expense of moving forward with a good approach. During our week in Fiji, we saw some inspiring examples of people making a difference by simply doing their best.
I knew that my year in the Climate Lab would be a challenge, but it has been challenging in ways I didn’t expect. Our work in and out of the classroom has challenged us to think differently and confront difficult feelings – things I only thought I had done before. It’s also forced me to grapple with my impostor syndrome, a tough and lifelong opponent.
Good travel, just like good education, puts you outside your comfort zone and challenges your assumptions. To that extent, this journey to several Fijian villages with my Climate Lab cohort was very good travel. After two days, I left with more questions than I brought – largely about who “should” be making decisions related to climate change adaptation and how “should” outside organizations be helping.
During our time in Fiji, we were fortunate enough to be welcomed by Daku Village, where we were fed, entertained, housed, and educated by this generous community during a brief 24 hour visit. That short time did more for me and my perspectives than I got from months of pre-reading assignments, and I hope I can do them justice by putting that learning to good use.
This post marks five years of Radical Moderate! I had a lot of choices for topics related to the fifth anniversary gift of wood, but my recent examination of ‘90s nostalgia reminded me of an important cause I encountered as a young environmentalist: deforestation. There are many contributing factors to this big issue, but there are also some things we can do to help.
White men have long dominated the brewing industry, making women, people of color, and LGBTQ individuals feel unseen at best and unsafe at worst. The recent reckonings around sexism and racism in our society have impacted many aspects of our lives, including what we drink. This post sheds a light on efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the industry.
Learn from history or be doomed to repeat it, we are warned. The battle between small, independent brewers and large, consolidated production is only in its latest incarnation. There are meaningful arguments about the pros and cons of each side, but the full picture – with all the impacts of our decisions – isn’t always visible. Equity is continuously at stake when we vote with our dollars.
Brewing is a long-beloved hobby of mine, and as a female medievalist, I know there is a rich history of women in brewing across the centuries and throughout the world. How did an activity that was so fundamentally tied to women’s role in the house become dominated by men? And what factors are at play to shift the industry back to something more equitable?