"One Child Policy"

In China they have a thing called "family planning". Adults in China are only supposed to have one child to reduce their giant population. It is a way to control their quickly growing population. While they are very strict on this, there are many exceptions. Families who live in rural areas can have another child only if the first is a girl or disabled. This is so the family can carry on the family name. Also those parents who don't have siblings are allowed to have more than one child. Lately they have been more relaxed on this policy.

This idea was introduced in 1979 because of environmental and social issues. It was said that from the time it started to 2009, there were 200 million children that weren't born because of this policy. This policy is very controversial because it has lead to abortions and the possible cause of gender imbalance.

In the letter I wrote that talked about this, she said her parents had to pay extra money to have another child. She was the first child and they had to pay for her brother because of the family planning. Many people that I read about have such small families. I never knew it was because of this family planning policy.

I chose this topic because I found it extremely interesting. The fact that they have to pay for other children is strange to me. Here we can have as many kids as we want, often too many. I think it would be so weird to live somewhere where the population is so high that we have to limit the number of kids one can have. I can't believe they have so many issues that are related to their population. I couldn't imagine living in a place with that many people. I would probably feel so clasterphobic 24/7. I feel sad for them that people can't have brothers and sisters unless they can afford it. Or they never experience that because of where they live. I understand why they do it, it's obviously very nessecary. But I feel so sad for them!

I think it is a good idea for them to do this. They have so many issues with environment. They have the most pollution in the entire world and this is a direct cause of population growth. If they didn't have this policy their population would just continue to grow and the problems would increase. It's insane how many people they have, but it is definitely a need for them.

http://www.medizin-ethik.ch/publik/family_planning.htm

Service Learning Project

Hunger in the Homeless Community

Gloal Perspectives Response

Using global perspectives to solve local problems:
If we look globally and see the ways other societies solve problems it can help us tremendously. We need to use our resources around us to help better our own society. Having a broader perspective can help us be more effective in our own community. It also opens our eyes and shows everyone what else is going on in the world. What we do globally can affect us locally and vice versa.

I believe that if we are more aware of what's going on in the world will definitely help us. We can see how they are solving problems and use that to fix our own. We all have very similar problems and we can help each other to all have a better society. If one country is doing it right we should use them as an example to help our own situations.

http://ucpsarnet.iglooprojects.org/forums/interestgrsexualitys/globalperspectiveonlocalcommunityissues


"The One Who Builds" film screening
This movie is about a once refugee who is now trying to give back to those who were in the same position he was in. He helps people get established in America. He tries to make them feel as if they are at home and not a foreigner.

I think this documentary is really inspiring. I only watched the trailer and read a quick summary, but that still impacted me. This man has so much kindness and all he wants to do is have people feel welcome. He was in there shoes and knows exactly what it's like. I think it's incredible that he is trying to make it better for people who dealt with the same things.

http://theonewhobuilds.wordpress.com/



How the Internet shrinks our world while expanding our horizons

There are many advantages and disadvantages with the internet in our society. Some advantages include the wide variety of information. This allows us to know so much more than we ever did before. Also being able to connect globally is a huge deal. Without the internet, communication was much harder. There are some disadvantages, though. The information you put on the internet is never safe. This is a huge problem with what we can and should share on the web. We are limited in that aspect. There is also the fact that it is always changing and we can never keep up.

I think with technology and the internet it has provided us with great things. We should never look at it negatively. Without the internet there is a lot that wouldn't exist to this day. I think the internet does more good than bad in the long wrong.

http://technologizer.com/2011/10/28/the-pros-and-cons-of-the-internet-as-taught-to-students-in-1996/
http://thedoghousediaries.com/4513


Health care disparities:  Global initiatives versus local responsibilities

Cancer is the second highest cause of death in Europe. This has a lot to do with how the Europeans choose to live their lives. There are little to no education on prevention. Same thing with Asia. 78% of all people who get hepatitis live in Asia or surrounding countries. There is also very little education on this.

I think it is the local community's responsibility to educate themselves on these kinds of things. A lot can be done with just education and awareness. Other countries are providing the education and it is making a difference. I think globally, countries are setting examples but it all comes down to whether or not they take the advice and follow them.

http://healthcaredisparities.com/resources/previous-papers/global-disparities/
http://globalhealthdisparities.wordpress.com/

China Letters Response

These letters were really awesome. All my respondents were so sweet and had such positive and inspiring things to say. They made me feel so wonderful. I'm surprised at how many nice things they had to say. I wasn't sure what I was expecting when getting these letters but these exceeded everything. I will probably keep these letters forever and frame them. I think it's so fun to respond and share my feelings back with them. I wish I had more because they have such interesting things to say. I am really excited to get their autobiographies and their responses. I really hope to keep in contact with these people for a long time and continue to hear their stories.

Project Proposal

With this service-learning project I mainly want to focus on providing food for people without it. This project is a great chance to persue my idea to give back to people. My idea is to give gift cards to restaurants to people who are standing on the side of the roads, asking for money for food. With this idea, I feel like people will give back to those in need a lot more often. Many people are afraid to give money to those people because they think that they will use it for things like drugs or cigarettes. But if we give gift cards, the people donating know that their money will be used for something good. I would also like to hand out gift cards to the people who can't get into soup kitchens. These soup kitchens often have to deny people because they don't have enough room/food for everyone in line. If we can hand out gift cards to everyone, they still get a meal that day and don't have to go hungry for the night. I would like to pair with places like Subway who are very cheap but still can be healthy. Also, I would like to target the areas that are near the restraunts I get the gift cards from so it's not a challenge to get there. Eventually I would like to help people like the ones who sign up for food baskets. I want to give them gift cards for Walmart where they can buy groceries for the month. This goal would happen a long time from now, but it is a future goal I have if this project can really grow. With this project, we can really help some people out who can't always afford food.

60 Minutes

After watching this video, I am truly inspired. These teens have accomplished something bigger than themselves. They thought outside the box and focused on a serious problem. I think it's very hard for us to think this big, but they do it and try to solve problems that haven't been solved. It makes me think how can I do something like this? How can I make a difference like these kids did? Jack Andraka came up with a test for pancreatic cancer when he was only 15 years old. He think that he isn't all that smart, just creative. He is very passionate about what he wants to accomplish and he's already done it at such a young age. He has gone all over the world and shared what he has developed. He goes around the world sharing and inspiring people. He excells in school and still maintains his dreams of his achievement. I think it is truly incredible that someone so young has done what people have been trying to do for years. This is a remarkable achievement and it's even more inspiring because he's still in high school. He will definitely go on to achieve great things and I can't wait to see what else he does.

My Passion

It's kind of ironic that you based this assignment around organizations that give back and volunteerism. When you said we were going to be writing about our passions I immediately thought of volunteering. That is really my biggest passion in life. It's like my escape and where my true happiness comes from. When I volunteer and give back I am just surrounded by great people and know I am doing good for my community. If I wasn't so busy with school and the pressure of college coming soon, I would volunteer multiple times a week. During the summer I always volunteer at least once a week. Summer is my favorite time of year because I have so much time to dedicate to giving back. I would love to work with people. I have volunteered for many different organizations. My favorites are the ones I get to personally interact with the people in need. They are all so kind and the love you feel from them is incredible. I love to actually help people. Like donating clothes and giving them to people or serving food to them.

My favorite winners:
1. OAK Lifestyle (http://startsomethingthatmatters.maker.good.is/projects/oaklifestyle?position=5&sort=18)
This organization sells high quality backpacks. When someone purchases one, OAK Lifestyle will donate backpacks and school supplies. I think this is awesome because they're giving back to kids in need to give them the tools for education.
2. A 2nd Cup (http://startsomethingthatmatters.maker.good.is/projects/a2ndcup?position=8&sort=18)
A 2nd Cup is a non-profit coffee shop that helps stop human trafficking. They strive to educate their customers on what goes on with human trafficking. I took special notice to this because I used to volunteer for an organization that had a similar goal.
3. Dreamer's Orchestra (http://startsomethingthatmatters.maker.good.is/projects/dreamersorchestra?position=11&sort=18)
The Dreamer's Orchestra takes the homeless people from the streets who play instruments for money and put them on stage. They believe these people have great talent that needs to be seen. They help them have a shot at their dreams. This is extremely inspiring and probably my favorite one. I would love to help with this organization. To be able to help give back and help someone achieve their dream? That would be amazing.