Note: there is no final exam (transformation is hard to test for)

The title of this blog is what Bill wrote on the Weekly Lesson Plan for our last week of class, and it sort of struck me. It’s true: how does one measure for personal change? Well, I suppose you reflect.

Experientially, I’m glad I was able to participate in the group project for Bloomington South. I learned so much about the dynamics of school politics, and had the opportunity to communicate with a variety of stakeholders, including everyone from energetic teenagers to skeptical cafeteria staff to responsive (but budget-focused) district administrators. And the recycling project drew me out of my comfort zone, going door to door for surveys.

Blogger and Twitter were totally new/alien ways for me to express my ideas. I honestly never thought I would use either of these, and was extremely skeptical in the beginning. I’ve definitely warmed up to Blogger; it’s a great way to incorporate a variety of media to get your point across in an interactive way. But Twitter is just entirely too hard with its character limit. I’m a long-winded graduate student, give me a break! :)

Do these things represent transformation? Maybe not entirely. Do I feel different? Actually, yes. I had the chance to not just read, research and regurgitate sustainable development concepts, but read, research, experience, expand upon, disagree with, question, persuade, and create within the realm of sustainable development. There are so many levels on which sustainability can be implemented (local, regional, national, global), but I very often overlook the personal/introspective level.

One of the “sci-fi” readings in Wheeler spoke of a “continuous relearning” of an environmental ethic. Although it might be argued that such an ethic is in some ways instinctual (biophilia for one), it is of no real use if it is not made into mindful, deliberate, day-to-day operations. This is especially critical now in this industrialized, high-tech world where it is so easy (and sometimes encouraged) to be completely removed from natural things.

Richard Bach (American Author): Learning is finding out what you already know. Doing is demonstrating that you know it. Teaching is reminding others that they know just as well as you.

So I continue to (re)learn, to (re)absorb, to (re)discover as much as I can along the way. But it’s important to remember: thoughts lead to words, words lead to actions. It’s easy to get stuck in the thoughts and words, and not follow through. Maybe that’s what transformation is: action.