2008 Environmental Studies Letters
March 20, 2008
Hello Friends & Family,
We are getting ready to depart from Sydney early tomorrow morning. The
group will fly to Brisbane and bus to the Numinbah Valley to begin our
immersion experience with members of the Wiradjuri language group. It's
difficult to believe that we have been traveling for over two weeks since our short break early in the month.
Immediately after break we rendezvoused at Sydney's Central Train Station and boarded our coach bus to the capital of the Commonwealth, Canberra. During one morning we met with a panel of environmental policy folks where students posed a number of good questions. I think they were impressed that one of panelists was the former chief of staff for the new Minister for Climate Change and Water, the Hon. Penny Wong. Our time in Canberra has helped a number of students begin to understand the organization of the Commonwealth government – it started to gel for many. The tour of Parliament was a nice capstone to that understanding. A few are still wrestling with the notion of being a member of a legislative body (Parliament) and being the executive (i.e., the government). The structure of the Parliament building itself is impressive. We were able to walk out onto the grass roof - a symbol that the Australian people are elevated over the members of parliament. Said differently, “Parliament answers to the people.”
Visiting the War Memorial was also a moving experience for many in the
group. The diverse array of interpretation and feelings are difficult to
put into words. Upon reflection the group talked about how the monument
commemorates the lives of those that served in the military and creates
deeply personal stories about the people who served and the sacrifices
made. Simultaneously as one walks through the various galleries
highlighting specific conflicts or UN peace keeping action, you also feel the glorification of war, the faces of those that are missing – civilians, collateral killing and the Indigenous people that served.
Students spent most of the bus trip to Jindabyne studying for their suite of mid-term exams. As we write this a stack of grading sits in front of us! Even though we were in the mountains of the Great Dividing Range, the weather was unseasonably warm with temperatures in the upper 80s. The Alpine Lodge was very conducive to student studies as it was a 5 km walk (one way) into town. After three exams early in the week, we learned about Alpine flora from a member of the Parks & Wildlife Service of NSW. In addition to student research experiments on introduced weed species in the area of Charlottes Pass, the group spent a full day hiking in the Great Dividing Range. By a full day, we mean a 21.5 km (13 mile) walk to Mount Kosciuszko, the highest point in Australia, as well as other “hills” along the way. The land was beautiful as were the headwaters of the Snowy River. One of the most challenging pieces of the walk was the last 1.5 km – over 500 m (1650 ft) uphill climb from the Snowy River back to Charlottes pass. The hike is even more impressive if you consider you have one toilet stop along the way. Yes, there are “facilities” about 1.5 km from Mt. K!
We set out from Jindabyne on a long bus ride back to Sydney for a week of lectures and excursions. The group experienced various cultural studies in European and Indigenous affairs as well as took in some natural history. We are all getting a deep appreciation for the diversity among the Indigenous people, the historical context for the cultural attitudes of today, and the expressions of understanding or lack thereof between cultural groups. In a nutshell, the Indigenous peoples are intimately connected to place, have a circular sense of time and a deep spirituality that transcends and breathes life into everything. The last three days have given all of us much to consider and more will unfold in the days to come. Sydney has been a wonderful host city to us all and we will miss the Opera House, Hyde Park, Royal Botanic Gardens, the Harbor and most of all, the myriad of Grey Headed Flying Foxes that inhabit the tree canopies all around us.
Attached are just a few pictures from the past weeks experiences. They
are of parliament, the alpine track, the kangaroos at the Alpine Lodge (be sure to look through the grass for the joey in the pouch), and the Royal Botanic Garden/cityscape.
Everyone is well and we hope spring has started to stir in your hearts!
Paul & Ann Marie