Takayuki Kino

I do not know that I can join the outdoor program but apply the the Friend of Tree, because I might go back my country January.

Friends of Tree
https://friendsoftrees.org/

While I drove around the United States, I thought that there are plenty of spaces to be able to plant trees, and there must have been ranches. In summer, I often saw that many cows crowded together under a shade of a tree in the ranches. The ranchers probably cut down all of the trees in the ranches for efficient managements of cows, horses, sheeps, and so on, but actually they need the shades for avoiding heat, and it must be not good for health of the livestocks. American pioneers have cultivated North American Continent so far and accomplished to improve the world-best agricultural mass production systems, and my country, Japan, has been able to import beef, corn, and so on from the U.S., but at the same time, I believe that they have cut down the trees in the places where it does not need.
In every dry season, the U.S. has been suffer from wildfires and burnt down numerous numbers of trees. The shades of trees prolong evapolation of rain water, contribute the rain water become ground water, and especially keep moisture to prevent wildfires, therefore, planting trees must be the best solution for the U.S. current big issues, wildfires and droughts, and it contributes to reduce CO2 as well. In October, 2020, former President Donald Trump signed an Exective Order which encourage to plant trees, but I could not find the report how the project is going on now. Is it just for restoring forests after wildfires? I don't know.

https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/trump-administration-furthers-commitment-one-trillion-trees-initiative

I bought only daily food in this week, such as a lettuce, beef, a frozen cake, frozen hash browns, and breads. I do not have enough budget to buy food in local store, so I always buy food Winco Foods, which I believe that the cheapest supermarket in Portland neighborhood. The tray of beef and the boxes of frozen cake and hash brown went to a recycle trash can, but all of the foods have plastic wraps, and these went to non-recycle trash can. If I have bought the foods at farmer's market, I must have reduced the lettuce's plastic wrap at least.

Two years ago, I knew that Swedish ship-building company is newly developping a wind power freight vessel, and I reminded it by this assignment.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L86znpiEzX0

I could not find the information how the project has been proceeding since then, but this time, I found the information that my country's ship-building company launced a wind power freight vessel very recently.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojCNuT5ZFSI

I was so surprised by this information because this project was launched by a company of the big plutocratic group in Japan. The plutocratic group embraces very conservative policies and has lobbied not to tighten environmental regulations to the Japanese government. The wind power freight vessel still has diesel engine unit, and the sail assists the engine only when the wind direction fits with the one of the ship, but I really like that this ancient technology revived for the solution of current issue. Currently many mobilities are trying to shift combastion engines to electric powered motors, but there are still many issues; battery does not have enough capabilities for long distance because of its heavy weight and fast recharging, Also electricity still relies on the power generarion with fossil fuel, the metals for battery are mined from developping countries and the emvironments are contaminated by the minings, and battery is not perfectly recycled. Human beings need time and steps for inovation, I believe. I think that we are learning the tragedies by increasing natural disasters in the whole world and skylocketing inflation caused by COVID-19 pandemic and Russian invasion to Ukraine. Food and energy independences and securities are vitally important for every country, communities and individuals, and it connects to wnvironmental issues as well. Neccesity must be the mother of invention. I think that current too many crisises would be a chance of new creations, because even my country's conservative company began to launch the wind power freight vessel.

Unfortunately, I could not invite neighbors to pick up litters because nobody was there, but I picked up litters around one block of my neighborhood. Actually my neighborhood is quite clean as well as most of NE Portland downtown residential areas, ecxpt homeless loving area. The litters which I picked up were not a lot, and these are following photo.

The biggest litter was a cloth, probably a piece of T-shirt?, and most of litters were cigarette butts.
Actually I have been  a cigartte smoker for 32 years. I began to smoke cigarette when I was 18 years old and tried to quit it 4 or 5 times so far but cannot yet. I used to throw away cigarette butts until 26 or 27 years old, I believe, but since then I stopped to throw away, because I recognized that it was not good manner when I saw that someone did it. When I was around 30 years old and worked with my dad, he threw away his cigarette butt, and it was shocked at me. Parent should be a teacher for its children, but he did it,,, so I yelled at him and picked up the butt. I completely made sure not to throw away cigarette butts any more at that time.
We can find litters everywhere, but why do people throw these away? The people who throw away litters must not feel any guilty to do it, and people tend not to recognize their habits which had longly done. If someone teach not to do it, they would not understand the reason and excuse "It is no emvironment impact because of a tiny butt", or "What's the matter? Everyone throws away!" For quitting bad manner or behavior, we need to deeply understand the reason, and it must be inexcusable triggar to quit it. Probably my dad would quit to throw away cigarette butts because he was yelled by his son who he must have taught manners since I was a baby, and it must have been embarrasing incident for him.
Currently the population of cigarette smokers has significantly declined, so that the litters of cigarette butts must continue to decline and will shift it to marijuana. Probably it must be healthier for human body and environment because smoking marijuana does not use plastic containing filters.

My final baby step must be to quit smoking cigarette. It must be unsustainable for my lungs, I know...

Probably I have bought bottled water only about two times in my life, because I was born in a rural remote tiny village in Japan, and my home town community manages our own tap water system. The tap water comes from neighboring mountain through the pipe line which our great-grandfathers facilitated around 100 years ago. Our community maintains the water pipe line by our selves, so that technically we get the water for free, and the water is completely unprocessd natural water and taste great. I was growing up the condition, so that I cannot pay money for buying bottled water, even if it is very famous natural water which came from very famous beautiful snow-capped mountains which the bottles label. Akso I almost never drink water because fortunatly I am a coffee addict, so that I always boil tap water for all of my consumption, cocking and brewing coffee. This is enough for my life.
The tap water of Portland mainly comes from Bull Run Reservor at the foot of Mt. Hood. One year ago, I was going to see the reservor but there is restricted to enter. My country does not restrict to enter water sources, so that it was a good opportunity to learn the U.S. regulation. Fortunately PNW owns affluent water sources thanks to its long wetty winter, but recently portland local media reports that this fall has not provided rain so far as usual fall season. I do not know that this is caused by global climate change, but water is vitel for all creatures even if it is not caused by it.   
I strongly believe that we should encourage to use reusable bottle, and bottled water should be used for only emergency-use. Collective action become a big power whether it is good or not. Human's actions have exercebated the environment that we have to live, so that we must recover and maintain it with good collective action. We need efforts as possible even if it is a small action. 

I cock every meals because I live by myself, and actually I waste food almost never. I grow up in Japan, which have a very great word "MOTTAINAI" which means a sense of regret of waste and appreciations for the food, the farmers, the producers, the condition which we can get the food. I eat all parts of vegetable and meat, and I perfectly care and controll the stock of food for no waste. Wasting food makes me feel only guilty. Current Japanese cherish bad parts of Japanese conservatism for political reasons, on the other hand, they lose the great traditions for environment and sustainable living. Thanks to my parent's education, the great part of Japanese conservatism have been embeded it in my mind, so that actually I cannot understand why people waste food. However, I used to waste only one thing until this class started; it was coffee ground after dripping. I often thought I should make compost from the coffee waste but had not tried it. I think that many people have this kind of hesitation to do, and it is quite common and huge objection for the people who hesitate to try. 
In this week, I did not waste food at all as usual, and the stocking piles of coffee waste have grown. I cannot wait for making compost in the end of this term.

I calculated my ecological footprint and talked with my home owner about way we can reduce our negative enviromental impact.

The house which I rent the room was constructed 90 years ago with mostly wood and was renovated to adapt current living style, so that to continue to use and maintain as possible the house might contribute for sustainable living. Probably the hugest obstacle in Portland must be rising property prices which impact land price and property tax. If land price continue to soar in the future, the land will become more profittable to sell out, or the property tax will not be affordable to own the land with old house. Recently Portland local news often report that apartment's owners in Multnomah and Washington counties raise the rents suddenly, so that the residents protest against it. Reportedly many Portland people have been moving to affordable states and counties because of rising rents and crime rates, but soaring estate costs still keep rising.

Currently high inflation is also going on worldwide because of the results of the COVID-19 pandemic and Ukraine crisis, so the prices of every single daily neccesity are soaring, most of commoners cannot prioritize sustainable living and are suffering with the soaring every single price for daily lives. How can we manage this hell? Probably to kill Vladimir Putin must be the best solution to contain this super inflation. Current soaring gas price might have reduced that people drive car and product artificial fertilizers, and it contributes to  reduce CO2 emission dramatically, on the other hand, Ukraineans are being killed, and Russia is trying to annex Ukraine. Now the productions for eco-friendly stuffs such as electric car became slow, because COVID-19 and Ukraine crisis destroyed world supply chain. If we, the G7 countries, accept Russia to annex Uklaine, the crisis will end soon, current inflation in every country will be contained, and we will be able to restart to effort for sustainable living.

Human tends to forget the pain which they use to hardly suffer in the past, however, we already know that we must change our direction for living and need the efforts for this earth which we all can live. World peace must be vital for our sustainable future. I talked such things with my house owner.

Rundown apartments reborn as food-forest coliving Agritopia 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCGXVk-cBVk&t=31s

I actually watched this video before but really want to introduce this for this class, because I was strongly impressed by this video. This video is from my favorite YouTube channel "Kristen Dirksen", which you might know because of very famous channel. She reports  our SE Portland's co-living apartments which manage with community garden. Actually I live near there and had known the unique apartments, but I had not known how it is managed until watching this video.

 Ole and Maitri Ersson bought the rundown apartment complex in 2007 and reformed its car parking space to a huge permaculture and co-living apartments and urban food forest. Currently 55 of the residents co-manage the garden and plant vegetable and fruits with compost made by their manure and rain water. The ecovillage shares solar power generation system and two electric cars for its residents, and in near future, they plan to convert a remaining car parking space to more gardening space.

I believe that this model will be the best sollution for sustainable living, achieving affordable housing, and aging societies which most of advanced countries face as common issues. Currently the ecovillage has 300-waiting list, so that obviously there are huge demands, and I cannot find any negative obstacles. This model might use as a rehabilitation center for homeless, drug-addicted, and mentally-illed people as well, I believe.