charge magazine

1chargemagazine.com charge WINTER 2011

chargeRECLAIM YOUR WORLD.

ISSUE NO. 1winter 2011

PEACE CORPSEXPOSEDLetters from Mongolia reveal the nitty-gritty

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CAN SAVE

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THE WORLD

winterADVENTURESpreventing hibernation

10

HOW DESIGN

WE’RE BUILDINGA GLOBALMOVEMENT TOSOLVE THECLIMATE CRISIS.

2 WINTER 2011charge chargemagazine.com

HELLO, EDITOR.

op-up computer scams, junk food commercials, tabloid covers. So often I find myself wondering

who is running the show behind all of these shallow bombardments. The mainstream media likes to say it’s all about you! But according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, young people spend 8.5 hours plugged into the media each day. That’s more time than most of us spend on our own education. Meanwhile, on a daily basis, children are exposed to at least 100 commercial advertisements. From a young age, we are taught to watch, absorb and consume. Beyond the digital screens, our planet remains. But our atmosphere’s levels of greenhouse gases are higher than they have been in 650,000 years. Temperatures are rising, glaciers are melting and sea levels are creep-ing up our shorelines. As 32 million acres of tropical forest disappear each year, so too do hundreds of wild-life species that we will never see again. Each of us has contributed to our world’s current perils, but with that same power, we can each help bring them to a slowing halt. Charge Magazine exists to empower our generation. By recognizing the people and ideas leading a movement for positive change, we seek to expose just how amazing we can be when we think for ourselves. The magazine is divided into three sections: “Chance” gives updates on opportunities to make a difference, “Choice” provides a collection of meaningful consumer alternatives and “Cherish” shares ideas about how to appreciate our world as we have it now. Musician and author Stephen Nachmanovitch said, ”There are no prescriptive solutions, no grand designs for grand problems. Life’s solutions lie in the minute particulars involving more and more individual people daring to create their own life and art, daring to listen to the voice within their deepest, original nature, and deeper still, the voice within the earth.” We invite you to create your own life, however you want to, and feel good about it.

With gratitude for your support,

Kelly SheaEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

chargeEDITOR-IN-CHIEF:

Kelly E. Shea

CREATIVE INPUT:

ILLUSTRATOR:

MANAGING EDITOR:Pam Leidig-Farmen

PHOTOGRAPHER:Ashlee Christian

reclaimyourworld.

P

The New KLEAN KANTEEN

REFLECTCrafted using only

sustainably harvested bamboo, food-grade

silicone, & stainless steel.

NO PAINT. NO PLASTIC.

H. J. Langohr

Scott GastKatie Farrish

Jessica Heller

“There are no prescriptive solutions, no grand designs for grand problems. Life’s solutions lie in the minute particulars involving more and more individual people daring to create their own life and art, daring to listen to the voice within their deepest, original nature, and deeper still, the voice within the earth.”

Stephen Nachmanovitch

kleankanteen.com

INSPIRED BY:

YES! MagazineABOVE Magazine

Lonely PlanetRoadtrip Nation

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DEFINEYOUR OWN

ROAD IN LIFE

At Roadtrip Nation, we believe that living a life fueled by authenticity and passion allows people the ability to offer their cre-ativity, ingenuity and enthusiasm towards their goals, and, in turn, will build a better global community.

@ roadtripnation.orgjoin the conversation

chargemagazine.com 5chargemagazine.com charge WINTER 2011

chargeWinter 2011

GREENBUZZ

CHANCE

CHOICE

8

10

12

TAKING CHARGE

EXPOSED: Pesticides

(RE)CREATE

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In the news: Flexitarians, a black market cashing in on endangered fish, and affordable electric cars.

The Waterkeeper Alliance and New York City’s High Line Park.

Why is the USDA handing Big Ag lobbyists $180,000 to counteract pesticide warnings?

FLEXITARIANS WELCOME! EVEN THE PRESIDENT OF PETA SAYS “SCREW THE PRINCIPLE.”

p. 8

HOW TO: GIVE NEW LIFE TO YOUR BURN-OUTS: THREE DIY PROJECTS FOR OLD BULBS.

p. 14

SMART MEDIAThe best green shows on TV. New book twists WWII’s propaganda style to show that design can save the world.

WARDROBELondon-based Howie’s and Canadian line Sofia turn natural fabrics into timeless style.

You’ve heard that you need to switch to compact fluorescents. But what to do with the old bulbs? DIY and make ‘em snazzy.

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Khishigeayar Dawaasanbuu, or “Kissy,” one of Ashlee Christian’s students and closest friends while she volunteered with the Peace Corps in Mongolia.

ON THE COVER

CHERISHGET OUT

32 WHAT LIFE LOOKS LIKEGlobal climate art project “350 Earth” makes a statement with demonstrations visible from space.

Wolf watching at Yellowstone Park, the top ten most eco-friendly ski resorts in the country plus eight more winter adventures to get you out of your nest and into the world when the temperature drops.

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21Two years of letters from volunteer Ashlee Christian give an honest perspective of the organization.

The Peace Corps: ExposedFEATURE

“One of my friends has started referring to Mongolia as an abusive boyfriend. One that all of her friends think is a complete asshole, but she always defends, saying, “You just don’t know him like I do. He’s really sweet to me when we are alone.” p. 27


The world tiger population has fallen 95% since the turn of the 20th century.

chargemagazine.com

chanceHOW WE CAN TAKE ACTION, NOW.

For over 30 years, the Sierra Club has worked to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a narrow coastal plain in remote northeast Alaska--the area’s biological heart of untamed wilderness. By petitioning Congress to protect the coastal plain, the group has blocked numerous attempts to open the refuge to oil and gas development. Today, the Obama Administration has the opportunity to keep this a wild place forever and designate the refuge as a National Monument, but it needs support.

PHOTO: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

TAKE THE CHANCE: Sponsor the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and help keep the oil industry out. Visit arcticlove.org for details and ideas for spreading the word.

chargemagazine.com WINTER 2011 charge 7


Urban Cycling Surpasses Driving

Before the tender flesh of the bluefin tuna became a sushi delicacy, the sleek sea giants (550 lb. aver-age) were modestly hunted for cat food. Today, nearly 90 percent of them have been cleared from the earth, and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists has unveiled why. Beginning in 1980, ravenous demand from Japan has spawned a black market rivaling that of illegal drugs; A single fish may sell for up to $100,000. For four decades, Mediterannean fish-ermen in this crime ring have been looting the sea, using government-funded boats and giant nets to yield an illegal $4 billion. Meanwhile, European governments stand by these fleets as well as sea ranches--coastal pens where tuna are rapidly fat-tened then shot in the head before export.

The International Commission for the Conser-vation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) regulates, but consistently votes to keep quotas three times higher than suggested by scientists. The Obama Administration supports a ban on international trade of the tuna, but agreements will not be made without the support of all ICCAT member coun-tries in upcoming meetings.

NUMBERSby the Predicted growth in China’s

energy demand by 2035.

Cost of China’s planned investments in nuclear, wind, solar and biomass projects, over the next decade.

SPECIES

Bluefin Tuna: On the brinkTRANSPORT

Flexitarianism

When it comes to global warming, a new breed of “flexitarians” are speaking out against ‘all or nothing.’ Leaders of the movement include Graham Hill, founder of the website TreeHugger, who became a “weekday vegetarian” after consistently failing at a strict vegetarian diet, as well as Paul McCartney, an advocate of “Meatless Mondays.” According to the U.N., the livestock industry produces 18% of the world’s greenhouse gases. Part-time vegetar-ians, a.k.a. flexitarians, choose what to eat and when. The goal for many activists is simply to get more people to eat less meat. “Absolute purists should be living in a cave,” says Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). “We have to be pragmatic. Screw the principle.”

FOOD

75 $735B%

Bikes are faster, according to MIT’s Technology Review. The Lyon bike sharing programme collects information on where each bike starts and stops, and how long it takes. The results:

Over an average trip, cy-clists travel 2.49 km in 14.7 minutes so their average speed is about 10 km/h. That compares well with the average car speed in inner cities across Europe.

During the rush hour, however, the average speed rises to almost 15 km/h, a speed which outstrips the average car speed. And that’s not including the time it takes to find a place to park which is much easier for a Velo bike than a car.

9 MPG: An Upgrade?

“Absolute purists should be living in a cave. We have to be pragmatic. Screw the principle.”

Ingrid Newkirk, PETA President

greenbuzz

The Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are considering new mileage standards for semis and heavy trucks. It’s currently at 6 MPG for this fleet that burns up 20 per-cent of America’s transportation fuel and emits the same share of the country’s carbon pollution. The Union of Concerned Scien-tists says that increasing the fuel economy standard for heavy trucks would save 100 billion gallons of diesel fuel over the next 20 years. Essentially, even bumping up the fuel economy for the nation’s heavy trucks just 3 MPG would make a world of difference.

$100,000: Amount that a single (illegally caught) tuna may auction for in Japan.

90 percent: Portion of the tuna population that has disappeared over the last 50 years.


Oil damages deep-sea coralSeven miles southwest of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, scientists have found dead coral on the ocean’s floor. Captured images from underwater cameras reveal corals covered in a brown substance--a site that the team describes as unlike any other they have seen over a decade of observation. “These observations capture our concern for im-pacts to marine life in places in the gulf that are not easily seen,” said Jane Lubchenco, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Now that the moratorium on deepwater oil and gas drilling has been lifted by the Obama administration, the battle for the Arctic is heating up again. The suspension of deep-sea drilling was of course a reaction to the disastrous blowout in the Gulf of Mexico. As soon as it was lifted (about six weeks before a Nov. 30 expiration date), Royal Dutch Shell began lobbying eagerly to get final approval for exploratory drill-ing in Alaska’s Beaufort Sea. The petro-giant is paying for national advertising to convince the public and government that it is taking safety precautions to prevent the kind of catastrophe that unfolded in the gulf from happening in the Arctic. Yet the Arctic is well known to be more fragile ecologically than the gulf, and the Pew Environmental Group has released a detailed report that explores the ques-tion of how well the government and industry would be equipped to deal with a blowout and spill there. The report concludes: definitely not well.

Shell seeks Arctic drillingGULF UPDATEOIL

WANT MORE NEWS ABOUT

YOUR WORLD?>>

updated on the daily.

charge.org

As mainstream carmakers develop all-electric vehicles to be released as early as this December, their companies state that electric is the future. Here’s a look at the new vehicles:

all-electric

plug-in hybrid

plug-in sports car

Available December

Available 2011

Available now

TRANSPORT

Nissan Leaf

GM Volt

Tesla Roadster

chance::GREENBUZZ

Potential value of mineral wealth in war-torn Congo.

Estimated number dead after a vicious “min-eral conflict” war in Congo, driven largely by demand for smartphone ingredient coltan.$25 7MT

Electric Comeback

4,000 ft: Depth below water where scientists have found dead coral.


ADVOCATES ON THE WATEROur bodies of water speak through the Waterkeeper Alliance.

F ounded in 1999 by environmental attorney and activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the Waterkeeper Alliance is a global movement of on-the-water advocates who

patrol and protect over 100,000 miles of rivers, streams and coastlines in North and South America, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa. Waterkeepers combine firsthand knowledge of their waterways with an unwaver-ing commitment to the rights of their communities and to the rule of law. Whether they are on the water tracking down polluters, in a courtroom advocating for stronger enforcement of environmental laws, at a town meeting rallying community support, or in a classroom educating young people, Waterkeepers defend their communities against anyone who threatens their right to clean water—from law-breaking polluters to unresponsive government agencies. Made up of nearly 200 local Waterkeeper organizations—employing more than 400 full-time and 200 part-time environmental activists, educators, scientists and attor-neys— Waterkeeper Alliance keeps Waterkeepers connected, provides them with legal, scientific and communications support, and unites their voices as they take on major global water issues together. -waterkeeper.org

The first African Interna-tional Executive Director

of Greenpeace began battling apartheid in

South Africa as a

15-year-old. Today,

he leads the Global

Campaign for Climate Action, publicly known as the tcktcktck movement.

Cyrus Buffum, leader of the Charleston Waterkeeper Alliance.

chance::TAKING CHARGE

PHOTO: Charleston City Paper

TAKE THE CHANCE: Find your local leaders at waterkeeper.

AT THE CORE OF EVERY WATERKEEPER ORGANIZATION IS A COMMITMENT TO GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY AND UNFALTERING BELIEF THAT EVERYONE HAS A RIGHT TO CLEAN WATER.

“ “on our radar

KUMI NAIDOO

DAVID DE ROTHSCHILD

Join millions ready for policy change at tcktcktck.org.

Although Rothschild was born heir to a British banking empire, he has been making his own name as an eco-explorer since age 20. His latest expedition aboard the Plastiki, a boat partially made from recycled bottles, seeks to raise awareness about escalating ocean pollution problems.

Follow the adventure at thep-lastiki.com.

FEED PROJECTSCo-founded by Lauren Bush, an Honor-ary Spokesperson for the UN World Food Program, the FEED Projects’ mission is to help feed the world more nuritious food through a line of envi-ronmentally-friendly and artisan-made accessories. So far, the organization has provided more than 56 million meals around the world.

Learn more and find holiday gifts at feedprojects.com.


[ HOT SPOT ]

chance::TAKING CHARGE

n the mid-1800’s, so many accidents occurred between freight trains and street-level traffic on 10th Avenue in Manhattan that it became known as “Death Avenue.” After

years of debate, New York state and city governments, along with the New York Railroad, agreed to develop a 13-mile-long elevated railroad. Opening to trains in 1934, the High Line brought tons of produce and manufactured goods to Manhat-tan. By the 1950’s, with the rise of interstate trucking, rail traffic along the High Line had fallen dramatically. In the 1960’s, the Southern section of the High Line was demol-ished. In 1999, Friends of the High Line was founded by Joshua David and Robert Hammond to advocate for the High Line’s preservation and reuse as a public park. In 2002, Friends of the High Line finally won a lawsuit challenging the city’s plans for demolishing the remaining tracks. A year later, a design competition was launched to solicit proposals for reusing the High Line. More than 720 teams from 36 countries entered. The team selected is led by Field Operations, a landscape ar-chitecture firm, and includes Diller Scofidio + Renfro, as well as noted horticultural designer, Piet Oudolf. The High Line functions as a living green roof, with multiple layers to provide water flow and hold soil and plants. Friends of High Line Park Founder, Joshua David, envisioned an atmosphere “less like a park and more like scruffy wilderness.” A range of native plants, including sumac and hardy urban plants, is used along with scabiosa, a “pincushion flower.” The High Line Park is now run by the New York City Parks Department. From outsider to a central community platform, the High Line demonstrates how derelict industrial sites can be reimagined. Other cities are also exploring reusing aban-doned transportation infrastructure. -asla.org

I

THE HIGH LINEPark // New York City

The High Line is essentially a green roof on top of an elevated railroad track.

TENTH AVE.

ELEVENTH AVE.

CHELSEAMARKET

PHOTOS: Iwan Baan

Friends of High Line Park Founder, Joshua David, envisioned an atmosphere “less like a park and more like scruffy wilderness.”


DOZEN

Pesticide ShowdownThe USDA recently handed Big Ag lobbyists $180,000 to counter warnings about pesticide-laden produce, but cheery ads aren’t making the foods any safer.

You know the Environmental Working Group’s super-helpful

list of the most-pesticide-laden fruits and veggies? Well, there’s a Big Ag lobby group called the Alliance for Food and Farming that’s trying to de-bunk it. And the USDA just gave the lobbyists $180,000 to aid their smear campaign, The Atlantic reports. So exactly who’s behind the Alli-ance for Food and Farming? Accord-ing to SourceWatch, its board of directors includes honchos from the California Strawberry Commission, the California Tomato Farmers, the Produce Marketing Association, and the California Association of Pest Control Advisors, among other industry groups. The AFF’s main argument: “Promotion of the ‘Dirty Dozen’ list actually makes the work

of improving the diets of Ameri-cans more difficult because it scares consumers away from the afford-able fruits and vegetables that they enjoy.” Considering that the EPA freely admits that pesticides can cause “birth defects, nerve damage, cancer, and other effects,” it’s silly to suggest that raising consumer awareness about pesticides is making Ameri-cans less healthy. What it comes down to is that the more you know about your food, the better. Period. -kiera butler, mother jones

Celery

Peaches

Strawberries

Apples

Blueberries Nectarines

Bell PeppersSpinach Kale Cherries

Potatoes Grapes

THE DIRTY DOZEN

chance::EXPOSED

AND THE CLEAN 15

Onions, avocado, sweet corn, pine-apple, mangos, sweet peas, asparagus, kiwi, cabbage, eggplant, cantaloupe, watermelon, grapefruit, sweet potato, honeydew melon.

If you’re going to risk it, try these items that have been proven the low-est in pesticides:

TOXIC FOOD 101WHAT ARE PESTICIDES? Insecticides (bug killers), herbicides (weed killers), fungicides (fungus killers),rodenticides and antimicrobi-als.

ARE THEY ALL TOXIC? Insecticides are generally the most immediately toxic. Many are de-signed to attack an insect’s brain and nervous system, which can mean they have neurotoxic effects in humans as well. Herbicides are more widely used (RoundUp and atrazine are the two most used pesticides in the world) and present chronic exposure risks, such as cancer and reproductive harm.

HOW ARE WE EXPOSED? Each year, an estimated 1 billion pounds of pesticides are applied to U.S. farms, forests, lawns and golf courses. More than 17,000 pesticide products are currently on the market. Pesticide applicators, farmers and farm workers, and communities near farms are often most at risk, but stud-ies by the Centers for Disease Control show that all of us carry pesticides in our bodies. For instance, atrazine is found in 94% of U.S. drinking water tested by the USDA.

TAKE THE CHANCE: Consumers are hungry for change, and filmmaker

Robert Kenner answers the call through his hit documentary Food,

Inc. The movie informs and inspires us to demand more from our nation’s

food industry, the supply of which has become controlled by profit-

driven corporations.

-pesticide action network (panna.org)

chargemagazine.com

Pesticide Showdown GUIDE TO CHOOSING A GREENER WORLD.

choice

“Indie rock bands are leaking creativity. Why not harness their magical indie powers to help out those in need?”--so says the website of the Yellow Bird project, a Montreal-based charity whose offerings include sartorial items plucked from the imaginations of artists including Broken Social Scene, Devendra Banhart and Of Montreal. The organization has raised over $80,000 over the past few years and proceeds have gone to the likes of The Nature Conservancy, Amnesty International and Greenpeace.

PHOTO: Megan McIsaac, flickr.com/helloromantic

YELLOW BIRD PROJECT

MAKE THE CHOICE: Check out all of the YBP tees at yellowbirdproject.com. ABOVE: Tee designed by The National, $25, to benefit New York-based Safe Space.

chargemagazine.com WINTER 2011 charge 13


choice:: (RE)CREATE

new lives forLightbulbs3

WHY KEEP THE BURN-OUTS?Incandescent lamps have served as the standard light bulb for years. That is, until nations began banning them due to their inefficiency. Australia, Canada and Europe have already phased out the round bulbs in favor of compact fluorescents, which use up to 75 percent less elec-tricity. While you phase out your own incandescents, keep in mind that they cannot be recycled. To prevent lead from entering the environment and hold onto these soon-to-be extinct gadgets, try these three creative ideas for re-use and brighten up your home in a new way. -kelly shea

Create an elegant vase by emptying the bulb and placing it on a scrap wood stand. (Use pliers to pull off the brass contact and chip away black glass, then drill the inside to remove filament.) Drill two holes into the base then insert wire to suspend. Place water and fresh flowers inside.

Create a salt and pepper shaker. First, hollow out two light bulbs. Then, using a small ham-mer, lightly flatten the top of the screw base. This will ensure that the caps fit securely. Find two old plastic soda bottle caps and use a knife to remove the plastic disc lining the cap. Pierce several holes into the cap. A circle of thick felt or wooden rings glued to the bottom of the shakers will stabilize them. Fill with salt and pepper, and then screw the caps on.

Create a holiday ornament! In the same fashion as the suspended vase, empty a bulb and attach wire. Paint a seasonal design onto the bulb, or create a beach scene by inserting sand and shells. The bulbs will continue to brighten your home, in a different (more mindful) way.

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diy


Annabelle GurwitchThe original hostess of Dinner and a Movie doesn’t mind showering in front of frat boys to make a point about saving energy.

ctress and activist Annabelle Gurwitch takes social issues and turns them into provocative entertain-ment as the host of Planet Green’s original carbon

foot-printing series, WA$TED! Wa$ted! attacks a spectrum of environmentally unfriendly households across the nation, auditing their waste, energy, water and transportation consumption. Not surprisingly, each episode unearths dozens of eco-horrors that are killing both the environment and the homeowner’s bank account. Drafty windows, a televi-sion blasting around-the-clock to keep a pet company, spoiled food from over-purchasing -- you name the pos-sible eco-crime, and these households have offended. But no matter how far gone the family, it’s not as hard to change hazardous habits as one might think. Featured households are incentivized with a challenge to adhere to simple earth-saving suggestions as strictly as possible for three weeks. In a follow-up meeting with Annabelle and her co-host Holter, the households (who range from festive frat boys to doting daddies) are again audited and asked to review their successes and failures. Each household’s 21 days of results are then tabulated into the estimated savings that going green for the entire year would bring, which is awarded as a cash prize. -planetgreen.discovery.com

SUSTAINABLE STAR

MAKE THE CHOICE: Catch Annabelle’s wisdom on Planet Green. To find out if the channel is available in your area, visit planetgreen.discovery.com.

choice::SMART MEDIA

Seduce Me Living with EdEd Begley, Jr. lives! Ed is like the uber nerd who grew into a thoughtful Earth daddy and was at it way before many of us even cared. In this show, celebrities flock to Ed to get secrets and in turn, he puts the spotlight on green stars and their innovative lifestyles.

Directed, written by and starring Isabella Rossel-lini, these five two-minute portraits explore the uncon-ventional seduction rituals of creatures ranging from bugs to cuttlefish. Seduce Me offers an entertaining yet informative look into the bizarre seduction rituals that often precede the mating process.

A

Tune in Sundance Channel. Tune in Planet Green.

ON THE TUBE


Design Can Save the WorldGREEN PATRIOT POSTERS PROVE THAT WHEN IT COMES TO STIRRING ACTION, LOOKS MATTER.

uring World War II, the United States was able to mobilize industry and motivate its citizens with breathtaking speed. The nation overhauled its fac-

tories and transformed its habits of consumption to rally behind the war effort. The strong, graphically compelling posters at the heart of that campaign still resonate today. Green Patriot Posters reworks the momentum of WPA (Works Progress Administration) and WWII propaganda into a forward thinking project that promotes sustain-ability and fights climate change. Organized by Edward Morris of The Canary Project, Dmitri Siegel and published by Metropolis Books, Green Patriot Posters presents 50 tear-away designs by Shepard Fairey, Michael Bierut, DJ Spooky, James Victore and numerous other gifted design-ers who responded to an ongoing open call. The book also features brilliant essays by Morris and Siegel, Thomas L. Friedman, Steven Heller and Morgan Clendaniel that help to negotiate an inclusive ideology of environmental advocacy that is fueled by art, design, individual action and community support.

BOOK REVIEW

BOOKSHELFThe Story of Stuff Eaarth Not Just a Pretty FaceAnnie Leonard ($26; Free Press) Bill McKibben ($10; St. Martin’s Press) Stacy Malkan ($10; New Society)

Leonard examines conspicuous consumption and its human and environmental costs in an expansion of her short documentary of the same name. Drawing on her extensive research, gutsy fieldwork, and efforts to live green, Leonard condemns the endless barrage of advertisements, the plague of toxic synthetic chemicals, and such covertly deleterious inventions as the aluminum can. Offering an ambitious vision, Leonard calls for strict environmental laws, an end to overconsumption, zero waste, and a new social paradigm based on quality of life, not quantity of stuff. --Donna Seaman, Booklist

Since he first heralded our era of environmental collapse in 1989’s The End of Nature, Bill McKib-ben has raised a series of eloquent alarms. In Eaarth, he leads readers to the devastatingly comprehensive conclusion that we no longer inhabit the world in which we’ve flourished for most of human history. We’re living through the effects of climate change now, and it’s time for us to get creative about our survival. Focusing on inspiring communities of “functional indepen-dence” arising around the world, McKibben offers galvanizing possibilities for keeping our humanity intact as the world we’ve known breaks down. --Mari Malcolm, Amazon

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choice::SMART MEDIA

MAKE THE CHOICE: View the posters, submit your own, or find hundreds of ways to take action for the climate crisis at greenpatriotposters.org.

WE FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS SOLVABLE. IT IS AN ENORMOUS CHALLENGE, AND IT WILL TAKE COMMITMENT FROM ALL SECTORS OF SOCIETY, BUT IT CAN BE DONE.

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Lead in lipstick? Coal tar in shampoo? How is this possible? Simple. The $35 billion cosmetics industry is so powerful they’ve kept themselves unregulated for decades. Not Just a Pretty Face chronicles the quest that led a group of health and environmental activists to challenge the world’s largest cosmetics companies. The good news is that while corporations fight for their right to use hazardous chemicals, entrepreneurs are developing safer non-toxic technologies and building busi-nesses on the values of health, justice and personal empowerment. --Amazon

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Examples of the book’s 50 posters, printed in the US, with 100% recycled paper, vegetable inks and 100% wind power.

choice::SMART MEDIA


Moher reversible jacket $120, howies.co.uk.

choice::WARDROBE

MADE TO LASTLondon-based Howie’s thinks simple is best.

SMART BRAND

ven designer clothing isn’t designed to last forever. Howie’s Hand Me Downs specializes in making high-

quality clothing that uses fabrics and materials made to withstand the tests of time; so not only will your fashion purchases last your lifetime, they can spend their days draped on a second generation wearer and still look great. Howie’s has based their fashion business and garments on reducing consumption. By making better quality cloth-ing that is guaranteed to last at least 10 years, they hope that fashion lovers will need to buy less clothing during their lifetime, to reduce use of resources through clothing manufacturing. Howie’s doesn’t make clothing that you can expect to see on the runways at New York’s Fashion Week, but it is functional and fashionable. The clothing line designed to be handed down includes jackets and bags for both men and women. The jacket, which retails for 400 GBP, is made of Ventile; a tightly woven cotton that’s only found in the top 2% of the world’s cotton crop. This high-quality fabric contains 24,000 stands of cotton, which takes about 16 hours to weave. Since Ventile is such a dense fabric, it is also naturally water resistant and designed to withstand wear and tear over time. -inventorspot.com

It’s sustainable.

WHY WOOL? Howie’s has a few reasons why the material rocks.

MAKE THE CHOICE: Buy clothes that you can imagine handing down to your six-year-old nephew. Most of the energy involved with clothing is wasted on producing and washing flimsy garments. Check out howies.co.uk for more information.

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It’s naturallyantibacterial.

It’s biodegradable.

Flynn shirt$30, howies.co.uk.

Script crew$45, howies.co.uk.


choice::WARDROBE

Radiant StrengthNATURAL FABRIC AND TIMELESS DESIGN GIVE CANADIAN DESIGNER SOFIA IRRESTIBLE EDGE. Producing a collection by the name Sofia, Sofia Mendez-Schenone aims to produce easy, beautiful clothes that transition seamlessly from day to night without a second thought. Designs are vibrant and feminine without overshadowing the wearer. Based out of Victoria, British Columbia, each item is locally made, using luxurious natural fabrics with special atten-tion paid to fit and detail. -ecofashiontalk.com

MAKE THE CHOICE: Browse hundreds of en-vironmentally and socially conscious fashion brands at ecofashionworld.com.

sofiaclothing.comGET THE LOOK>>

feature

“Typical Mongolia: Car broken down, Gramps passed out and cute kid being cute.”

charge20 WINTER 2011 chargemagazine.com

kelly shea/words ashlee christian/photos


MESSY. FRUSTRATING. EXHILARATING. Two years of letters and reflection from PC

volunteer Ashlee Christian give as honest a look at the program as you’re gonna get.

CORPSPEACEEXPOSED

t h e

kelly shea/words ashlee christian/photos

shlee Christian began applying for the Peace Corps in October of 2007, only a few months after she had received her undergraduate Photography degree from Bowling Green University. Like 200,000+ of the

volunteers before her, Ashlee couldn’t have known what to expect from the international volunteer organization. But she certainly fit the mold of the typical applicant; More than 90% of Peace Corps volunteers (PCVs) have an undergrad degree, are in their early twenties and claim to be single, according to the organization’s website. With an education under her belt and an irking drive to see the world, Ashlee was accepted (after a tedious several months of application processes) to join the league of hardy drifters for two years of service in an unknown (likely remote) location somewhere in Asia.

“At the time, the Peace Corps was a concept to me. It was words. I had no idea what it would mean to do it,” said Ash-lee. “Before I left, I was bouncing around Ohio, Florida and Chicago. I had been interested in international development throughout college. But ultimately, I just wanted to see the

A

Expectations

world and do something good along the way.” Once accepted, the Peace Corps assigned Ashlee to Mongolia, the most sparsely populated country on the planet. Its three million people occupy a rugged land about the size of Alaska, where their ancestors lived traditionally nomadic lifestyles. Ashlee set foot in her assigned country alongside 64 fellow volunteers in the summer of 2008. Two years later, at the end of her shift, that number had dwindled to 35. “We lost a lot of good men out there,” she said. “But a lot of people just couldn’t handle it. Nobody is shamed for leaving.” Throughout her two years in Mongolia, Ashlee sent a steady stream of letters (when she could find a hard-won internet connection) to her closest family and friends. The words were read and re-read by her disbelieving great-grandmother, printed for safekeeping by her parents and treasured by her friends - none of which Ashlee saw once over her stay. “Naturally towards the end of an experience, you tendto go back to when it all started,” Ashlee wrote in her last docu-mentary e-mail, written in July 2010. By sharing her letters, she takes us back with her.

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July 2, 2008 IT’S HARD TO IMAGINE WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE BEFORE THIS WEEK.

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This has been the best day of my Mongolian life thus far. We left for the amarvayasgalant monastery today at 5 am with our language teachers and at least one of the members of our family. My 19-year-old sister Oyuna went with me. The journey was perilous. At 6 am we stopped at an ovoo. An ovoo is a sizable pile of rocks/random trash/mystery. It is a sort of Buddhist/shamanistic ritual site. You are supposed to stop at them, walk around them three times and place something on the pile every lap. While at the ovoo (keep in mind it is still 6 am), our language teacher broke open a bottle of vodka, and we were all given a shot. Once the bottle is open, nobody leaves until the bottle is finished. We then continued on our way. The roads were treacherous, and the car got stuck twice. We finally arrived at the monastery and posted up shop in a field five minutes away. We set up a few tents and started preparing for our sheep roast. It was a legit Mongolian barbeque. The monastery was breathtaking, so beautifully ornate and colorful. And it was really interesting to learn about all of the rituals and practices of Tibetan Buddhism. We walked around for a few hours and listened to monks chant. Then, once back we continued to drink and louse in the sunshine. Some of us went on a quest for wild strawberries. Our meal was followed by sumo wresting, soccer and dance party limbo. It was entirely too much fun. If there is one thing I can say for certain about Mongolian people, it is that they love to laugh and have a good time. They are not afraid to get a little wild, all the while preserving their humility and cultural heritage.

August 10, 2008

As of right now, I have 21 days left of pre-service training, then it is off to Darkhan swear-in. We are all anxiously awaiting our site placement. We have had two interviews with placement coordina-tors and have filled out site locator preference forms. I told them that I would like to live in a ger in an aimag center, where I would be able to live in a traditional dwelling, while also having amenities like the internet and possibly a restaurant that serves chicken. This is, in my opinion, the best of both worlds. But with my luck, I will probably end up in a three-walled ger scrounging the desert for camel dung to keep my ass warm.

August 12, 2008

Drumroll please. For the rest of my two years here in the MN I will be living in... Arkhangai Aimag in Battsengel Soum! So I didn’t get placed in an aimag center. (I’m only two hours outside of it, though.) I will, however, be living in a ger, and living in the ger of one of my trainers this summer. I have some big shoes to fill, but Rob assures me that I will absolutely love it. Apparently my counterparts are wonderful, and I will be living in my school director’s hashaa. I also get custody of his four dogs, which is exciting. Arkhangai is in west-central Mongolia, and it is known as the “Switzerland” of the MN. There are two rivers, green, beautiful hills (seasonally of course), and a historic monastery. Overall, I am pretty stoked.

August, 14, 2008

Ashlee’s training group on their way to a monastery for a family appreciation day. Each trainee brought a member of their host family from the town of Orkhon.

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Letters Home

Sainuu friends and/or family! I’m writing to you from the Darkhan hotel located in Darkhan, Mongolia. Darkhan is the second largest city in Mongolia with a population of roughly 70,000. The city is sur-rounded by hills, maybe mountains. Let’s call them large hills. The city itself is a tad depressing only because of the stifling Soviet bloc buildings that make up its bulk. There are also cows and horses that roam around freely in the city, which is bizarre. Life is pretty interesting here. No running water, no plumbing of any kind really. We have an outhouse. This took a little getting used to. I am still terrified to go at night because if you are not careful, you could easily fall between the slats into the very deep poop hole. So, I go to the bathroom only when there is available light (probably not good for my bladder). Overall, I love it here. It is hard to imagine what life was like before this week. Chasing goats out of the backyard has become my new pastime, washing clothes is an absurd task (the first time I did I was so tired by the end that I fell asleep at 7 pm), and bathing comes maybe once a week and involves either going to the river or crouching in a tiny basin of water. But this is the way life is now. It’s a pretty hardcore country, and I can already tell that things aren’t going to be easy in any way. But I can also tell that it’s going to be really rewarding. Side story: I went to the store yesterday to get some cold juice, and I walk in and there was a slaughtered goat in pieces on the floor. I thought to myself: Wow, pre-Mongolia me would have taken one look at that goat and either a) passed out cold, b) puked in my mouth or c) turned around and ran as fast as I could. However, present-Mongolia me looked at the goat and thought: Hey, look at that dead goat in pieces. I bet that goat would be considerably more tasty that the hunk of frozen mystery meat in the freezer from which I am fed. I hope my sister buys some of that goat... This is a very strange and sudden change for me.


Greetings from a ger down by the river. It is official. I am a Peace Corps Volunteer, and I have my very own dwelling. This has been the most hectic week of my life. It was an absurd 15-hour car ride from UB to here. I drove with my school director, Rob (the volunteer who I am replacing), and his girlfriend Tuul. I have unpacked my things, and I just made my first ger meal. It was pathetic. I have nothing really to cook with, and no utensils. So I made scrambled eggs and ate them with a knife. My first night was wonderful. I know the initial glamour is going to wear off far quicker than I think, but for now I am enjoying being in love with my circular hut.

August 26, 2008Reflection

“It was so great to be able to meet people with Rob, to have him show me the ropes and assure our hashaa family that I wouldn’t die. However, attending Rob’s going away party was sur-real. Here he was, this larger-than-life figure whom everybody loved and respected, and there I was, the new girl, who didn’t speak Mongolian very well, and who didn’t eat meat. When it came time for Rob and Tuul to head back, Rob looked at me and said ‘Alright kid, enjoy the next two years.’ It was at this moment that I actually real-ized: Holy shit, I am going to be here for two years. I watched the car drive away, walked back to my ger, and cried. There was a lot of crying over the next few days. There is something very oddly claustrophobic about feeling trapped in the middle of nowhere. I mean, there I was, surrounded by nothing but wide open, breathtaking spaces, and yet, I felt trapped. Luckily that feeling faded as I became more comfortable with my situation, and quickly after, I began to really love and appreciate it.”

THE MONGOLIAN GER “Essentially, a ger is a wood lattice-framed circle with wooden support holes that connect to a cartwheel in the ceiling. It’s covered in layers of felt and fabric, and a wood-burning stove sits in the middle,” Ashlee said. The portable dwelling was traditionally used by Mongolian nomads.

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The ger in Battsengel where Ashlee lived for two years.

On their way back from a hot springs trip, Ashlee and her co-workers spent hours held up on a bridge when the horses refused to keep moving.

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HAPPINESS HAS BECOME A RELATIVE TERM IN MY LIFE THESE DAYS. I AM ALIVE, I HAVE SOMETHING RESEMBLING A ROOF OVER MY HEAD, AND I AM NOT FREEZING OR STARVING TO DEATH. FOR THESE THINGS I AM GRATEFUL.

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Greetings from a place where it snows in August. I am contemplat-ing starting my first fire. I chopped a bunch of wood last night and this morning. Apparently there has been much debate inside the house on whether or not I will die this winter. My hashaa parents seem to think my death is inevitable. I am also experiencing my first bout of boredom. Apparently peo-ple learn how to deal with these feelings after awhile. I, however, have not learned how to do such things yet. Apparently the small soum blues is pretty common. PCV’s who have been here for a year insist that it is the way to go, though. They say that my Mongolian will be far better and that I will be forced to make Mongolian friends instead of just relying on hanging out with site mates. I can imagine that this is very true.

August 29, 2008

Greetings from ger sweet ger. The other day my grandma called me and asked me if I was as happy as my e-mails would leave every-one to believe. The answer that I have to this is yes, however, hap-piness has become a relative term in my life these days. I am alive, I have something that resembles a roof over my head, and I am not freezing and/or starving to death. For these things, I am grateful, but I am not going to front... It has been a little rough.

September 12, 2008

It has occurred to me that many of you may see my life as “exciting” or “exotic.” I am dispelling that belief right now. My life is neither of these things. Unless you count passing at least one yak on your way to work an exciting life. I got a really great e-mail from Rob the other day that gave me some interesting insight: “Full disclosure: I was not nearly the well-adjusted superstar that you might think. Truth is, I made a couple of social appearances a month, but in general, I was alone a lot. I do give myself a couple of punk rock points for my adjustment to loneli-ness. I just tried to nurture every creative whim and really came to love being alone. That was certainly helpful, but it iis not something you can force.” ...I am slowly but surely coming to enjoy my “alone” time.

November 3, 2008

I just realized that my dogs came into my ping (the little wooden add-on that houses my wood, and where I keep food sometimes to stay colder) and stole my cheese. My precious, real cheese that I bought in the aimag. I am devastated. I had plans for the cheese. Do you know how of-ten it is that I can find real cheese in Tsetserleg? Once a year! And that one time a year was last weekend during the trade fair. I just reverted back to my sad, dairy-free existence. I mean, I suppose I have been living a cheeseless life for the better part of the past four months, but this cheese was hope. It was a little beacon of light in my culinary life. And now it’s gone, just like that. It’s enough to send one into an existential tizzy. The situation did make me realize that my Mongolian is quite pro-ficient under stress. My poor little duus were just staring at me while I ran around the yard trying to find the remnants, all the while I was explaining to them that my cheese was in my ping, and now it is gone, and the dogs are terrible, terrible creatures. I don’t think they quite understand the severity of the situation, though. They could not possibly understand my love for cheese.

September 29, 2008

Greetings from the land of the nine nines. You may be asking yourself, Ashlee, what exactly are these nines that you speak of? Well dear reader, the nine nines are Mongolia’s funny little way of measuring the obscene winter weather. Basically, they split up the winter into nine days of nine, and each nine represents something different freezing. First comes the rice, then comes the horns on baby rams or something ridiculous like that, then adult rams, then airag, then Mongolian vodka, then actual vodka (did you know vodka could freeze solid, because I certainly didn’t). I am thinking of making my own nine nines. First comes my tooth-paste, then comes my 50 gallon water container, then comes my toes, then comes my cat, then comes my soul.

January 7, 2009

I realized today that I really enjoy living in a ger, and being able to regulate the temperature of my living situation with fire. Fire that I make with my own two hands. It’s funny, I was talking to a friend a few weeks ago and she said, “So, you get to make a fire everyday?” I was like “No, I have to make a fire everyday.” Get is not in my vocabulary anymore. I don’t get to empty the water bucket under my dry sink, I have to empty the water bucket under my dry sink. I don’t get to wear two or more pairs of socks at all times, I have to. But you know what, I am ok with that. Really, this winter has not been as bad as I had anticipated. Living in a small ger with a very efficient stove doesn’t hurt. And there rare only three and a half nines left to go before winter is over!

February 10, 2009

Monkey, one of Ashlee’s dogs. In Mongolia, it snows from August until January and March until June. Unfortunately, it is taboo to allow dogs inside, even in the most brutal of weather.


7/9/2010

I just had a lovely evening with my favorite student/best friend. I am way lucky to have her around. It’s hard to hang out with people my age around here because they all have husbands and babies. I have to say, though, I am absolutely loving it here, really and truly. I adore my town and its constituents. I adore my little tent and cat. I am even adoring my students, who at times can be absolutely infuriating. I don’t know what it is about the second year when things just click. Its not like I hated it here last year. It was just harder. It was hard to not have any volunteers close by. It was hard to be the center of attention everywhere I went, and it was hard living in a town so impossibly small that you were lucky if you found apples every now and again. Now, I can’t imagine having been given any other situation.

I have returned victoriously from a week-long voyage into the capi-tal to gather books for my library. I made out of the Asia Foundation Warehouse with 53 of them. When I went back to school today, my co-workers were anxious to hear about what I ahd brought back but seemed disappointed when I told them all the books so far were in English. They thanked me for bringing the books back, told me they would support me in this project and then said I had gotten fat. Two out of three isn’t bad, I suppose.

March 12, 2009

Today, I almost made my sixth graders copy lines. Yes, old school. I was going to make them copy “I will be respectful of my teachers and elders” at least 200 times. One co-worker went to the class and lectured them, explaining that they better be good for me, or else. What’s weird is that my sixth graders are usually good. But yester-day they were atrocious. A little girl threw a curmped up piece of paper at me! And I am a fun teacher, damnit! Other teachers have begun asking me about the class. Apparently they think it is just hilarious that I cannot control them. What they don’t get is that I neither yell in Mongolian, nor beat the snot out of children to gain control (although yesterday I did jokingly threaten to pummel children with a random plank of wood that was hanging around the classroom). Thankfully tomorrow I will be leaving for the aimag to see the oth-er volunteers (Mongolia is divided in 21 aimags, or provinces). I am pretty proud of our group. We received a monthly memo from our country director congratulating the M-19s for being one of the best groups they had ever seen in Mongolia, and furthermore one of the best groups any of the staff who had worked in other countries had ever seen. Yes, my group is absolutely wonderful. We all get along swimmingly and work really well together.

March 31, 2009

Greetings from the capital. Well folks, my summer is almost over. I have spent my second and last birthday in Mongolia, and I am ready to kick this next year off and get some stuff done. I had an amazing summer full of travel by plane, train and seedy automobile. Beijing was incredible albeit the hottest place on the planet. I also was able to get up to Lake Khovskul, which is probably one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Aside from traveling, I had to say goodbye to all of my friends who finished their service. That was not especially easy. Friendships here are very quick and intense. The transition between being the new guys and the old guys is a strange one. You watch all of the people that have been your sup-port for the last year leave, and suddenly you are the expert, you are the shoulder, you are the one with the better Mongolian.

September 8, 2009

October 14, 2009

The troublesome seventh-grade English class on graduation day. >>


PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE SOUM

“I went to school thinking about anthro-pology, that I would become a documen-tary photographer,” said Ashlee. “But my views became very cynical about the field. The idea that people go into places with little or no concept of what they are shooting and no conscience behind it, that seems very exploitative to me.” It was a year before Ashlee began taking photos in her village. Until then, she felt “wrong and dirty” shooting, “like it wasn’t mine to share yet.” Although her degree is in photogra-phy, Ashlee wants to pursue a career that she feels is more proactive and productive for the international community.”

We have entered into a zud here in Mongolia. The Mongolian lan-guage may not have two different words for pink and purple, nor a distinction between the verbs “to ride” and “to fall” (which becomes troublesome when talking about horses), however, it does have a word for an apocalyptic winter. This is zud, one of the most feared words in my increasingly absurd lexicon of useless Mongolian. As far as I can tell, a zud is the earth’s way of correcting the bal-ance between livestock and land here in Mongolia. The livestock count is up to 50 million this year, and the country simply cannot handle that many animals. So, every few winters, a zud comes to wipe out the weak ones. It is estimated that as many as ten million animals will die this winter. This, of course, isn’t ideal for herders. However, in the long run, it is better for everyone. There are a few ways to tell if a zud is coming: a) animals start dying in December (check), and b) you will see three suns in the sky (triple check, and terrifying). The three suns thing makes me feel even more like I live on another planet. This is caused by an optical illusion created from a frozen atmosphere that reflects light from the sun, causing rainbows on either side, that then reflects two more suns. My only hope is that I am not one of the estimated ten million animals scheduled to die.

January 21, 2010

Greetings from the end. Naturally towards the end of an experience you tend to go back to when it all started. You guys have been here through the ups and downs and the freezing and thawing of two winters come and gone. I hope I have given you a good idea of why my life has been like here, but there is so much more that I have never explained, like the friendships I have made with the other volunteers here. We are like soldiers together. We fight the good fight, drink together during our furloughs, and swap war stories from the battlefield. One of my good friends here has been compiling two lists, one entitled, “I Love You, Mongolia,” and the other (no surprises), “I Hate You, Mongolia.” The idea of these lists is to leave with a realistic understanding of the experience, so that when he is feeling nostalgic he can reflect on everything that was awful, and when he is feeling scornful he can remember all the things he really loved. Another of my friends has started referring to Mongolia as abusive boyfriend. One that all of her friends think is a complete asshole, but she always defneds, saying, “You just don’t know him like I do. He’s really sweet to me when we are alone.” I came here with a group of 65 people that has subsequently dwindled to about 35. I’m happy to say that I stuck it out. I braved the cold, the vodka, and the less than desirable Mongolian work ethic (probably a direct result of the cold and vodka). And now I am left to reflect, and try to make sense of what has happened to me over the last two years. Am I different? Probably. Am I a bit more cynical about developmental work? Definitely. Am I more appreciative? Absolutely. Have I missed you guys? You bet-cha. I could never have done it without your love and support. I want to leave you with a quote from the former Country Director of Peace Corps Mongolia. His name is Jim Carl, and while he has since left us, he is a wonderful person and was a great director to serve under. He left us with these words: “No matter how much stuff we collect as we go through life, as soon as we die it suddenly all belongs to someone else. Therefore, the only thing that we truly own, that will never belong to someone else, is ‘our story.’ So if that’s all you truly have, it’s an excellent idea to make it a really, really great story. All those other people out there who don’t do adventurous things, don’t travel, don’t take risks, don’t invest themselves in helping others, well, they write their stories too, but unfortunately they write the same page over and over again.”I think I have a pretty great story so far. Thanks for being a part of it.

The Last LetterJuly 10, 2010

THE ONLY THING THAT WE TRULY OWN, THAT WILL NEVER BELONG TO SOMEONE ELSE, IS OUR STORY. SO IF THAT’S ALL YOU TRULY HAVE, IT’S AN EXCELLENT IDEA TO MAKE IT A REALLY, REALLY GREAT STORY.

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A few students in Battsengel. Taken with medium format film.


After returning to America in August 2010, Ashlee visited her hometown of Chicago for a month before buying a one-way ticket to New York City. “I always figured I would live in a city,” said Ashlee. “I never thought I would move to Kansas when I got back to allevi-ate shock or stress.” A few of her fellow M-19 volunteers also moved to New York, where she currently resides in Brooklyn. Needless to say, Ashlee didn’t come back from Mongolia an anti-American nor a radical horse meat advocate. “I’m the same person I was when I left,” she said. “But a bit more thick-skinned, and perhaps much more alcohol-tolerant.” The transition to New York wasn’t difficult, and she said she does not feel guilty for returning to an American way of life. “The way that people lived in the village, that was a necessity,” she said. “That’s the way it is there, and this is the way it is here. I never feel bad about it, although I try to be mindful.” “You don’t need a lot to be happy,” she said. “That’s some-thing I wanted to take back with me and something that I keep in mind.”

“By most standards, the Mongolian people have a very rough life, but they are so happy and resilient,” she said. “To many Western people, the way that we lived would seem outlandish, but it was easy. I think when you have very specific needs and less distractions, you have less stress.” After settling back into the states, Ashlee plans to continue pursuing international development, eventually. “I’d like to go to grad school. I’d like to go abroad again. I don’t have any plans set in stone,” she said. “In the long run, while I look at a career, my experience with the Peace Corps definitely influences my decision. For now, I’m working at a bakery. I’m not too proud to beg.” Ashlee dreams of one day helping to raise awareness world-wide about international problems. “On a whole, yes, Americans are apathetic about interna-tional problems,” she said. “It’s a matter of putting information into forms that are convenient and understandable about what can be done and how people can help. People are compassion-ate. When they know better, they do better. You don’t need to spend two years in the Peace Corps to be a productive interna-tional citizen.” Right now, though, Ashlee says that all she has is her knowl-edge, and she doesn’t mind using it in a healthy debate. “Until I get a bigger soapbox, this is all I can do for now,” she said. “But I hope to reach a wider audience eventually, through whatever means necessary.”

Hindsight: Back to America

YOU DON’T NEED TO SPEND TWO YEARS IN THE PEACE CORPS TO BE A PRODUCTIVE INTERNATIONAL CITIZEN.

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““Ashlee’s Advice for Potential Volunteers1. Know that the name might be a little misleading.“The Peace Corps is more of a friendship organization than a developmental organization,” Ashlee said. Volunteers make their impact on a personal level rather than getting involved in any of the country’s more grandiose problems.

2. Don’t expect to be their knight in shining armor.“The program is beneficial, but it’s not necessary. It is essentially soft diplomacy; America trying to make nice with the interna-tional community. I’m one person. I definitely think that my community had more of an impact on me.”

3. Delight in little victories. “During my time, I didn’t build a well or do anything drastic to change their way of life. In the end, the little victories and the close friendships I made--that was my change.”

4. Be patient when things are out of your hands.“Within the Peace Corps, a lot gets done. But it could be done a lot better. Things aren’t going to happen in the time frame you want them to. It’s frustrating, but you accept it. It may be that your job just isn’t as cut and dry as you want it to be. Don’t be discouraged. Just keep an open mind, and take any challenges that come to you.”

5. As always, you get what you give.While Peace Corps volunteers serve their villages as teachers, community development planners, health advocates, business consultants and more, they also gain the skills necessary to live and cope in an international work setting. Their term gives them ample time to learn new languages and decide if international development is what they would like to do with their life.

BE THE CHANGE: To learn more about volunteering and the application process, visit peacecorps.gov.

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HAVE GRATITUDE FOR WHAT’S HERE NOW.

cherish

PHOTO: wherearesueandmike.com

THE ISLA SAN PEDRO MARTIR, a tiny island in the Gulf of California, was declared a protected area in 2002 for its wealth of biodiversity, including rare sea birds like the Blue-footed Booby (above).

chargemagazine.com charge 29 WINTER 2011


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ADVENTURES

HIKE HUT TO HUT2Hut trips are probably the single most fun kind of winter trip. There’s just something incredibly satisfy-ing about not going to a parking lot at the end of the day, but continuing staying out in the wilderness.

3 SLED LIKE AN OLYMPIANOlympic sledding is done with a helmet, giant tubes of ice and nerves of steel. Trust us: 35 mph may not seem fast in your car, but when you’re zipping down a 70-foot-high luge track on nothing more than a hunk of plastic and two runners, it’s the closest you’ll get to feeling like a missile. At Michigan’s Muskegon State Park (just outside Muskegon), even the begin-ner’s track, which tops out at 15 mph, provides an open-throttle thrill.

Camping or backpacking in the snow appeals to anyone who enjoys the beauty and peacefulness of a pristine winter wonderland. There are no bugs or crowds, and who doesn’t enjoy playing in the snow? With a little preparation, you also might be surprised at how comfortable it can be. However, you must be prepared for more severe weather and shorter daylight hours by having extra gear and additional skills. Don’t go alone. Share your winter adventure with 3 to 5 friends who have expertise in different winter skills (snow shelters, route find-ing, snow travel, etc.).

CAMP IN THE SNOW

4 SKATE OUTDOORSFans of outdoor skating say you can’t even compare it to indoor skating. If it starts to snow when you’re skating outdoors, it’s like a winter wonderland. Even beginners can usually pick up ice skating quickly. Wear two pairs of socks, lace your skates tightly, dress in layers in case you get too warm and hold tight to your friends if you get nervous.

cherish::GET OUT

winter10DON’T LET YOUR SOUL HIBERNATE.

REI offers hut trips and more winter adventures at rei.com/adventures.


The Ski Area Citizens' Coali-tion rated the most environ-mentally friendly ski resorts in the country:

FIND A FROZEN WATERFALL

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STAY AT A LEGENDARY LODGE7

1. Squaw Valley California2. Aspen Mountain Colorado3. Buttermilk Mountain Colorado4. Sugar Bowl California5. Sundance Utah6. Alpine Meadows California7. Park City Utah8. Bogus Basin Idaho9. Aspen Highlands Colorado

Yosemite’s 82-year-old Ahwahnee Hotel was originally part of an effort by Park Service czar Ste-phen Mather to attract moneyed benefactors and persuade them to preserve America’s wildlands. During the summer months, when 98 percent of the park’s 3.6 million visitors descend, the “wild” aspect tends to get lost, but not so dur-ing winter. That’s when the rustic, Native American–themed hotel (whose red-columned lobby in-spired the set designers for Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining) is at its best.

ECO-SKI

La Salle Falls is one of 14 stunning waterfalls along 13-plus miles of hiking trails in Illinois’ Starved Rock State Park. La Salle can freeze into a 20-foot-wide glistening wall that you can actually walk behind. It’s a veil of ice with a beautiful light-blue tinge, located just 90 miles southwest of Chicago.

WOLF-WATCH AT YELLOWSTONE PARK5By early November, visitation to Yellowstone Park drops way off. However, the park’s top attrac-tions-abundant wolf and other wildlife watching and geother-mal hot springs- don’t adhere to manmade timetables. That’s why the Yellowstone Association, a non-profit organization that runs educational programs within the park, offers “lodging and learn-ing” programs during winter.

6 LEARN TO SNOWSHOEThere is no better way to begin snow-shoeing than just going and doing it. Many involved in skiing and snow-boarding utilize snowshoes to par-ticipate in some great backcountry hikes. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a park on Lake Michigan’s eastern coast near Traverse City, Michigan, is a great place to start.

cherish::GET OUT

Visit yellowstoneassociation.org for more information.

9 ATTEND A WINTER CARNIVALNo one celebrates winter quite like the Québécois. Each Febru-ary, whole families don snow suits and moon boots and head out into the streets of Old Quebec for the 17 days of partying and wintry competitions that make up the Carnaval de Québec, the biggest winter carnival in the world.

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The SACC’s evaluation criteria include avoiding the development of undis-turbed lands, protecting water quality, and minimizing energy use, emissions and pollution. Track resort grades at skiareacitizens.com.

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cherish::WHAT LIFE LOOKS LIKE

The first global climate art project from 350.org, “350 Earth,” was a series of art installations that recently mounted in seventeen cities around the world between November 20 and 28 this year. By presenting a global mix of celebrations and large-scale public art works that show how climate change impacts all of us, “350 Earth” reveals just how interconnected the world is.

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