A Pura Vida Lifestyle
Life at Bryant has always been a bubble. A small campus with only 3,000 students will do that to a girl like me. Perspectives are tunneled, information is limited, and new initiatives are tough to come by. But, within this bubble, some people also exist who make the four years of college more memorable than anything imaginable. By traveling to Costa Rica to study marketing sustainability (instead of curling up in my comfy bed watching Netflix), my little bubble of the Bryant culture has popped, and I could not be happier.
Landing in Costa Rica, my eyes widened and lit up with the introduction of a new environment. I had never seen an area so green; so full of life; so friendly. I knew right away that leaving this country was going to break my heart. Throughout my nine days in Costa Rica, adventures were taken, sleep was lost, friends were made, knowledge was gained, and essentially, a new perspective of how I would like to live my life was accepted.
Visiting the different farms (including coffee, chocolate, fruit, and banana) opened my eyes as to just how much I take for granted at Bryant. After Costa Rica, I realized just how much hands on work and physical labor goes into products that I just pick up off a shelf or buy from a cafe. When buying a cup of Starbucks coffee, I now understand the meaning behind it. One individual picked those beans, another raked them out to be dried, and an additional one even took the months to store them. Buying a cup of coffee is not just a common errand run, but rather a major deciding factor for people's livelihood in Costa Rica. I recognized this much more after returning back to the U.S. from Costa Rica. Purchases I never gave a thought to began to make an impact on me. I now try extremely hard to buy products that are made locally, as well as products that I know come from smaller businesses. I can make a difference in people's lives just by making this small change in my life. In addition to my purchases, I recognized how much I take for granted at Bryant in the sense of food. Because Salmo is a type of dining hall where you can take as much as you want, I recognized just how much I was wasting after this trip. I was taking too much food, resulting in it being unfinished and essentially thrown away. Wasteful. After Costa Rica, I understood that people were putting in physical labor to get this food to me, and I now understood how silly it was to just throw it all away. I have become conscience about how much food I place on my plate, and how much food I waste in able to better our environment as a whole and the people within it. Taking smaller portions may seem unimportant, but when one individual tried to make an impact, others may follow. When everyone jumps on board, the impact can be amazing.
In addition to adjusting my purchases and being mindful of my food amounts, I have made other life changes to become more sustainable while at Bryant and in the U.S. These include small ideas like:
- refilling my water bottle instead of buying plastic ones
- turning off unnecessary lights
- turning off the water when I brush my teeth
- doing less laundry to save water
- buying organic products
- buying local
Although some people think it's silly to believe that one individual can change the world, some believe it's possible. That's me. I believe that one individual's choices do have, and make, a bigger impact on the world than we notice. Buying a cup of Starbucks coffee does impact other people's lives outside of the U.S. Taking less food at Salmo, and finishing what is on your plate, does impact the waste in which hurts our environment. Small changes to an individual's life can truly make the world a better place and keep it turning. Without this trip to Costa Rica, I would not be as knowledgeable as I am today, or even be the person I have come to be.
Special special thanks to my two professors Dr. Boyer and Dr. Attaran for this life changing experience. Without these two, this adventure who not have taken place, and I would honestly not be in the place I am today. I have taken the numerous lessons from Costa Rica, back to Bryant, and have changed my ways to better my world. These two have inspired me to make a difference, and without them, I would not be who I am today. Thank you for the most memorable adventure and experience!
Pura Vida; Live Happily
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