Entry #2--Campus Trail Walk

I believe that the campus trail walk and the site selection are consistent with the "eco-empowerment" mission of the university.  I can't believe that there were 21 original locations to where FGCU could have been placed.  I believe that the Alico location was the best choice.  When I think of the location on Colonial and 75 I just think of how congested and "cheap" the area has become... especially with a Walmart right around the corner.  A "nature" school should truly be in the nature, not a congested area.  I was really astounded by the different facts that I learned today about FGCU.  Some of the fun facts of the day....

• Our air conditioning system is based on a "block of ice" that is frozen over-night and the melted cool water is dispersed underneath the ground to cool off the buildings.  It is frozen overnight because it is cheaper to run the electricity and also makes the equipment more efficient because it does not have to work as hard in the Florida heat if done during the day.
• The over hangs that are over the walk ways and the windows help prevent the sun from coming in the buildings during the day to keep the building cool.
• The solar power fields are used to run electricity to half of the new buildings on campus.
• All of the plants on campus that have been placed there are native.
• Academic Building #7 is one of the 3 buildings in our state that is LEAD certified, and at a Platinum level.
• All of our lakes are connected.  They serve to catch the overflow of water and hold it in the area as long as possible so that it can refill the water supply underground.
• The board walks are made with a special wood that is shipped in to our school that will last approximately 50 years and is rot proof and insect proof.
• The rocks along the paths next to the buildings serve to catch the rain water off of the roofs of the buildings to help it seep into the ground instead of causing run-off.

Although the school is environmentally friendly, there are a few things that I disagree with that the school could have done better.

• Although we do have a solar powered field I believe that the panels should have been placed on the tops of the buildings to keep from tearing down the land.
• I did not like watching a video showing how we kicked panthers and other animals out of their homes =(
• The idea of recycling on campus is awesome.. but have you ever truly taken noticed that we are throwing our recyclables into a plastic bag?....
A bee hive in the back trails of campus.
"laxative berries"

I had no particular view point before this tour.  I also found it very interesting that there are so many different types of plants found on our campus that are edible and used for different things such as depression medicine and an antidote to poison ivy. I was freaked out to go on this tour before hand but now that it is over with I can say that I really enjoyed it and getting to know our school better... I am beyond thrilled I did not see one frog even though I got eaten alive by mosquitos!