Innovation and Invention

Out of all of the dreary "make-work" tasks that we were assigned to over the course of the past ten weeks and the few personal projects that some of us were allowed to work on, one really stood out. It was the creation of a straw-bale greenhouse by the two Ap Tech interns.


















I saw and heard the roadblocks that were thrown at them for weeks and the difficulties that they faced. Even in the face of some negative push-back, two of my fellow interns managed to put together something fascinating, and in doing so, allowed those who participated to learn new skills through a hands-on experience. 

After straw bales

Before straw bale

A problem that we quickly saw when we showed up at FBC was the disparity between what food we were led to believe we would receive and what we were provided. Part of our salary is deducted for rent, for the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and for the Whole Foods Coop (dried goods). If you know anything about CSAs, you have a pretty distinct idea of what it is. We were sorely disappointed to realize that the Executive Director's idea of a CSA is not the standard and that any comments or constructive solutions to address this issue are met first with excuses, then stonewalled and finally with personal insults. For a centre that prides itself on rural sustainability and attempts to improve rural food security, the Executive Director refuses to acknowledge either that there is a problem or that there could be solutions. There was not even any willingness to open up an avenue for conversation. This refusal to even talk about it was the most frustrating part. The centre is supposed to be a place for innovation, creativity, learning, trying new things, making mistakes, doing things differently from the norm. The Ap Tech boys managed to combine all of these elements of ingenuity into one project and inspired us all to think outside the box.

Making a green roof

The project that was proposed by the two engineers came from the need to increase the growing season and promote food security in this rural area. It would also allow future interns to have fresh food available when they arrive in early May. The overarching objective seemed to be to learn. Experiment. Trial and error. Attempting the impossible has never seemed like a bad idea to me and it is difficult to imagine why the "possimpible" should not be attempted.





 In the case of FBC, the growing season in Knowlesville is approximately 70 days of frost free weather. Not very long. The idea behind the boy's project was to extend the growing season by approximately one month on either end.

Here is my friend's blog, talking about his project. Notice the credits on some of the pictures ;)

http://julienroberge.wordpress.com/2011/07/15/a-passive-solar-food-revolution/

These two boys showed everyone that by working hard, trying something outside of the norm, being creative and being brave enough to make mistakes, amazing things can happen. Let's hope that there are more people like this in the world.