The Sharp Knife of Forced Simplicity » Iowa

Last Internship Blog Post Update Blog Internship. Post.

Ron Khare — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 01:03:29 +0000

It’s been quite a ride.

Before I get into the details, I just want to say for the record: Not only did I fulfill my internship objectives, I ended up doing far more than was originally planned. I believe everyone I worked with can attest to that. Internship success!

Summer breaks are for losers! Non-stop work is where it's at!

We had a Board meeting today, the first one we’ve had since before I started my internship. I feel like it was a really positive meeting – everyone was expressing ideas and getting unified in vision on getting the SLC back on track, fixing up the SEED Center, and so on. My video and correspondence with the Board has been greatly welcomed – I’ve received a lot of positive feedback on my efforts, and I’d like to think that my strong message helped light a fire with the Board members.

Our general agreement was to put the word out that we’re looking for the right kind of people to really take over the SEED Center and, like Brian, transform the place. There was some disagreement on whether we should support this in a top-down and organizational way, or whether we should allow it to develop organically and let the structure come from those efforts. Where those two ideas meet is in simply finding the right people - interns, new SL grads, farmers, micro-business start-ups, and others – and creating and maintaining the SEED Center to support them.

As part of my agenda, I took the suggested idea of a Program Director, expanded it into an Executive Director, and then (with feedback from the Board and others) divided that idea into four different Coordinators: Administrative, Media and Communications, Educational and SEED Center Facilitator. These roles could be more easily filled by younger, less experienced people, and can have a greater degree of malleability – the roles can be molded to fit the people.

This, however, is still a top-down approach. It is entirely possible that we don’t need any real formal job description, provided those who live and/or work at the SEED Center upgrade and maintain the place while providing educational opportunities. We all seem to be in general agreement that it will still take a few years to build things up, both campus-wise and organizationally speaking, and all these things will change over those years.

Like this shower, which now looks nothing like this.

One thing I did realize recently was that my internship was not thought out – they had not actually planned on any interns this summer, and I gather that the program itself was always somewhat void of oversight and education. If I had a “SLC Primer,” just one or two days sitting down with someone, learning about what the SLC is, how it was founded, what its done, what it is suppose to do, and given all the materials I needed to start, I could have easily bypassed weeks of hard learning and hunting for information.

I have to take some of the blame for that – I tend to be self-sufficient, in that I don’t ask for help unless it’s dire. At first I didn’t realize I needed help, so I continued on my own, and it was only after some time that I started reaching out to other people, and the help that came in response to that was very welcome. My isolationist tendencies don’t help me much when I’m running a networking organization, which is one of the reasons why I realized that I didn’t really want a career like this. It could be rewarding, but I simply don’t have the time or patience to work with people – as working with people means working at other’s people’s pace, and with other people’s objectives (which may not fit my own).

How I viewed the SEED Center changed a lot over the course of the internship, from a place where I just had to work and maintain, to the worst thing to ever happen to the SLC, to now, where I see it as its only real salvation.

It was nice to have it all come together at the end. I have high hopes for the SLC, assuming those vital leaders are found. For my part, I’ve compiled all the information I’ve learned into a “beginner’s packet” which can be given to whoever takes my place. It covers all the passwords for our online stuff, as well as a general rundown of the SLC and who to talk to to find out more.

I actually still have some things to do: Go to a potluck, and make a poster for the event on Saturday, so I’ll probably be working up until I leave town tomorrow, and I’ll probably still be trying to organize things while I’m gone. It’s only once I’m back in school that I’ll really be free from it all…. in other words, it’s only once I start a more-than-full-time job that I can quit this more-than-full-time job. :\

End story: I was moving my computer out of the Barn a few days ago, reflecting on an entire summer working there, when I saw this golden apple lit by the sunset.

Since I received no real payment for the internship, I considered it a gift from the land for all the work I had done that summer. It was nice to think that this apple, no matter how small, was the start of something much bigger.

Now… who’s next?

Fairfield Go-Green Strategic Plan 2020

Ron Khare — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 00:46:00 +0000

Hello Board and Blog,

It’s been a rough week to get things done – the Barn doesn’t have air conditioning, and with daytime heat index reaching 117 degrees, I’ve been trying to find ways of getting hours in and stay productive without subjecting myself to extreme temperatures.

I’ve just finished reading the Fairfield Strategic Go-Green Guide, and it’s been something of an eye-opener – I now see how we fit into the larger community, and specifically, the tasks to which we have been assigned and what we’ve done to accomplish them. Does anyone have Scott Timm’s email address or phone number? I need to get in contact with him and start integrating our operations more with the greater city and county – increasing communication with them can only lead to good results (for instance, letting them know about our floor and water needs may help fund raise and turn it into educational opportunities). As Bob, Stuart and Lonnie helped develop the plan, I’m sure they already know, but here’s a list of things we’re suppose to be doing/help with:

Objective 1A(2) has been completed: We’ve found and hired a Community Sustainability Coordinator.

Objective 1B(1): Develop a public mass awareness campaign about sustainability. – Have we done this? I’ll ask Scott if he thinks so.

1B(2): Develop a public education program centered on personal and direct education for the “How To” for community sustainability. — This, to me, seems like the exact core purpose of the SLC, and as such, should be our full-time focus. To that end, I’ve been thinking about various ways that we can educate with a minimal budget and staff.

One idea I had was to contact Fairfield Parks and Recreation, and develop a plan to have a “Sustainability Park” at the SEED Center. It could be structured like the self-guided tour at the Eco-Village, with swings and other things for children, plenty of shade and a walking path around the Center (again, like Eco-Village’s). This could be an easy place for elementary school field trips. It may even be possible to construct a small campsite for Boy/Girl Scouts interested in Sustainability (as with the possibility for increased Internships, we’d need to get a working infrastructure first). This would also help fulfill the requirements of 1B(3) as well. The face that we’re outside of City Limits may prevent this idea from happening on those terms, though…. one of many things that Scott and I need to talk about.

The Big Ones are 1C’s:

1C(1): Develop and Market a Sustainability Learning Center. — Do we have a “Sustainable Living Curriculum”? It says “developed by March 2010″ and we’re the only Lead listed for it. I haven’t seen anything like that around here, but I’ll keep digging through papers.

1C(2): Develop an internship program targeting local and state-wide programs and resources. — “Design a community internship program for students majoring in SL – Coordinate with… other Iowa colleges to develop the internship programs in concert with the Community Coordinator.” I’m the loneliest intern! The program design due date was December 2009, and things have changed somewhat radically since then. However, I do gather it is our intention to increase the internship program – but, again, in order to do that we’ll need our water and some significant improvements to our infrastructure – both physically and educationally. This ties back into our need for/lack of solid curriculum.

We have two secondary leads:

2B(2): Establish Fairfield as an educational center for local organic food production and processing. — I’m not overly concerned about this right now, as there are plenty of other places to learn about local organic food production and processing. However! If we do take control of a large section of the old Vedic City Farms, it would be a prime opportunity to incorporate food production as a primary subject in our curriculum. We can work with Dean and MUM to help establish a thick network of educational opportunities and food production.

3E(6): Develop a community greenbelt including fruit trees and edible landscapes. — How many trees did we just plant?! Woo! (I actually forgot how many we planted… but it’s a lot, right?) This should be talked up as a firm step forward for this objective – while they’re not fruit trees, our annual fruit tree sale also counts. The strategy states, in part: “Plant 500 native fruit trees annually over a ten year period.” While our space is limited, we can increase public interest in the fruit tree sales by tying into the greater Go-Green plan.

The next step for me is to contact Scott Timm (if anyone has contact info, send it to me please!) and arrange for a sit-down meeting. I need to know how the plans have changed, what has worked and what hasn’t, and basically start bringing the SLC back into the community. This will give us, hopefully, all we really need to take the SLC to the next step WITHIN the larger county plans for sustainability. I’d like to hear what ya’ll have to say about my Sustainability Park idea – particularly if we can get at least partial funding from the government.

I’ll also start looking for any signs of a curriculum – if we don’t have one, let me know. I’ll work with some people and hopefully come out with at least an outline by the time my internship is done.

In addition to all of these things, I still have to:

- plan the rest of our summer events. If someone wants to take the reins and plan a regular Sunday potluck, I can provide a movie (or at least a series of educational YouTube videos). I’ll try to get up on that soon – it might not happen this week.

- fix and expand the new path all the way to the yurt

- pull all the weeds from the plastic-side of the Barn

- remove the trash and eyesores from the Eco-Village side of the Barn (I may just put them inside for now)

- establish a nice-looking gravel path from Eco-Village to the Barn to help facilitate intergration and aesthetics.

- knock down that aborted straw-bale project (on the right as you walk in, the half-finished wall thingy)

It's time to let it go.

- I would like to make the path from the parking lot to the Barn a lot nicer. To do this, I’ll need some way of defining the path (bricks set into the ground, perhaps) and lighting it (solar LED lights, we need a lot of them). I’ll talk to Brian about this. (I’d also love to put up some trellis to make a “living hallway” by growing some shade-vines to protect the path from sun/snow, but that’s for another day).

Lin is working hard on finishing the Eco-Nest! It should be done in a month or two. The cat is back to her scrappy self (although not happy about the heat).

I’m excited to get this community-based perspective – I really should have read this the first week I was here. But, it is as it is, and I’ll keep on truckin’!

Ron

The New Hours are the Old Hours.

Ron Khare — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 04:38:08 +0000

It’s 11:24pm, and I’m wondering about social customs.

It hot climates, it’s traditional to take a “siesta” – that is, a several-hour long “lunch break” during the hottest parts of the day. During this leisure time people will eat, nap, drink – whatever keeps them cool and rested.

It's almost midnight and I'm sweating buckets.

They go back to work when the sun is lower, and things start to cool off.

We probably have more humidity than “they” did, which means shade and lower sun doesn’t count as much, but this still makes sense. With daytime heat index reaching 117 degrees the last two days, it just makes sense that I shouldn’t be working in a building that has no air conditioning.

I could just move my computer back to my a/c house, and work on digital/management stuff during the day, and only come to the SLC SEED Center during cooler hours. It’s tempting, but I know that I will be less likely to come out here at all – evenings are my leisure hours, when I nap, eat and hang out with friends. If worked both daytime and evening I would rob myself of “me-time” and become overworked, even if I don’t get much done. By keeping my computer here, I ensure my presence at the SEED Center, and thereby a certain level of upkeep occurs – I would not have made that short path in the grass if I hadn’t just decided to do it on the way in to use my computer.

I wouldn’t have a problem switching my hours around – stay up late, get up early, sleep the day away – as there is a strong tradition of it, and it just makes more sense. However, as I’m trying to gain internship credit with Maharishi University of Management, I have to adhere to certain guidelines…..

…. and all of these guidelines I strictly adhere to. The hours I posted at the start of the internship, here on my public blog, are the ones I follow. Right?

Internship GO!

Ron Khare — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 19:07:40 +0000

Hello Academics, Administrators, Friends and Random Internet-ers -

I’ve officially started my internship position as Assistant/Manager/Director of the Sustainable Living Coalition here in Fairfield, Iowa. I’m a bit over my head as far as responsibilities go, but I’m sure I’ll figure it out.

I moved my computer into the SLC SEED Center Building, which means I’m now blogging on Solar and Wind Power!

I’ll be working here most every day, except weekends (for the most part). My office is located on the second floor as the SLC Building, and my office hours are 1:30-4:30 weekdays. Feel free to stop by!

I can also be reached at RonKhare @ gmail.com and 641.455.9707 - My internship is over when school starts again, around the end of August.

Here are the learning objectives:

SLC Internship: Assistant Director of the Sustainable Living Coalition
Ron Khare

Learning Objectives:

The primary objective is to learn how the Sustainable Living Coalition, a non-profit organization, operates. This will be a hands-on learning experience, taking the lead on fund raising, upgrading the campus, and hosting educational events that further the Coalition’s goals of empowerment in the community.

I will be working closely with the Board of Directors to assure that we stay on track and present a unified vision. I will learn about organizing fund raisers, concerts, potlucks, and movie nights, all oriented toward sustainable living. I will learn about the value of networking. I’ll learn about sustainable building approaches and relative costs of different building methods. In effect, I’ll get a chance to understand what being a director of a small non-profit focused on sustainability education and sustainable enterprise development is all about.

For example: I will tour the campus with the Directors and receive a list of vital improvements to be made. Then I will find the the cost estimation of constructing various elements in the campus facilities. Working with the Board members, we will find and connect with various sustainable building experts who can provide information on how to accomplish things most efficiently at the least expense. Once we have a cost estimation, we will plan and execute a large fund-raising event with these goals in mind. Once the funds have been raised, we can contract and have the improvements built.

I’ll also be working with the grant-writer to prepare a folder or packet of info for potential funding sources who may not be in Fairfield or who may not attend the event.

I’ll be available to help line up any workshops or other social events for the summer (eg, concerts, potlucks, films, talks). I can talk to youth groups, such as the Boy Scouts, about potential uses for the land and educational buildings.

I’ll also help on the digital end, by updating and managing the SLC’s website, including uploading new content and maintaining a list of SLC contacts. In addition to that, I will blog regularly about what I am learning, as well as my personal impressions on the whole process. The blog will include text, pictures and video.

Daily Routine:
(subject to change for events)
7:30 – 8:30: Morning Program
8:30 – 9:30: Breakfast
9:30 – 12:00: Work on Projects
12:00 -1:30: Lunch
1:30 – 4:00: Work on Projects
4:00 – 4:30: Meet with Ken
4:30 – 6:45: Evening Program
6:45 – 8:00: Dinner
8:00 – 8:30: Blog
8:30 – 10:00: Free time
10pm: Bed

The History of Fairfield and Jefferson County, Iowa

Ron Khare — Mon, 03 May 2010 05:31:55 +0000

I recently wrote a two-part article on a basic history of my hometown, published down at Fairfield Voice.

Part One: The Beginning of Time to the First Settlers

Part Two: The First Settlers to Today

It took me significantly longer than I anticipated to write these things. First, I put considerably more effort into writing them – I don’t think I put that level of research into any academic paper I’ve had. Second, I kept getting sidetracked by interesting stories and information that didn’t make it into (or had almost nothing to do with) the article.

For instance, upon reading how Central Park (the Square) was considered to be the center of the county (although it was off by a mile or so), I stopped reading, found a map, and traced from the original survey to the actual center spot. THEN I read that the county borders expanded at some point, throwing my original spot off… some hours later, by finally going off the current county borders, I found the place. …but so what? I guess I did use it for a picture, but I could have easily used a photo of the Square – learning where the center of the count was for my benefit, because I wanted to know.

It was a good project, on the whole, and I think people have been enjoying the fruits of that effort. I certainly feel enriched, being able to bust out facts and “did-you-knows” about relevant historical events during conversations with friends. Check ‘em out, maybe you’ll enjoy them too!

Django’s Garden (GF) (Video)

Ron Khare — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:58:58 +0000

This is one of my vlog posts from Growing Freedom, my old blog on the trials of trying to start your own sustainable garden/mini-farm with almost no personal experience.

Let’s just say that this isn’t Iowa Soil so much as Iowa Compacted Clay. It’s like trying to dig wet but setting cement. As you can see… it’s hard work.

Get Volume 1 Now!

Iowa’s Lost Prairie – Lighting My Dashboard on Fire (Video)

Ron Khare — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:56:35 +0000

This video used to be the main page greeting. It wasn’t exactly the best sales pitch, but I thought it was fun.

Remember: If you’re going to do something stupid, at least make it for a good cause.