Frontiers

 Hello and welcome to my final action project for my STEAM class Frontiers. In this action project, we were asked to create a conference poster based on research that we did for the Space Grand Challenges. I decided that I was most interested in Grand Challenge 4: Protection of Humans. This Grand Challenge focuses on space medicine and how to give humans the best quality of life while traveling space.

In conclusion, I've really enjoyed all of my STEAM courses and action projects at GCE. It feels bittersweet that this is my final project and my final day of classes. I am excited to move on from high school but I am very proud of all the work that I've made on this blog. Thank you for following my high school journey.

How Fostering a Kitten Changed My Life

 Hello and welcome to a very unique blog post! Last month, I fostered a 6-year-old cat named Graham from Paws Chicago Medical Center. 

 

Fostering Graham has been such a fun and educational experience. I already had a cat and dog at home when we got Graham so I was nervous about how he would interact with them. It took a bit of time but eventually Graham and my dog, Liza, became very good friends.

They will lay by each other and play together. Graham has made Liza even happier than she always is because she finally has someone who is as wild as her to play with. The hardest part of this process is introducing Graham and Link, my other cat.

Link has had some issues in the past with other cats which makes it hard for him to trust Graham. Recently, they have been sitting on either side of the doors that separate them and smelling each other.

I have been researching the best ways to integrate their lives and I have learned that the key is patience. 

Graham is an extremely sweet cat, and I couldn’t imagine my life without him which is why I decided to adopt him. 

This experience has taught me that I have a real passion for caring for animals and making sure that they have proper homes. This has lead me to make a goal for myself of volunteering at animal sanctuaries every summer.

Tym's Survival Guide

 

Hello and welcome to my final humanities action project at GCE Lab School. With graduation on the horizon, it feels bittersweet to be writing my final humanities blog post. This has been one of my favorite action projects of all time. At first, it felt daunting because I found it a bit difficult to put my goals and milestones into words. Once I began writing, however, the words just seemed to flow and I was finished in no time. For this action project, we were asked to write a guide to our life mission. My mission is to become a successful actress. 

The purpose of this manual is to be able to stay grounded with my goals. I know that it is very easy for me to get caught up in the day to day and I often forget the bigger picture. Looking back at my survival guide will keep me focused. 

Grand Challenge Three Literary Review.

Hello and welcome to the first action project for my senior STEAM class, Frontiers. In Frontiers, we are learning about the ever-changing world around us. For this action project, we were asked to create a literary review based on the Grand Challenges. A Grand Challenge is a fundamental problem with a wide impact across many subjects. At first, this project seemed daunting. However, once I began researching and connecting the dots between the subjects, it was a breeze. I hope you enjoy this action project. 


Our oceans and marine life continue to be one of Earth’s greatest marvels as well as mysteries. Over the years, scientists have wondered how variables such as climate change, human pressures, and evolution have affected the oceans. It is apparent that climate change is a huge issue that looms over the fate of not only humanity, but also our marine life here on Earth. In my research, I have discovered that humans, while a huge part of the climate change problem, may not be the only reason for violent shifts in global change. Simply put, a radical reversal is needed in order for our oceans and marine life to thrive in the future. However, we do not have much time for this radical shift, in fact, according to some, we are 50 to 60 years behind. Luckily, due to changing technologies, these numbers have been proven to be outdated.

Grand Challenge 3

A Grand Challenge is a fundamental problem with a wide impact across many subjects.

The Grand Challenge that I decided to research is GC 3, Understand the Impact of Global Change on Marine Ecosystems. One aspect of global change is climate change, and A.J Richardson et al discuss climate change and dives in specifically on how it affects all ecosystems. “We found that climate change was having a coherent and significant impact across all ecosystems.”(2012). It is evident that biodiversity and adverse reactions to climate change go hand in hand. Regime Shifts and seasonal shifts are sudden changes that are mainly caused by a change in the biodiversity of an ecosystem. “..hyper-diverse regions, such as the Indo-Pacific marine biodiversity hotspot, may be under threat.” ( 2012) This was not the only paper to draw attention to this.

Pardini (Regime Shifts in Biologically Diverse Sites) 2010

Renata Pardini discusses “regime shifts” in marine ecosystems and how they relate to the diversity of marine life and disagrees with the previous conclusion. “Regime shifts represent fundamental, sudden changes in ecosystem state, and are usually driven by changes to key-variables that are linked to ecological resilience.”( Pardini et al. 2010). So, this research suggests that biodiversity in fact strengthens an ecosystem making it less susceptible to adverse reactions from climate change. Renata Pardini proves this point with charts.


These charts represent the differences between a landscape (or ecosystem) that has diverse organisms removed vs a landscape in which diverse organisms are allowed to coexist with native organisms. “Our results also emphasize the critical importance of taking into account variation in species traits to evaluate biodiversity change across environmental and disturbance agents.” ( Pardini et al. 2010).


Another aspect of global change is human impact. Humans benefit greatly from our ocean ecosystems. In our need, however, we leave consistent damage to the oceanic environment. “Ocean-based activities extract resources, add pollution, and change species composition.” (Halpern et al. 2008). Halpern’s study sought to map out human impact on ocean ecosystems in order to “rationalize spatial management of human activities.” This map shows just how much humans impact our oceans and how much damage we’ve done.

Halpern "Mapping Human Impact" 2008 

“Understanding and quantifying, i.e., mapping, the spatial distribution of human impacts is needed for the evaluation of tradeoffs (or compatibility) between human uses of the oceans and protection of ecosystems and the services they provide” (Halpern Et Al 2008)

Understanding and quantifying our impact is one step of a solution for reversing the damage of climate change.


Some believe that the future of our oceans and the solutions to climate change lie within the oceans themselves. “By 2050 our seas will be viewed as more than a platform for tourism and recreation and rather an ocean for solutions. Our sustainable energy solutions will be aided by marine algae-derived biofuel.” (Leinen 2015) For most people, the fate of our oceans is not at the front of their minds. There is a lack of studies for our oceans and ocean ecosystems. This gap in research has left a whole new world, in terms of climate solutions, undiscovered.

A common thread between authors of this article is greater research put into our oceans. They believe that with more resources put into the ocean, issues like overfishing and ocean acidification can be somewhat reversed. “...In 2050, governments are investing in research and development to establish long-term observatories with sensors to monitor ocean conditions and collect the data necessary to help us understand our changing ocean.” (Susan Avery 2015) A.J. Richardson’s study also pushed for more research for our oceans. His specific research works to establish climate change ecology as a discipline. He found that 55% of biological theories relating to climate change were not tested to be compatible with different climate variables. He explains the effect of this common misstep as such, “These studies could overestimate the effect of climate change, as they do not partition out other pervasive human pressures.” (A.J Richardson Et. Al 2012). Examples of these human pressures are deforestation, pollution, the burning of fossil fuels, and overfishing.

Another solution to climate change? Evolution. “Recent theoretical and empirical work has shown that populations can evolve to cope with increasing stress over rapid time scales.”( Phillip L Munday 2013) This type of evolution is called “evolutionary rescue” and scientists are working to find the trigger of this phenomenon. The future of our oceans has a direct correlation to the future of our generation. This means that it is quite literally in our hands to find solutions to our imminent problems and put them into action. My hope for the future is that our oceans will continue to be one of Earth’s greatest marvels and we can keep discovering new information about them.



Citations

Benjamin Halpern and Et. Al. . “A Global Map of Human Impact on Marine Animals .” Science , vol. 319, 2008, doi:10.1126.

Envision 2050: The Future of Oceans - Our World. https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/envision-2050-the-future-of-oceans. Accessed 22 May 2021.

Munday, Philip L., et al. “Predicting Evolutionary Responses to Climate Change in the Sea.” Ecology Letters, vol. 16, no. 12, 2013, pp. 1488–500. Wiley Online Library, doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12185.

Pardini, Renata, et al. “Beyond the Fragmentation Threshold Hypothesis: Regime Shifts in Biodiversity Across Fragmented Landscapes.” PLOS ONE, vol. 5, no. 10, Oct. 2010, p. e13666. PLoS Journals, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013666.

Richardson, Anthony J., et al. “Climate Change and Marine Life.” Biology Letters, vol. 8, no. 6, Dec. 2012, pp. 907–09. DOI.org (Crossref), doi:10.1098/rsbl.2012.0530.

I Made a Dress in 12 Hours!?

 Hello and welcome to my second action Project for my senior humanities class, Endurance. In this unit, we've discussed many different journeys that people have taken to achieve their mission. In these journeys, the heroes have also had to endure many different obstacles that were thrown at them. Also in this unit, we read and discussed the book Night. Night is an extremely intense story about a man who survived the Holocaust, inspiring us to endure in our lives. For this AP, we were asked to work on a project for twelve hours. I chose to create a graduation dress since sewing is something that I have always wanted to fully invest in and become good at. My mother who is a seamstress in her spare time helped me with completing this dress. I am so happy with how it turned out! My guiding question for this action project was; what can I create within 12 hours? My mission was to create a beautiful garment for graduation. All in All, I believe that I did achieve my mission because I love the gown that I designed and sewed. 

credit to Bensound- Theelevatorbossanova for music 

Here is my vlog planning sheet that I used to organize my 12 hours in order to make the best use of my time and stay on track. 

A Story For The Ages

  Hello and welcome to my first Action Project for the senior Humanities course, Endurance. We are quickly approaching the end of senior year so, this class helps us prepare for what's coming next. For this action project, we were asked to write an autobiography chapter for ourselves. I really enjoyed this AP because I got the chance to talk about one of my idols, Debbie Allen. I have looked up to both Debbie Allen and Phylicia Rashad from a very young age. They have been my inspiration for my future career. I also talk about some of the challenges I have faced in my life as well as my plans for the future. I hope you enjoy this action project.                                         

                                                      Chapter 1: Why This Caged Bird Sang.

I remember sitting in front of my bedroom mirror applying a cold mixture of lemon and baking soda all over my body in hopes of becoming light enough to blend in with my white peers at school. I’d obsessively enunciate my words, trying to emulate the girls on Disney Channel. From the ages of 7 to 13 I tried so hard to avoid anything that would show my white peers that I was Black. Today, all of this comes as a surprise to most people because of my now obvious love and pride for my culture. At the time, I hadn’t seen girls that looked like me in starring movie roles. I only saw black girls as the quick-witted and sassy best friend with no character arch or love interest. These examples were everywhere. From Dionne in Clueless to Porsha in Glee. As a girl whose main aspiration in life was to act in television and theater, I ached to see a role that reflected me or the black girls I knew. Gradually, I noticed evolving ideals of beauty are allowing black models to embrace their black skin and features. The promotion of black culture is being pushed to the front pages and covers of high-end fashion magazines and taking over social media but not quite fast enough. The Black Boy Joy movement that was sparked by The New Edition Story and Black Panther was one motivation for this new change. These changes were and continue to be gradual. 

As I matriculated through school challenges of identity would again overshadow my freedom to be comfortable in my skin. A physical challenge that I’ve gotten through is self harm. In middle school I was bullied horribly and gaslighted into thinking that I was making the abuse up in my mind. At that time I felt that I had no other outlet for the pain. Once I moved on to eighth grade, my life got better. My abusers had left the school and I had many supportive friends to turn to. Then, I graduated and moved on to high school. Late freshman year I was bullied again and I relapsed back into my self-harm habit. I would dissociate during the day making it hard for me to remember what happened to me in order to report the next day. The experience made me realize the importance of having strong character and integrity. It was a very difficult time for me. My grades suffered and my self-esteem was low. I now realize that from that experience, I have become a representative for others. By my senior year, I was elected Student Council President. As a result of freshman year, I wrote and performed poetry related to my life as a black girl in Chicago and I have spoken out against numerous injustices I have seen or experienced.

 My mission is to further diversify a medium that reaches so many, in hopes that when a little black girl is able to see herself on stage through me, she will see excellence in my performance. She will read about who I am as a person of character and integrity. She will not limit her dreams and she will love every part of herself. One of my role models is Debbie Allen. She is an actress, dancer, director, and the founder of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy. She gained success in a time where racism and misogyny were rampant. She endured all that the industry has thrown at her. 

Like Debbie Allen, I want to leave a legacy of educated and successful black actors behind, so I set out to found The Young Actors Academy. The Academy focuses on taking aspiring actors and nurturing their talents in a community setting. When I was growing up, there was no access to a space to hone my skills where I lived. I always wanted to see something blossom in my neighborhood. I knew that this would be no easy feat; I also knew that she would need to work with her community to make the Academy successful. I know that people trust people what they know, and my community knows me. I’ve worked with my past ensemble members to realize this dream. I decided to work with them because of my connection to them, and I know just how talented these people are. I’ve seen it first hand. Before I opened The Academy, I started multiple after-school programs around the city. The main focus was to replace art programs in underfunded schools that had their programs taken away. I was able to gain the support of thousands of people. 

 Many of those people went on to volunteer with the after-school programs. The demand for the program was so high that I was confident that there would be even more support for an Acting Academy in my community. The response from the public is what inspired me to kick my dream project into high gear and start building The Academy. I’ve studied acting for almost all of my life. I always knew that I wanted to perform and entertain for my career. The Acting Academy was my way of giving back to the community where I grew up. The opening event was a beautiful festival filled with art, music, and of course, food. The streets were lined with colorfully decorated stages that featured lesser-known theaters in Chicago. This event was truly meant to celebrate the art form of Theater. I wanted to take the opportunity of this enormous event to show off the incredible talent of theaters that don’t get as much attention as they deserve.

HeyBeautiful Network!

 Hello and welcome to the final Action project of my senior STEAM class, Social Entrepreneurship. In this class we discussed starting our own businesses marketing and other things. We discussed stereotypical marketing and how that may benefit a business in the long run. For this Action Project we were asked to build a business plan for a business idea that we have. We were assigned business incubator groups where we talked about our businesses and launched our plans. Many people in my class  already have their own businesses up and running including me. I recently launched a podcast called the Amigas podcast. I did not choose to use this business for my business plan. Instead I decided to make a more ambitious plan of a network idea that I've had for many years. I hope you enjoy this Action project.