Photo by David Gilbert
It’s hard to believe that in seventeen days, I’ll be on the other side of the world experiencing a very different kind of “winter”. I’ve been fascinated with Borneo ever since grade 8, when I read Sam Lightener’s All Elevations Unknown, a memoir about a climbing expedition on the island. But I never expected that someday I’d be heading over to talk to biologists, conservationists, and local people about the best way to preserve (or perhaps “responsibly manage”) the amazing rainforests there! My name is Jill Carlile and, like Veronica, I am part of the Ethical Expeditions 2010 Borneo excursion.
Here’s a little background info on me: I’m from Juneau, Alaska, and am currently going to school at Quest University Canada. I transferred to Quest after a year at University of Colorado Boulder, and so far I love it. Quest is located in beautiful Squamish, BC, and, among other things, offers us all sorts of sweet educational opportunities… like going to Borneo!
I joined the Borneo expedition late after a friend of mine decided not to go and (lucky for me) I was able to take her place. At Quest, we take only one class at a time for 3 ½ weeks – they’re called “blocks” – and my last block was called “Global Perspectives.” It’s probably the most important class I’ve ever taken, and a particularly appropriate one to take before going to Borneo. It was essentially an overview of many of the environmental and social injustices of the world (not particularly cheerful). After reflecting back on it, I feel like the most valuable thing I took away from the class was a framework for understanding and thinking about environmental degradation and the part humans are playing in the shaping of the world. Our textbook broke environmental conservation down into 4 categories: First there are the Market Liberals, who believe that growing economies and developing 3rd world countries is the best way to decrease environmental degradation over the long run. Institutionalists believe that regulations, laws, and treaties are the most appropriate approach. They support the signing of things like the Kyoto protocol, and the efforts of the UNEP. Bioenvironmentalists believe in a more bottom-up approach and see preservation of ecosystems and population control as the best solution, while Social Greens see social and environmental injustice as inextricably linked. They believe that empowering people who are degraded or impoverished is the most effective environmental strategy. These are, of course, gross generalizations – it’s completely possible to agree and disagree with some elements of all four (even when their philosophies conflict, as I came to realize). Over the course of the class I came to see some wisdom in each of these approaches. I’m interested to see which approaches (if any) are favored in Borneo.
Over the next seventeen days I’ve got to find some lightweight clothing, learn how to use the video editing software we’ll be working with, start some background reading, and mentally prepare myself for the heat, humidity, and leaches of Borneo. It’s kind of hard to imagine what exactly it will feel like to be trekking through jungles and hanging out with Orangutans when right now my days are filled with down jackets, skate-skiing, and ice climbing. As January 7th draws closer and the reality of the next few months starts to really sink in, I imagine I’ll have all sorts of interesting thoughts, moments of mild panic, etc – so I’ll try to get at least one more post in before I take off. Enjoy the holidays!
Jill Carlile grew up in Juneau, Alaska. She enjoys the ocean, the mountains, rain, and winter, and is interested in minimizing our negative impacts on each of these, as well as all other natural places and systems. Jill attends Quest University in British Columbia and is currently in East Kalimantan, Indonesia on the island of Borneo with an educational NGO called Ethical Expeditions. Along with seventeen other Quest students, she hopes to learn more about the various forces that threaten to completely deforest this island over the course of the two-month program.
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RYSE is the youth branch of RAN, Rainforest Action Network, which works to protect the Earth and support human rights through education, grassroots organizing, and non-violent direct action.
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Jill,
Your writing is wonderful. I can really hear your voice. Can’t wait to read more!
Your fan,
Ann
[...] TED talk, where she explains the plight of the oceans. I remembered some of the statistics from my Global Perspectives class. Nearly 90% of the worlds fish population has been wiped out as a result of unsustainable fishing [...]
Hello.This post was really interesting, especially since I was browsing for thoughts on this topic last couple of days.