Tag Archives: Human Ecology

Eleutheros – Human Ecology Inspired

by Jon V.

Deep in an ancient jungle, where yellow fever and malaria ran rampant, there once existed a primordial species of man. A creature that’s communication relied heavily on a system of grunting and rough gestures. In order to meet their nutritional needs, they hunted what animals they could find, and ate as many natural vegetables as they could harvest. The food they ate was largely determined by what they managed to attain on a daily basis. Today here at The Island School, little has changed about the way we communicate. But the way we eat has changed dramatically.

The typical Island School student has large caloric needs. After a long run or swim, many students can’t wait to get to breakfast and stuff themselves full of warm buttery sweet goodness. The granola with yogurt, the eggs and hash, the chocolate chip pancakes, all of these are delicacies compared to the meat and leafy greens our ancestors once enjoyed. Then why do the students complain about the food? Why do students feel the need to tell everybody and their brother that the food at The Island School is not only bad but there is not enough of it? The answer lies once again within the deep jungle. Continue reading

Eleutheros – Human Ecology Inspired

“Fish: Friends or food?”  by Sarah Becker

The tilapia struggled on the cutting board, gasping for breath as the shimmering knife blade approached. The blade grew closer, touching its scintillating scales. Suddenly, a flash of silver and the blade was wedged in its spinal column, piercing its tough exterior and plunging in to its flesh. A quick, fitful spasm, and it grew still, surrounded in squirts of its own blood on the now red cutting board. I took a deep breath, picked up the spoon, and gently began stroking its sides, beginning the process of scaling to prepare the fish for its new purpose in its afterlife: human food.

Death is always a touchy subject. Though I have never personally experienced a loss, I have grown up in a culture that diminishes and hides death, labeling it with words like, “bad” and “scary” from the time we are very young. As a result, I grew a little uncomfortable when I learned in Human Ecology that we would be selecting and killing a fish as a food source. I love fish. I eat it all the time. But to actually kill a fish? To me that just seemed wrong. Continue reading

Adventures in Human Ecology

By Heather Seeley

During this week’s exploration in Human Ecology class, we were able to experience the process that sustains the livelihoods of countless Bahamians: fishing. We were lucky enough to learn from Nehemiah, a Bahamian fisherman who grew up in a fishing family and claims that he could “be out on the water all day, just looking at the ocean floor.” The main theme that we discussed this week in class was the spectrum of environmental ideologies, which ranges from unrestrained instrumentalism – the most anthropocentric ideology – to transformative ideologies, which are the most ecocentric beliefs and practices. I struggled to connect this spectrum idea with the purpose of our fishing trip; that is until I heard Nehemiah’s personal concerns about the depletion of fish populations and economic depression of the fishing industry in Eleuthera. Continue reading