Mission 2014 Field Trip: The end is near

Friday, March 25, 2011

The end is near

Our week in Sirsi is finally over. It's currently 5:18 in the morning and we are getting ready to leave for Hubli airport in the next half hour. This week has truly been an amazing experience. I feel that food security really has a face to us now, and there is a glimmer of hope that something can be done. We saw some of the solutions that we suggested in the fall being implemented, and saw just how much they empowered farmers. Our trip really ended on a high note with our visit to the Yana Rock formations and the musicians and dancers that performed for us last night to give us a taste of real Indian culture. I really will miss the villagers of Hallusarige, the fieldwork, the late night logging parties for radio, and the various wildlife that I encountered in the computer room at night. There are just a few people that I would like to thank before I run off to the bus to start our long journey back to boston: the entire Earthwatch crew for so graciously hosting us and planning such an amazing week, our alumni mentors and UTFs for their advice and guidance, Sam Bowring and Seth Burgess for running the class, and last, but not least, my parents for allowing their little baby to leave the country for the first time and dilligently following the blog everyday (even though my mom has started calling me her little betel nut in every email she sends!)

logging off for the last time in Sirsi

David

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About the Class

Mission 2014 is part of Terrascope, a learning program for MIT freshman. Each year the program begins with the class (12.000 Solving Complex Problems, Mission 201x). For this year their mission was to design a plan that will produce and distribute enough food to feed the planet over the next century, while ensuring that efficiency and equity are maximized with minimal disruption to the environment. With a world population of 9 billion expected by 2050 – and a billion people currently malnourished – we simply cannot continue with business as usual. An integrated cost-effective global strategy is needed to ensure sustainable and equitable food security. This must include a major re-thinking of agricultural practices as well as modifying the diets of much of the world's population. The students of 12.000 researched the problem and presented their solution in the form of a website as well as a public presentation followed by interrogation by a panel of experts. The website and presentation were a huge success.

About Terrascope

In the Spring semester many Terrascope students take part in one or more of three activities. These include: a hands-on class (1.016) where the students work on designing, building and implementing solutions to their problem; Terrascope Radio (SP360), where the students produce a series of radio programs on their topic including the field trip; and lastly the Terrascope field experience.

Each year alumni mentors play a very important part in the success of Terrascope. Many come to class and group meetings, communicate via email, and are generally extremely helpful if not a little bit jealous of being a MIT freshman! This year we are fortunate that three of our mentors are making the trip with us—Bob Gurnitz, Johnny Yang and Bhupendra Khetani

Acknowledgements

Many people have helped to make this trip possible. At Earthwatch the complex logistics have been coordinated by Grace Velardi and Alana Jones in the U.S. and the educational program by Rachel Batley in the U.K. At MIT our Terrascope administrator, Debra Aczel has spent countless hours guiding everyone through the acquisition of visas, answering many many questions, and remaining enthusiastic and upbeat. We all owe Debra a great deal of gratitude and hopefully the trip will go off flawlessly and she will be able to enjoy it and learn alongside the rest of us.

The trip this year is supported by the Baruch Foundation whose generosity ensures that another Terrascope class can take part in an international learning experience.