Living Well In Place

Essay by cobeloveyouCollege, UndergraduateA-, March 2004

download word file, 5 pages 5.0

Downloaded 36 times

The Place Value book contains five essays about how to live well by ecologically, politically, economically, spiritually, and in community. These essays are quite related to the topics from our guest presentations and class discussions. From what I have heard and read, I'm able to describe what Iowa has about these values.

Ecologically means the relationships between human and their environments. Young people should be encouraged in their curiosity about their surroundings. There are wonderful examples of schools where the local place is becoming the curriculum. In Iowa, there is H.C.O.P program brings students from different schools together to use the building as a place for their study. The work is based on the belief that a careful study of one's own habitual reveals truths about the entire planets. The study of place has significance in reeducating people in the art of living well where they are. For example, a resident can reside almost anywhere Iowa that provides an income.

As both cause and effect of displacement, the resident lives in an indoor world of office building, shopping mall, automobile, apartment, and suburban houses. Those are few kinds of places that people find to live well with.

Politically is dealing with preparing young people to participate as citizens in the democracy. One hundred fifty years ago, Alexis Tocqueville observed that true information was mainly derived from experiences, and if the Americans have not been gradually accustomed to govern themselves, their book learning would not help them much in the present day. Self-government today must find its roots in a particular place. This will help students identify, investigate, and act on municipal and county government issues teach principles of citizen ship more meaningful than abstract discussions of the three branches of distant government. Teachers should send students out to see...