Farewell, my friends

SoPac:

Be well, my friends. It's been a great time, we wish you the best and pray this semester was life-changing for you. Thanks for the memories.

Your Friends,
Caleb, Jess, Sam, Emma, John (and Josh), Allie, Courtnay, and Lisa

Terrestrial Ecology

SoPac:

Time for an update on our trip to the west coast! Last week we traveled to the south island's west coast in order to study New Zealand's terrestrial ecosystems. We got to know the locals of this beautiful land, from the mighty Rimu to the delicate Kidney Fern.  Dr. Joe Sheldon led us on our journey and it's safe to say that every student, from the ecology major to the political science major, learned a thing or two about how the intricate community of birds, trees, and ferns works together to make up the forest.

 New Zealand's unique Nikau Palms 

Some students also had the opportunity to climb Avalanche Peak on their free day. Little did they know the peak was guarded by a resident Kea. 

 The Kea lets Liz (Messiah) know who's boss.

Tor (Gordon) snaps a shot of the proud Kea

Finally, the fight to make the NZ government reconsider drilling for oil off Kaikoura's coast continues. Please help us protect this place by contacting Minister Phil Heatley and asking that blocks 12PEG1 and 12PEG2 be removed from the 2012 Petroleum Block Offers.  If Kaikoura has changed you or someone you love in some way, please join us in our opposition.

Contact Phil Heatley ASAP! 

http://restoringeden.org/getinvolved/protect/no-drill-kaikoura 

NODRILLKAIKOURA

Sopac:

Sorry for the delay...We've been quite busy here in the southern hemisphere. We've just arrived home from a week-long trip to the South Island's west coast, a rugged coastline covered by beautiful native bush. However, that update is to come shortly. First off, a word on NODRILLKAIKOURA.

The NZ government is proposing to open up two off-shore blocks just off the coast of Kaikoura for deep sea oil exploration and drilling.  This is an incredible risk to the natural and local economy of Kaikoura.  Kaikoura's marine ecosystems are incredible, I think we're all familiar with what an oil "spill" could do to it.

Please help us to protect this beautiful place!  Restoring Eden has highlighted this issue on their website at

http://restoringeden.org/getinvolved/protect/no-drill-kaikoura 

This program exists in Kaikoura because Kaikoura is a one-of-a-kind location. It is a privilege to be here, to witness a place so stunning.  Why would we even consider putting such a unique place in harm's way? Please help us make our voice heard, to convince the Ministry of Economic Development to revoke these two blocks for oil exploration.

A dusky dolphin that calls Kaikoura home. Why drill for oil here?

Visit the restoring eden webpage and make your voice heard!

Spring Break!

SoPac: 

Hello faithful readers! Sorry for the brief hiatus, but we're back in Kaikoura and things are in full swing.  We're currently in God and Nature 2 with Cal DeWitt from U.W. Madison, but here is a glimpse of last week, our spring break.  Everyone split ways for 9 days and explored the South Island and even Australia. Here's one student's story, Gretchen from Messiah College.

(written by Gretch)

One of the things I did over spring break was the Milford Track with Bethany and Jess. It is a four-day hike starting at Lake Te Anau and ends at the Milford Sound. It was one of the best backpacking trips of my life! Each day the trail just got better and better. We saw so many waterfalls, probably more than I have seen in my whole life! We even got to see the tallest waterfall in New Zealand called the Sutherland Falls. It is the 5^th tallest in the world! Most of the trail went through the Clinton and Arthur Rainforest Valley’s. The rainforest was so cool! There was moss growing on everything! Another great thing about this trail is we got to see so much wild life, especially native birds. We saw Weka, Tui, Fantails, and Kea. A Robin even landed on Jess’s pack!  I had so much fun and was glad to see another part of New Zealand.

The lush Arthur's Valley rainforest

Myself in the foreground and Clinton Valley in the background

Jess giving a friend a ride

Another Picturesque Moment...

...with the Hutton's shearwaters! Allie ('13 Eastern University) cares for a chick on a beautiful day on the peninsula this weekend.

Environmental Literature

SoPac:

Week 9: Environmental Lit with Pauline Stevick!  We've spent the week with Thoreau, Dickinson, Hopkins, Emerson, and Dillard trying to understand how literature shapes our understanding of the world around us.  How are our imaginations informed by our language? 

Outside of the classroom we've been busy as well!  Snorkeling and diving for paua, crayfish, kina, and other delicious ocean treats has been extracurricular activity of choice this week. 

Here's Tor (Gordon) with his very first speared fish!

Also, we've had the privilege of helping with the Hutton's Shearwaters, an endangered seabird endemic to Kaikoura.  The Shearwater has been threatened by loss of habitat to farmland and introduced predators.  So a predator-fenced colony has been established on the Kaikoura peninsula, and we've been volunteering to help feed the baby chicks.   Here are some images.

John (property manager) clearing the entrance of the burrow

Sam (kitchen assistant) with the baby Hutton's Shearwater

Marine Ecology

SoPac:

We've just finished our Marine Ecology course with Dr. Laurie Furlong from Northwestern College. The week was jammed packed with marine mammals, limpets, chitons, and even a sea horse!

Kaikoura's tidepools are pretty fun to poke around so we took advantage of our remarkable surroundings by getting out amongst the algae and crabs to see firsthand what we talk about in the classroom.  In fact, the intertidal zone was our classroom!

Seeing what we can see

Caleb (Eastern) learning about a sea star from Dr. Furlong

Imagining what useful adaptations the creatures have taken on to deal with their unique environment. 

To top it all off, we all hopped on a Whale Watch boat and headed out to see some sperm whales just off the coast of Kaikoura.  We went out for the whales, but got to see some dolphins and albatross along the way.  Not too shabby.

Marine is the first portion of our New Zealand Ecosystems course. In the second portion, we study the terrestrial ecosystem.

Lower Hutt Field Trip

SoPac:

And we're back!  We've just spent one week on the North Island in the greater Wellington region as the field component of our Sustainable Community Development course.  The aim of the week was to see how some of the principles and theory of community development is put into practice in a real life New Zealand setting. 

The week was filled with guest lecturers and site visits. Some included meeting the mayor and community development team of the Hutt City Council, attending a lecture on the politics of global climate change at Victoria University, and hearing various speakers on the topic of the NZ prison system.

One of the highlights was visiting Billy Graham's Nae Nae Boxing Club. Billy is a great example of an ordinary citizen doing extraordinary work to better his community.  A Nae Nae local, Billy takes young men into his boxing club and uses the medium of sport to build their character.  He is an inspiration, to say the least. 

Kameron and Noah (Westmont) take a shot at each other under the instruction of Billy Graham.

Throughout the trip we stayed at two different maraes, Maori meeting houses.  We were fortunate enough to hear some of their unique stories and learn from them.  A special thanks to the people of Te Kakano and Orangomai for your hospitality and love. 

Emma Jane (Kitchen Manager) at the door of Te Kakano o Te Aroha Marae in Lower Hutt. 

Friday was a free day to explore Wellington City, and many took the opportunity to visit Zealandia, the Karori wildlife sanctuary.  The songs of the tui, bellbird, hihi, whitehead, saddleback, and other native birds filled our ears in a remarkable glimpse of what the forests may have sounded like a few hundred years ago. 

Takahe, a remarkable flightless bird, in the the Karori Sanctuary.

Homestay Weekend

SoPac:

CCSP is fortunate enough to have a number of friends here in Kaikoura who welcome us into their homes.  This past weekend was spent with our Kiwi host families tramping, surfing, fishing, chatting, and drinking a lot of tea. 

Here is a sample of what some of us did...

Elise (Bethel) and Bethany (Messiah):

"We stayed with the Jensens, a Kiwi-as family who's life revolves around surfing and comparing their dog to the O'connor's dogs.  Mark (the dad) watched us surf and shouted instructions from the beach. Pretty helpful. "

Rick (Dordt) and Gentry (Westmont):

We stayed with the Rattrays, a very welcoming family with three boys. Among the highlights of our weekend were diving for crayfish and cliff jumping.  This is a picture of me ready to take the leap. It was a phenomenal weekend. 

Tor (Gordon) and Noah (Westmont): 

We stayed with the Dunnets, an outdoorsy couple very experienced in tramping.  They took us on an overnight tramp nearby and showed us a secret spot that not many know about. This is a picture of Noah at the base of the waterfall next to our campsite.  

No doubt, we are very lucky to have such generous and adventurous friends here in Kaikoura. 

SCD 1 and a Crazy Horses Get Together

SoPac:

Hello faithful readers. Much has been happening here at the Convent. We are in our first week of classes with Professor Mick Duncan teaching Sustainable Community Development, covering topics ranging everywhere from libertarianism vs. marxism to just war vs. pacifism. 

Outside of the classrom, we have just celebrated our very own Lisa Bond's birthday. Seeing as Lisa shares an enthusiasm for Taika Waititi's film "Boy" with anyone else with a reasonable sense of humor, we thought it would be fun to have a Crazy Horses get together. It was nothing short of a party.

Here's to the Shogun.

Orientation Week

SoPac:

Well, the Old Convent is buzzing again.  Our new group of students is here and settling into their new home.  We are in the middle of Orientation Week and have already done and seen much. Here are some images of our adventures thus far.

Sandy and Kevin Topp, wonderful friends of CCSP, have again generously welcomed us to their farm Totaranui for a visit.  

Kevin and Sandy Topp's farm 

Long time sheep farmers, the Topps shared some of their stories and gave us a taste of farming in the high country.

Nicole (Messiah) feeding a lamb on the farm

Kevin demonstrating how to sheer a sheep

Brett Cowan, another familiar face, has helped us begin to feel welcome in Kaikoura as well. He has shared his knowledge both as a Department of Conservation worker and a Maori Cultural guide.  We are very grateful for his help.

Brett sharing some local knowledge on the Kaikoura peninsula walk.

The Kaikoura peninsula

Peace to all our friends and family back in North America. We hope these next few months are as exciting for you as they will be for us.