two stops from the oldest zoo in the world.

Thats right! I, Shannon Audrey Harbers, live exactly two underground stops from The Worlds Oldest Zoo. Located at the former summer residence of the Habsburgs, Schloss Schönbrunn, the  Schönbrunn Zoo was founded as early as 1752 by Emperor Franz I. 

Intrigued, I find myself with a year-pass and over 750 wild and domestic animals to visit. 

So Tuesday after class, Michelle and I set out to explore the wonders at the Schönbrunn Zoo, after having a picnic lunch in the gardens at the palace of course. Sitting in the courtyard, we caught a glimpse of the first signs of spring here in Vienna. With the sun shining and the birds singing, landscapers filled the detailed flower beds with annuals and tourists filled the walks. 


Once in the zoo, Michelle and I had crazy good luck with the animals -mountain goats fighting, tigers chasing each other, and even leopards ripping apart beautiful white bunnies. 

So happy to see the sunshine in Vienna. The last few days have been quite uneventful, consisting of long afternoons at the park with a good book, some excellent coffee shops, and even a delicious (and cheap!) thai dinner. 


This past weekend a trip was also made to the Haus der Musik- where we learned about a good handful of Austria's great composers, and even made some music of our own. Conducting symphony's and experiencing the elements of sound was a full days work, washed down with a massive schnitzel and a traditional Austrian brew. 

I have to admit, I am enjoying all the free time, and deep fried specialties. Wouldn't you?


shannon xx

Nom nom nom

Eating Animals. 

Whew... tough topic. A week or so ago I mentioned this book that I had started reading about eating animals, called Eating Animals, not coincidently. This book is currently a best seller by Jonathan Safran Foer that discusses many different sides of factory farming. Such as the downfalls, obviously, why its happened and why we need to fix it. 

Now I don't want to just reiterate the book in here- it is only one book, and factory farming is an extensive, highly debatable business with many people involved. Here, doing as much as a blogging landscape architecture student can do, I want to inform you.

Before I begin, you must be wondering how I am going to relate this ongoing debate over factory farming to landscape architecture? I have not quite decided yet (to be completely honest) but hopefully by the time I finish this entry, or by the time I finish this book, I will have sorted something out. 

I am not suggesting anyone reading becomes a vegetarian. In no way am I trying to change anyones opinion when it comes to eating meat, or any animal bi-products. Your decision and your beliefs are yours, for your own reasons. I simply ask that we educate ourselves. Rather than skipping the article about some environment crazed woman trying to change the world and sue everyone, read it. Listen to the news when Smithfield Foods is sued once again for violating countless environmental laws, and note how quickly it all goes away. You will be surprised what you find. 

Also, while I mention them, Smithfield Foods, Inc. is the largest pork producer and processor in the world. Check out their website: http://www.smithfieldfoods.com/. 

When you Google Smithfield Foods, Inc. you find nothing but good things, I dug through articles and found nothing except awards for environmental stewardship and how much money they are making. It wasn't until I took a stab at YouTube that I found dozens of videos  documenting tours of these pork producing facilities. Yes- some of these videos are a little extreme, but the footage is not. I can honestly say that I could not get through one entire video. This included tours of Tyson Foods, Inc. as well as other large meat production companies. Try commenting on one of the videos from Smithfield (you won't be able to).

This all kind of started by accident for me. In no way was I looking for the disturbing news I have now found myself surrounded by. I mean, it will take me 3 days to sort through all the articles I have bookmarked in my browser. This started with me not being able to find a decent English novel anywhere in Bologna, Italy. I finally grabbed this Eating Animals book, and just started reading it upon my arrival in Vienna. I wasn't that interested at first, I was avoiding cracking it open because I knew what it contained. Not surprisingly, I didn't want to know any gory details about meat production. And now here I am, fully engulfed and somewhat enjoying it. I like being somewhat aware of what our world of 'farming' has actually become, and considering what changes need to happen to fix it. I think the best things any of us can do is educate ourselves, and know what it is. It isn't hard to do this, it is an ongoing problem all around us. People just need to be aware.

Knowing the scale, and the extent of what has happened to farming is what changed it all for me. Yes of course animal welfare and the health of our environment are at the top of the list. But when I began reading about how unhealthy this meat itself was for us, or even how unsafe it was to live in close proximity to these farms, I really began my research. Now it is hard to find information on this. Extremely hard. These massive companies have absolutely everything protected and covered up. No valid information directly from the company is open to the public. This is where I recommend reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. I feel kind of like a spokesperson for this guy, and in a way I am. I don't care if it sounds like I am selling this book, it is a well written book documenting extensive interviews with countless people in this business. It gives us, the general public, an eye into the complicated, multi-billion dollar industry of factory farming, and puts it into perspective. So? Read it, or read something equivalent. I mean, your health is at risk just eating chicken.

Okay, enough preaching. Just consider what I am writing, its one of my new found interests and concerns :P. 

And what is one 20 year old landscape architecture student going to do about it? 

Well, to start, inform all you readers, push for you to inform yourselves more, AND let the people you care about know. As cheesy as all this sounds, it really is important. First for the safety of billions of mistreated animals every year, second for our earth (we only have one), and third for your own health, and the health of our children and grandchildren. And as one of my fellow students recently posted in one of her blog posts, a little cheese never hurt anyone. (Thanks Laura!)

Now, to help out this overpopulated world of insane meat eaters. 

EAT LESS MEAT. Some would say.

OR! since no one is going to eat less meat, or enough to change the insane rate of factory farming anytime soon. Consider what a landscape architect can do to improve the situation, and push this world into new methods that will help rather than damage it even more. We need to adjust our ways of thinking, create new methods and develop new technologies - to be able to eat what we want, BUT be sustainable and respect the welfare of animals. Obviously.


My suggestions? 


Eating local! Eating less.. Haha. 
- just consider eating less meat, it won't hurt you.
Less chemicals, using waste wisely.. ie. Composting! Its easy!
- do you really want all those chemicals and toxins in your body?

Vertical farms! Agriculture takes up WAY too much land. Save space, duh. 
- controlled environments, less chemicals, can be put right in the city, saving on transportation.. need I say more?


These are just.. 3 suggestions, thats all. But the opportunities are endless, all it takes is people understanding what 'farming' today has actually become. If these 3 suggestions were implemented today, and everyone took part in this.. this would change dramatically. However, things don't work that way, and change is going to take time. The world won't change instantly, it's going to take years and YEARS.


So now that I have thrown an insane amount of information and personal opinions down your throat, I will summarize my rant. As I said at the beginning, I am not trying to change anyones opinions, or make anyone a vegetarian. Quite simply, my only intention in this post was to inform you of how horrible the business of factory farming has become, and suggest that you learn more. I could go on and on about all the things I have been reading about lately, discussing overpopulation, sustainable agriculture and even the processing of chickens, but I will not. If you want to learn more you will.


I will leave you with a few of the many articles I have found, published in the last 2 months. Also, never eat at KFC.


Ciao all, shannon xx


On vertical farming:
http://www.longislandpress.com/2011/02/27/vertical-farming-the-future-of-our-food/

Good to know people I guess:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-edwards/florida-could-photo-of-pi_b_835703.html

Blog, excellent info about drugs on the farm:
https://news.change.org/stories/fda-fails-to-get-farm-animals-off-drugs