A Change of Perspective

With knowledge comes awareness and with the awareness comes choices.
This class has given me a lot of choices to think about. Before this class I was aware of global warming and believed it was occurring. I didn't like being dependent on foreign oil or the bad emissions from cars that go into the air. I bought a hybrid not because I can get better gas mileage (which I do get about 52mpg) but for air quality. My car may not be the coolest looking or the fastest but it gets me to where I need to go safely, timely and I feel good about driving it. I have heard of the WWF and that we have to "Save the Panda's, the polar bears...." but I didn't understand the whole cycle of the way in which the environment, ecosystems and species worked.
I am overwhelmed by all the things we are learning in class. Some days I think, how is this ever going to get better? But I try and tell my friends and family about what I'm learning so they can see what I'm seeing. I shop at Farmer's Markets more. I am more conscious to buy local, California grown and in season fruits and veggies. As much as I might want to make guacamole, I just can't buy the avocados from Chile. I try and have meatless days 2 times a week. I've gone to the library and on-line for vegetarian dishes to try. I've thought about finding a spot in my small yard to grow vegetables, which never interested me before. I always bring my own bags when I shop. I turn lights off when I leave a room. During the colder months I wore lots of sweatshirts and jackets around my house and only turned on the heat when I knew company was coming. I'm not sure how I'll do in the hot months, but I'm already thinking about what I can do to keep myself from using the air conditioner to a minimum. When I run errands I think about where I need to go and try and make my stops in the same directions. Before I purchase something I stop and ask myself if I really need what I'm buying more than I have in the past. More times then not, I find myself putting items back on the shelf. Learning about poverty has changed the way I think about things as well. I have heard about the slum of India and have even read about them, but it was nothing compared to seeing the slum in the movie "Slumdog Millionaire". The massive poverty shown was jaw dropping and I know it was just one example of what is out there. Population, education, mining waste, agriculture, politics and our interdependency and the connectedness of all these topics, I never even considered before.
So, you ask if this class has changed my perspective? I would say that this class has changed my life and the way I live and view the world is very different than before.