Over the last four weeks of class, we covered many aspects of “wicked problems” and how they are affecting society today and our future. Some of those aspects were Easter Island, markets, western values, fashion, poverty, and market vs. government. Each article related to sustainability, yet each had their argument. Some had yes and no sides, which showed us the many sides that you could take on that argument. 

While I wish that everybody could have the same views on supporting sustainability, sadly, we can’t. Everyone has their thoughts and opinions which they’re entitled to, but mindfulness could be the problem solver. Learning about this subject, I became more and more intrigued and even ended up researching it more after class hours. This surprised me because before we talked about mindfulness in class, I initially thought that only certain religions practiced it. I am glad that it is not just a particular religious practice because I enjoy it. Additionally, from learning this, I now believe that every school should implement mindfulness into their schedule.  

This class has already had a significant impact on me. For example, ever since we started doing mindfulness practice, I have now implemented that into my everyday routine because it helps me calm myself down and focus on the good things about life. Another thing that has stuck with me is how I can improve the world through my future career. I have always been the girl that loves the environment and the people living on it. When I become an interior designer, I want to improve people’s homes and lives no matter where or who they are. To now know that I can fulfill my interior design dream as well as a factor in sustainability is amazing and makes me 10x more excited to get my degree and go out into the world. 

On our last day, we briefly talked about what our next steps were as a class. One thing that was mentioned was the “circle of influence.” This consists of the people around you, such as your friends or family, that you influence. As we talked more about this subject, our professor showed us how she had completely transformed her front yard into a garden that helped Oklahoma in multiple ways. This story inspired me to want to do something similar only to where I currently live. I am hoping that this idea will become a reality so that my circle of influence could reach greater distances and maybe even inspire someone else. 

As we reached the end of this course, I felt rejuvenated in a sense. Digging deeper into sustainability and the problems our society is facing today awakened my interest in the subject. Moving forward, I want to continue researching this topic to learn how I can help our future through interior design.