Reflection

In our control day each of us used at least 50 gallons of water, to do our task we had to cut that number down to one gallon of water a day to experience how people in developing countries live. Here are our relfections on how we felt after going from over 50 gallons of water down to one gallon of water.



- Eddie Goodman

When comparing the days I could use my normal usage of water to the days I was limited to only using one gallon of water per day, the days that I was limited to my water use was considerably more difficult. The simplest of task which invloved water became harder, because I had to take into account that I had a limit to my water supply. Doing task such as washing my cloths, flushing the toilet, taking a shower, all had to be removed from my everyday routine. I found it to be more important to drink water then to be clean during the two days of being limited to water usage. I don't typically have to debate about such things when I use my typical consumption of water. What I gained from this project is that we as Americans do not realize how lucky we really are in having the avaliabilty of resources, like water. We need to become more aware of how we abuse resources, such as water in our society, and be grateful for what we have.


- Tyler Kendle


After spending two days in our control I realized that spending two days with only one gallon of water was going to be very difficult. From participating in the control I realized that I spent around 90 gallons of water throughout the day. The 90 gallons was used to take a shower, brush my teeth, flush the toilet, wash my hands, cook food, wash dishes, and also wash my clothes. Going from 90 gallons of water down to one gallon will not allow me to do all the same things I just did. I had to cut down on all of those activities, for instance, I did not take a shower at all during my two days of using one gallon of water. Also I decided that every time I had to use the bathroom I would go down the hall to the public restrooms and use a urinal because those are much easier to not flush that our toilet. Also every time I would have flushed the toilet I would have used up one gallon because most toilets are a standard one gallon flush. With my one gallon of water I would pour a little bit into my hands so that I could wash them after using the bathroom because I am a very clean person. Most of the time I take the full 30 seconds required to wash my hands so this was a big step for me to cut it down. Another big step was rationing the amount of water I could drink throughout the day instead of normally drinking as much as I want. Doing this project was very challenging but very beneficial to me and the rest of our group. I would recommend this project to another one of your ISS classes.




- Ian Childs

I never realized how much water I used in a day prior to this project. Showering, flushing a toilet, having water to brush your teeth and wash your clothes; all of these are luxuries that I have been taking for granted. I will no longer be so careless in my water consumption. I'll reuse any water bottles I have rather than buying a new one every time I'm thirsty. I'll try to take shorter showers, and I'll make sure not to let the water run while I brush my teeth. Before this project I thought that I didn't use very much water, and it turned out that I used over 50 gallons daily while much of the world survives on one gallon a day or less. From now on I plan to be less wasteful with my water consumption.



- Dan Grinberg


I did not realize how much I would have to change my habits for this assignment. I could not wash my hands after going to the bathroom and it made me feel horrible. Luckily I had some purell. I even had to skip showers or give myself a sponge bath with a wet towl. I never realized how much low water access affects the hygene of people in developing countires. I took such a simple thing as washing my hands for granted. Another thing I had to take the bus and use the eveators. I even had to monitor how much I talked to avoid getting to thirsty. I never had to be so conscious of my hydration levels before. Before this project I never stopped to think that this is how people in developing countires live every day. It makes me feel very fortunate for the easy access we have to water.


- Dominique Benjamin

When choosing the project that I wanted to be a part of, I chose the water group because I knew that it would be a challege to change my daily consumption of water from its' current usage to one gallon of water. The challenge interested me, and I wanted to see if it was possible to maintain my current lifestyle and reduce my consumption drastically. It was not possible at all. I had to change all of my daily routines. For instance, the way in which I brushed my teeth, not flushing the toilet (which was quite gross), not running the dish washer, not washing clothes, and limiting my daily intake of water. This lifestyle is one that would be very troublesome in becoming accustom to and I fear of being accustom to this lifesyle. Many individuals in third world countries have to life this lifestyle for their whole lives and we as Americans do not realize that water is very accessible and plentiful and we tend to waste it often. If more Americans experienced this simulation, they would probably be more cautious on the amount of water that is used daily and also be more concerned about those who do not have access to such resources.