With 7 of our beloved seniors graduating and more leaving in the fall, we’ve recently accepted 9 fresh and fantastic new peer advisors for the 2013-2014 year! Welcome on board!
Kristine and I are beyond excited to be co-leading a team of such diverse majors, years, and interests — we have a ton of ideas in store for next year, but we’re also looking forward to hearing new perspectives from each of you. I have to say my favorite aspect of the program was the unexpected friendships and random knowledge I gained from conversations while baking tabling in the sun or during an extended Wednesday night meeting. As a way of goodbye to the seniors who are leaving but will forever be near and dear to our hearts, here is a final hurrah and thank you for all that you’ve done!
Crystal, one of our boomerang PALs who is graduating but not quite ready leave Cal yet, is this year’s co-leader. She’s all flavors of amazing. Good thing she’ll be around working on her Ph.D. to babysit the PALs should the need arise! Give her a bear hug if you see her on campus.
Caitlin and Amelia, two of sweetest and sharpest minds in PAL. I mean, look at that gleam in their eyes and those knowing smiles. They organized our successful Telebears+CREAM cookies workshop this year and have contributed so many suggestions for the program next year. You guys are fantastic.
You won’t believe me when I say this, but this guy doesn’t like chocolate. /dodges a bullet/ Good thing Andrew’s way too nice to harm a fly even though I may have rubbed this in too many times… He’s the kind of guy to rise to the call of duty when we need help and disarm freshmen with a flash of pearly whites (after all, he doesn’t eat chocolate).
Dustin is our resident doctor-athlete and expert microbiologist. He’ll tell you that it’s not an easy major very matter-of-fact-ly, in the same way he updates us on his IM football team losses but hey, he’s still a boss. Best of luck applying to med school and keep those restaurant suggestions coming!
Chris has stuck through the PAL program in rain and shine and deserves the tag #hipster4lyf and #kombucha next to his name on his diploma. Designer extraordinaire and doctor-to-be, we have no doubt he’ll succeed with his leadership and comical smartness.
You’ve probably been helped by Yanna at least twice since not only is she one of the most experienced PALs, she’s ALWAYS a PAL. She’s our website whiz and much-demanded NutriSci and education expert who always has something honest and thoughtful to suggest. Yanna, you’ve been so essential to the program and dear to us— many a tear will be shed when you leave.
Thanks once again to this awesome crowd that I’ve been so fortunate to meet and learn from over the past year. I won’t say that we have large shoes to fill because I know that our talented new team will step up to the tasks ahead and work hard to maintain the high quality and reliability of the peer advising program. I can’t wait to start working with everyone, but first… CRUSH those finals and have a fun and productive summer! Go to the CNR commencement on Sunday, May 19th 7-9pm! Seniors, take a hike.
Pass me a tissue, will you? My nasal virus is acting up again.
All the best,
Susie
They say that knowledge is power. They also say that the best things in life are free. Well thanks to the numerous resources on the internet, it is now possible to obtain knowledge on multiple topics for free. The only thing is that you will need to search for it. Fortunately for you, I have found a site that has a list of free educational material ranging in numerous subjects from academics to cooking to music. Understand that this is to help supplement your learning experience, not replace it. I hope that you have a fun time exploring and learning about new topics.
“Stay hungry. Stay foolish.”-Steve Jobs
-Peter Li
One of the best parts about being in this city is the sheer mountain of opportunities. Not just in terms of academics, but for impact, for a way to extend your knowledge and use it in a way that is meaningful to you. Whether it is through a club, an internship, organization, what have you, there are so many ways to participate in this crazy world we now live in. Whatever your passion, there is some way to express it, some way to act. Don’t leave it to luck. Yes there will be times when you just happen to be at the right place at the right time. But why wait? Here are just a few things to get started.
http://nature.berkeley.edu/blogs/newsline/
Perhaps the best place to get started is making sure you DO NOT ignore those lovely helpful emails from the office. The CNR newsline is a go to resource to find upcoming events, such as the March Madness Open House where us peer advisors will be glad to see you! But it also includes grants, scholarships, jobs, and internships, all specifically catered to all of us in CNR.
https://www.facebook.com/SERC.Berkeley
The Student Environmental Resources Center in 337 Mulford seeks to provide students with the means to learn about and participate in environmental opportunities both in and out of campus. Stop by their office to learn more!
-Kristine
Believe it or not, I wasn’t always a peer advisor in CNR.
In fact, I was once what you would call a notional vagabond, a lost lamb — an undeclared major in L&S. I wandered into CNR’s Student Resource Center one day and was helped out by two peer advisors whom would change the course of my life. Well, notionally.
Moral of my abridged story? Regardless of whether you’ve talked to or been assisted by a peer advisor, working as one has been one of the most worthwhile experiences I’ve had at Cal and I recommend anyone who’s even remotely interested to come talk to us at 260 Mulford! Who knows, maybe you can be the peer advisor to help a lost lamb find his or her place in the welcoming pastures of CNR.
Applications are due April 15 at 260 Mulford
-Susie
Looking to declare a major soon or still shopping around? Check out the events going on in the next two weeks for Major Madness and learn about the colleges, departments, and the majors they offer all around campus!
If you’re interested in the environment, microbes, plants, energy, or just want to save the world, stop by CNR’s event on March 13 from 11 AM -1 PM outside of Pat Brown’s to learn more about our majors!
Hope to see you there!
Go Bears!
You might have noticed some environmentally friendly measures that the university authorities have placed all over campus. These are largely in part of the University’s Climate Action Plan that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, water use, and waste production all in the next 5 to 10 years. Fun fact: Did you know the MLK Student Union is the only building on campus to have solar panels?
There are tons of ways Cal has become more sustainable like installing motion sensored lights in classrooms, introducing composting and recycling bins in more buildings, and introducing hydration stations to cut down on plastic water bottles.
So, what can WE do to help the university and the environment? Here are some simple things we can do to do our part.
1. Turn off the lights during the daytime, especially if the classroom is already well lit by natural light.
2. Compost any paper products that has touched food. Be on the lookout for compostable plastics! The University has been doing a great job on purchasing green products that can be composted at any of the food facilities on campus. Just check the bottom of the container to see if it says “compostable” or “biodegradable.”
3. Get a reusable water bottle and fill it up at a water fountain!
4. Take the stairs! Climbing some stairs is a good way to keep yourself active and also saves energy. Save the elevator for someone who really needs it.
5. Recycle everything! The City of Berkeley is able to recycle plastics #1 and #2, but higher number plastics can be taken to places like Whole Foods. Consider this next time you’re about to toss a piece of plastic into the trashcan.
6. Reuse everything! Now that Alameda County has banned plastic bags, its time for you to pick up a reusable bag! While you’re at it, why not get some other reusable things too? You can always repurpose things instead of throwing them away, like turning a cereal box into a notebook or start using that old jar as a hipster waterbottle.
To learn more about campus sustainability, check out the Office of Sustainability here: http://sustainability.berkeley.edu/
~ Crystal
Midterm season at Cal can be quite daunting and a seemingly insurmountable period in each of our semesters; I have 3 midterms and 2 problem sets due next week alone! Over my 4 years here, I have developed a set of tips that have helped me overcome my workloads and I’m going to share the main ones, which will hopefully help you out.
My top 3 tips to getting all your work and studying done are:
- Reduce the workload into doable, smaller chunks
- Take regular breaks and do something non-academic related (e.g. run, exercise, read a book, listen to music or talk/catch up with family and friends)
- Refuel your body with adequate food and sleep
- Whenever I feel stressed, and talk to my parents, we would spend time listing of all the things I have to do and the timeframe for each task (i.e. amount of time it’s due/deadline). We would then budget a certain number of hours that I could work every day (a reasonable amount) and split the hours among the tasks, creating a chart/game plan to tackle the work. Seeing all your work in a visual form, divided into daily activity, makes it easier to get motivated to finish it all. You can also finish large assignments in portions using this method too.
- Remember when you are planning your study schedule, to account for breaks, eating, class and other activities and commitments. These are as important as the hours you spend studying, because it is vital to take your mind off of work on regular intervals. The frequency of breaks can vary for each assignment, for example, finishing a plan for a paper, summarizing one chapter from a textbook and completing the reading for the following week can all take different amounts of time. I prefer to finish a task completely before taking a break, to have that sense of closure and not having to return to it later.
- Finally, eating well and getting enough sleep are very important things to do as well. You need to take care of your body in order to continue working and stay on task. Try hard not to neglect these key aspects when devoting the majority of your time to your work.
I hope these tips can be of some use to all of you. They helped me out a lot and will be essential for me to get through the next few weeks. Don’t hesitate to come to 260 Mulford to talk to one of us peer advisors, or your CNR major advisor. Good luck on your midterms and assignments!
- Andrew
Two weeks ago I had the delight of getting to eat at one of the country’s most famous cupcake shops, Georgetown Cupcake in Washington D.C. The shop received its fame from the TLC show called D.C. Cupcakes, which follows the lives of two sisters that are entrepreneurs in the cupcake industry (yes there is a cupcake industry, especially in the D.C. area). On any given day, Georgetown Cupcake has a line that is at least a 45-minute wait going out the shop door and around the block! However, I was fortunate enough to pass by Georgetown Cupcake at 11 am on a Sunday morning when the line was almost non-existent (lucky me!) Yet it might have been nice to stand in line for more than 5 minutes because I had very little time to decide what to order when I got to the front counter. The cupcake choices were practically infinite! Platters of red-velvet, chocolate, vanilla, carrot, s’more, and cinnamon spice cupcakes were on display and each and every one looked delicious. So being the fickle decision maker that I am, I decided to buy half-a-dozen (not to fear, I did not eat all six in one sitting). Within a few minutes my order was ready and I got to indulge in the most extravagant red-velvet cupcake I ever did meet. The icing was displayed in an artistic swirly shape, with a red heart placed on top in the spirit of Valentine’s Day. In a matter of 2 minutes my cupcake was devoured and I was 100% satisfied. If you ever find yourself in the D.C. area, I would definitely recommend stopping by Georgetown Cupcake for a quick bite of heaven.
-Caitlin
Calling all career confused undergraduates! Do not fear, you are not alone in not knowing exactly what you want to do when you graduate. Countless resources exist right here on campus to help you explore and narrow down your career goals.
One tool that most people forget about is informational interviewing. Informational interviews can be a great way to learn more about specific career fields and how you can land that job. Print and online resources are always helpful but learning from someone who does a specific kind of job can be really great information!
So how do you go about breaking the ice and plunging in to that informational interview? Check out the career center website of course!
https://career.berkeley.edu/Info/InfoInterview.stm
The career center has great tips for initiating the first contact and conducting informational interviews.
Make sure to check out the alumni database as well as your own supervisors at your job or internship to see if they have any career ideas or would be willing to do an informational interview!
-Amelia
Now that Thanksgiving has passed and Mom has started playing the Nat King Cole winter album, we can finally kick off the holiday season! And what’s Christmas/any winter holiday without a beautiful, live, traditional, aromatic tree in your living room? As college students living in dorms, tiny apartments, or grandma’s attic, sometimes it’s difficult to find time or resources to obtain such a wonderful vegetative holiday decoration, but fear not!
The Cal Forestry Club presents the annual Holiday Tree Sale! A lively group of Cal foresters will be heading up to the Sierras this weekend to sustainably harvest a U-haul vehicle full of incense cedars, white fir, and red fir trees. These trees will be on display for sale in front of Mulford Hall starting Sunday, December 2nd through Saturday, December 8th. There will be trees of all sizes (usually from 2-6 feet). Trees are sold for $6/foot—a true steal for such a beautiful, sustainably harvested tree! Warning—Many of the finest trees are sold on the first day (Sunday) so come by early (unless you are into the Charlie Brown look)!
So tell your friends, family, study buddies, acquaintances, soul mates, co-workers, enemies, and extended kin that they can all find their holiday trees at the Cal Forestry Club Holiday Tree Sale!
-Brita (your friendly forester PAL)
