I think one of the greatest sensitivities of Middle Eastern states is the encroachment of the West. Is there a way to uphold human rights and hold companies accountable for migrant labor abuses without intruding on the native countries culture? I mention culture since how criticism is communicated could save lives or increase the number of lost lives.

I'm curious to see if in the future new knowledge networks and "schools" will develop to respond to this monopoly of culture. With new tools for education and communication, the barrier of entry to create your own culture seems to be lower.

I have become more interested in this concept of design as protest where landscape design is responding or working with polticial or social movements that meant to deliver a specific message or stimulate change. The apolitical dimension of the profession is limiting to the potential of what landscape architecture could be.

I saw this in my ARTA trip to Palestine. The Aleppo Pine would compete for land with the olive trees. It was a bit symbolic of the current political situation in a way.

The cultural dimension to trade is very interesting. We talked about consumption and production in a very cold way in the past which seemed a bit transactional but the cultural values of people is now emerging

This reminds me of the exhibit that Matt Williams, Trott visiting lecturer, who came and spoke about the vacancy and asked the question "what can we do here?" I think a big part of his work is trying to bring joy back into Detroit

Despite a business driven by money, it's interesting to see the mercy farmers have for animals.

In a post colonial New Zealand I'm curious what British practices remained and which were stopped completely. I would assume that British cultural influence didn't end however must have transformed to become more ecological friendly. Or possibly not...

The power of money over people is a bit disturbing. I think this problem stems from the fact that people are not given a proper business education. If people knew that they could create other streams of revenue, build new clients and customers, or could collaborate with other professionals they wouldn't feel as burdened to one person who is their source of sustenance.

Is this really that hard to imagine in our day? The subjugation and humiliation of people still happens to this day. Not too long ago South Africans experienced the cruelty of apartheid. We see Palestinians suffering from a brutal occupation and ethnic cleansing. However, we are often blinded by this never ending image of progress that we can no longer imagine oppression because it was all left in the past. This rosy image is counterproductive to the injustice and oppression that happens globally today. Although possibly categorically different than what is documented about slavery, the evil is still one.

I was just speaking to a friend about this concept. Our society has a epidemic of depression yet we only express the depression in terms of I versus something that is passed on like the flu or cold. If our society becomes so individualistic, we cannot create a popular front to popular problems. In the case of work, we should speak more about labor and issues in the workforce to advocate for a better life. Companies and firms will be okay, it's people who need reassurance and security for them and their families.

I think it's a stretch to say the modern mind as if the entire world during modernity doesn't see the problems that technology creates. Just as we learned in making and meaning this type of thinking should be called Whiggish. However, there are plenty of examples of modern thinkers and populations reacting against technology and the new order that it brings.

Site restoration is a slow and steady process. If we work to idealize a landscape we can also wipe out the biodiversity and nutrients which support it causing to break circular ecosystems that life depends on.

mens et manus

When humans create new technologies that are then popularized, we create new neural networks that replace the old. For example, as humans become more "landless" and familiar with software / computers, we learn the hand skills such as farming and construction. The knowledge of the computer is passed on and the knowledge of farming dies out.

The body appears to almost work as an inexhaustible machine when partnered with the right tool. Not only is the character not showing physical fatigue but also no signs of mental exhaustion either.

What is the difference between a pragmatist and empiricist?

Why were these statistics documented? Was it because there was a concern for labor or was it to document the shortages in labor that was impacting productivity?

We live in a unprecedented time where people have a wide variety of food selections to choose from. This is possibly a factor for obesity in our society?

According to Blouin in Triangular Landscapes, the Delta had 7 branches in ancient egypt but only has two now. What other engineering projects in Egypt's history has caused this?

How did the military versus the monarchy see the Egyptian landscape differently?

How did the Aswan Dam influence the cold war? It seems a bit ironic to see communists and capitalist work together in the Middle East.

So since the civil war stopped cotton production in Americas, Egypt stepped up to deliver cotton to England. Was this slavery the same or different than the Americas? Why was it short lived?

Were insurance markets a global system or only a system used only by Europeans? I would be interested how other economic systems from other societies behaved.

As the word suggests, cut and fill not only changes the project site but it's surroundings be it near or far.

Labor is understood here as following the "circle of life." I think in the pre-modern sense this may be true, however, when labor is utilized for industrial processes the biological component Arendt speaks of is not as apparent. Especially today there is discussion of creating a circular economy for modern societies to compensate for the lack of natural or biological breakdown of labors products.

Here Arendt presents technology's deeper meaning for development is for world building. If this is the case, inventors or engineers should first imagine the world in which they want to live and then create technology. Instead of assuming that technology is a product of a natural course of events, technology is a product of the human imagination.

Marx asserts that the the volume of labor is measured in time. the more time spent means more labor and vice versa less time means less labor. In our modern age, we call a laborer as someone who is paid hourly. In order for the laborer to gain an advantage, he must prove to the employer his competitiveness for an increase in his hourly wage. Marx justification for measuring labor in time is because products are by the working of time. The only flaw I see with this argument is that clients will typically not want laborers to charge them per time but with a final cost of the job to prevent laborers exploiting the "clock."

The motivations and strategies for migrant work are multifaceted but ultimately are meant to benefit family back home. However, country's willing to accept refugees must also see some sort of gain as well for their society. Thus, domestic and foreign policy are interlinked but also conflicting.

The lack of a division of labor in the agriculture sector makes it unique from industry/manufacturing. Consquently, innovation in the agriculture sector cannot keep pace with manufacturing. If a country has week agriculture it's solution is to advance it's manufacturing to compete with other countries that rely on agriculture.