Hey everyone! 🙂

For those of you that do not know me, my name is Mariah Bruinsma and I am in my 4th year studying Global Resources from the Land and Food Systems faculty at UBC. I have recently switched into GRS this year and so far I am absolutely loving it. My resource specialization is sustainable agriculture in the area of North America. Of course, just like any other GRS student, I have a hard time pinpointing exactly where I want to go with my specialization but I am excited for the opportunities in the future that awaits me. I am passionate about the environment and I am interested in discovering innovative techniques in farming, starting from a rural practice and being able to bring it to an urban setting on a global scale.

My whole life I have lived the country on a small hobby farm in Chilliwack.  When I was about 8 years old my parents turned our small hobby farm into an agricultural tourism spot “agri tourism” for the public where people can come to learn and enjoy the benefits of living in the country. Families will come and spend the day letting their children run free playing in the barn on a hay bale maze, riding trikes, playing in a corn sand and interacting with various farm animals, and of course exploring our corn field maze. They can also come for a hay ride where they will be able to pick a pumpkin from our pumpkin patch. Below I have posted a picture of what the corn maze was this year that is taken from above.

From when I was in high school to when I came to university, sports have been a major part of my life. For all my years as an university student I have been a member of the UBC women’s volleyball team. When I arrived on the team they had already won two national championships in a row and since then we have won three more. This has been an experience I will never forget not only from playing the sport but also for people I have met along the way. I feel that being apart of a high level team while going through university has helped stay focused as well as challenge me a long the way emotionally and organizationally.

My goals for this blog is to be able to discuss, share and interact with people about my passions and learning experiences at UBC.

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”   -Dr.Seuss, The Lorax