TECHNICIAN
Alexandra Kenney Staff Writer
Que lo Que, a student organization that strives to see the world from different prospectives, held its third public forum Thursday, Feb. 21. A handful of students gathered in the honors village library with open minds, not sure what to expect from the discussion. Que lo Que is an organization that takes a new approach to international service. It was founded by three wolfpackers: Hunter Isgrig, a senior in biological sciences, Brian Gaudio, a senior in environmental design in architecture, and Drew Brisley. Members of the organization seek to help the community of Las Lajas in the Dominican Republic. They do so in three ways: the college immersion program, a skill inventory of Las Lajas, and advocating global citizenship in Raleigh. The first forum talked about “Tom’s” shoes, and an anthropology professor talked about his experience in Malawi in the second. The service organization has also held public forums for N.C. State students. The purpose of the forums is to reveal different public services and spark open-discussion about relevant issues in service, public policy and international aid, according to the Que lo Que Facebook page. “Our public forums hope to give students a chance to talk and learn something new about the world
around them,” Gaudio said. The topic changes for each forum. The most recent forum was about Chinese Education and how it differs from American Education. This forum allowed students to learn about a different culture, bounce questions off their peers and ask professionals about their experience, but it differed from the usual. Forums generally focus on different aspects of international service and aid, but still provide students with a chance to learn about foreign cultures. Gaudio thinks there are not enough chances for students to sit down and talk about cultural issues at N.C. State. He said the group hopes to hold four more forums before the year is done. The group will hold a forum that will feature the Ghana Summer Study Abroad Program at N.C. State. Que lo Que has implemented a college immersion program in the Dominican Republic that seeks to learn about the community during the span of several years instead of executing a short-term project, finishing it and leaving the country. Members of the group have traveled to the Dominican Republic several times to learn about the community before trying to understand
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february
22 2013
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Que Lo Que: a new approach to international service
friday
Restaurant owner plants garden to go green and make green
CAIDE WOOTEN/TECHNICIAN
Garden manager Jason Johnson waters plants in the greenhouse.
Young Lee Associate Features Editor
When Arthur Gordon, owner and chef of The Irregardless Cafe, first put his hands in the soil at a farm in Goldsboro three years ago, he said he felt God. By investing in a community farm that will be partnered with his restaurant and bringing the farming experience to volunteers in the city, Gordon said he believes that he can benefit the whole downtown Raleigh community. The project, called the Well Fed Community Garden, began about a year ago when Gordon said he first contacted his realtor with the
idea to create a community garden. Now, with a property purchased on Athens Drive, a newly renovated well drawing 11 gallons of water a minute and planted blueberries and blackberries, Gordon said he is hopeful for the future of the project. However, some neighbors remain doubtful of the garden’s benefit and Gordon is continuing to talk with city officials to get the green light for some of his plans. “The idea of the project is that I own the restaurant and I own the [garden] property so there’s not actually going to be any commerce taking place on the land,” Gordon said. “We’ll be growing the vegeta-
Sci-fi writer meets and greets students at bookstore
bles on the land there and we intend to bring them here to the restaurant and we’ll serve them in the restaurant. In return, the restaurant will provide some compost material and we’ll take it back to the property and we’ll compost. It’s a full circle.” Gordon plans to use students and members of the community to help grow the produce on the farm. While the work on the farm will be on a strict volunteer-basis because the garden isn’t categorized as a business, volunteers would be able to take any produce from the
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insidetechnician
‘Aliens: Colonial Marines’ betrays franchise and fans See page 5.
Kevin Schaefer Staff Writer
People of all ages packed inside Quail Ridge Books and Music to meet one of their favorite authors Wednesday night. Critically acclaimed science fiction and fantasy novelist Brandon Sanderson greeted readers young and old with a wealth of enthusiasm. Known for completing the late Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time series, and having been selected to do so by Jordan’s widow and Editor Harriet McDougal, Sanderson’s fiction has captured the minds of imaginative youth and adults worldwide. “It’s exciting putting a face to the author, especially after having spent so much time invested in this series,” said Joe Allen, a fan who was eager to get his books autographed. “I have an original signed copy of Robert Jordan’s work, so it’s cool to meet the guy who finished the series.” By 7 p.m. the entire middle section of the bookstore was full, and fans were continually
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PHOTO ILLUSTRATION NATALIE CLAUNCH
Pittsboro pays in PLENTY Josué Molina Staff Writer
Some businesses in Pittsboro accept two forms of currency, and there is PLENTY of it. The PLENTY Currency Cooperative manages the PLENTY, an acronym that stands for the Piedmont Local EcoNomy Tender. The currency’s intended purpose is to help promote local commerce within the community and make money more of a face-to-face interaction, since the currency cannot be used with the direct deposit system. The local currency’s circulation is an approach to the buy local move-
ment. The Currency Cooperative said the PLENTY is an attempt to promote recurrent local consumption by encouraging local businesses to buy the supplies they need to operate from Pittsboro. PLENTYs, which are offered in 50, 20, 10, 5 and 1 denomination bills, have a unique appearance compared to the green Federal Reserve notes. PLENTYs are colorful notes that feature images of wildlife and landmarks distinctive to the region. Despite their colorful and foreign appearance, PLENTYs are a legal form of currency and are taxed the same as dollars. The currency is only accepted at about 47 locations in the area, and
the businesses that take the currency are able to decide whether they allow purchases to be made with only PLENTYS or a combination of local and federal currency. Businesses become members of the project by paying a $50 annual membership fee and the businesses must reside in Chatham, Orange, Durham, Wake or Lee counties. Businesses that use PLENTYs are also required to promote the currency and abide by other guidelines in order to continue their use of the currency. Piedmont Biofuels, a fuel company in Pittsboro, uses the PLEN-
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The baby blue battlefront See page 8.
Miami holds off Wolfpack See page 8.
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