Reflecting on Experiences

            After spending half of my semester away I have integrated myself with some of the yearly resident on the Outer Banks.  Seeing I am inhabit the area during the winter I am not looked upon as ‘summer folk, yet I have a lot of similar privileges with them.  These privileges create the void between the ‘summer folk and ‘real residents’. 

            Most of the US thinks of the Outer Banks of NC as a summer beach destination and during the summer that’s what two thirds of the people on the Outer Banks are there for.  For the other third they make a living during the year and have to endure their town being taken over for the summer.  With an influx of people who are predominantly affluent, land prices have skyrocketed.  This had led in some areas where whole fishing communities have had to move away from the water and inland to housing they can afford.

The Outer Banks during the winter

            As a student at the Duke University Marine Laboratory we are situated on our own waterfront island.  While we are not there for the summer we are part of the problem of displacing the locals and creating demand for beachfront property that leads to habitat destruction of species such as sea turtles by paying hefty college tuition.  While I did not personally make the choice to choose to have a building located here I am supporting Duke as an institution who have the fiscal resources to purchase this desirable property. 

A view from Repass, one of the academic buildings at Duke's Marine Laboratory

            Even with this being the situation I have still managed to slip into the local community.  I have met fishermen who engaged in open dialogue, have attended Sierra Club meetings, and have been befriended by local residents who I play racquetball and socializing with.  These groups and people have chosen to look past differences between us and instead looking at the way I act, respect them/their area, and understanding the issues that Beaufort as a community faces.