Access America

Popular Culture, History, and Current Events

1 February 2023Access Americabird-feeding, ecosystem, Education, February, feeding, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, National Bird-Feeding Month, nature, seagulls, sparrows, wild birds, woodpeckersJanina Malena Sähn

Feeding Feathered Friends in February – National Bird-Feeding Month

By Veronika M. Heinrich

Christmas and New Year’s Eve are over. Now it’s already February, but Valentine’s Day is not really your thing? Worry not! National Bird-Feeding Month has arrived.

It’s just the right time of the year to provide our feathered friends with food and water in our backyards, then sit in front of the window to watch them. It’s a great delight to see them feast on seeds. You can get in touch with nature, take a moment to relax, and help the environment. It’s also cheap, and kids will have a lot of fun learning the different birds’ names.

You’re not familiar with the A and O of bird-feeding yet? Don’t worry about this either – I’ve been feeding birds in my yard for years. Let me feed you the most important titbits you need to know to participate!

25 January 2023Access Americaadvertisments, fast food, Food, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, obesity, obesity epidemic, obesogenic environments, overweightJanina Malena Sähn

Sit, Drink, Eat, Repeat

By Nina Preußler

Did you know that there are now more dangerously overweight than malnourished people in the world? With over one third of their population classified as obese, the United States is one of the countries most affected. It’s easy to jump to conclusions and dismiss the ‘obesity epidemic’ as a symptom of ever-growing laziness in the Western world. Instead, the tripling of the obesity rate in the U.S. over the last 50 years can mostly be attributed to obesogenic environments. You’re asking yourself what that is?

18 December 2022Access AmericaCelebration, Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, Holidays, Jewish traditions, Jews, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, ReligionJanina Malena Sähn

Happy Hanukkah 2022!

By Sabrina Völz

If you live in the United States or in many other places in the world, it’s impossible not to know anything about Christmas. However, the same cannot necessarily be said about the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which begins tonight, on December 18, and runs until Monday, December 26. In honor of the Feast of Dedication, sometimes referred to as the Festival of Lights, I’d like to invite you to watch this short, informative video:

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDMoklVYsvU

7 December 2022Access AmericaChristmas, Christmas Spirit, donations, Gifts, handmade, homemade, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Presents, Sustainability, wrappingJanina Malena Sähn

Six Tips for Perfect Presents – And They’re Sustainable!

By Veronika M. Heinrich

Like every year, Christmas always sneaks up and suddenly you’re confronted with one of the most important tasks of the season: gift shopping.

The shopping malls are crowded, everything seems to be on sale, and above all, you feel that the gift should be sustainable. Finding something that benefits your wallet and the environment is hard. But fear not! This year, I’ve created a checklist to make finding the right present easier for you.

23 November 2022Access AmericaAmerican export, Black Friday, Black Week, capitalism, consumer culture, Cyber Monday, Cyber Week, Economy, FoMo, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, sales, shoppingJanina Malena Sähn

Put On Your Mourning Clothes, it’s Black Friday

By Hannah Quinque

Photo Credit: Finally, an occasion to go shopping! Picture by Powhusku under cc-by-sa‑2.0.

Setting the scene: Gray November skies, seasonal blues at full volume. This Friday: Black. There’s no escaping the loud advertisements in the shop windows, at bus stations, in every mailbox and inbox. They all proclaim that this Friday, the one after Thanksgiving, is the time to start shopping. Even if your country, like Germany, doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Black Friday, consumer culture’s biggest holiday, is one very successful American export. Yet, how we currently view success might not be in tune with the successful continuance of humanity or even a habitable planet earth.
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16 November 2022Access AmericaAmerica First, Breckinridge Long, Film, Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee Shelter, Henry Gibbins, Holocaust, Jewish refugees, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Liberty Ship, NY, Oswego, Reflection, Theater, World War IIJanina Malena Sähn

America and the Holocaust

By Michael Lederer

Beyond a severely limited immigration quota kept to a bare minimum, fewer than a thousand Jewish refugees from Europe were admitted into the U.S. during World War II. In August 1944, they were brought on a single U.S. Liberty ship, then interned behind barbed wire on an old U.S. Army camp upstate New York until after the war had ended. That small lucky group included my father Ivo, his sister Mira, and their parents Otto and Ruza.