蜜桃影视

This is part of our Community Cultivator series, which highlights how innovators across all sectors build and sustain global communities from the ground up.

During her 205 days on the International Space Station, astronaut Jessica Meir had a little green friend. It wasn鈥檛 a Martian, it was mizuna lettuce that she tended as part of an experiment. 鈥淭here was definitely a psychological component of having something green we could take care of,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e also got to eat it.鈥�

Meir鈥檚 time in the station, during which she took part in the first all-female space walk, coincided with the start of the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. 鈥淚t was surreal,鈥� she recalls. 鈥淭here were 7.5 billion people confronting this global crisis, and three who weren鈥檛.鈥� And though the astronauts kept busy with their projects, they found time to post advice to earth-bound humans suffering from cabin fever: get exercise, stick to a schedule, be kind to each other and remember to have fun.

Meir also played piccolo in the space station. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the same air pressure,鈥� she says. 鈥淪ound acts the same.鈥� Zero gravity also facilitated an accomplishment she could never quite manage back on Earth: doing a cartwheel.

The space station embodies both the pinnacle of technological achievement and an ideal of international harmony. 鈥淥n the ground,鈥� , 鈥渢he United States and Russia might have conflicting interests, but in space, 250 miles above Earth, they get along nicely. On the International Space Station, American astronauts and Russian cosmonauts share meals, routines and a stunning view of our little planet.鈥�

Viewing the Earth from outer space is a privilege fewer than 600 people have ever experienced, and nearly all of them report being deeply moved. 鈥淚t had the most profound effect on me.鈥� Meir says. 鈥淚 wish every human could experience that feeling of interconnectedness. You just can鈥檛 get enough of it.鈥�

There鈥檚 a name for this phenomenon, the Overview Effect.

Meir, a child of immigrants, grew up in northern Maine. 鈥淚t was very remote,鈥� she says. 鈥淎mong the trees and lakes, I learned to love nature and biology. I was lucky to have great teachers.鈥� She mentions a seventh grade science teacher and a freshman biology teacher both named Thibodeau鈥攍ess of a coincidence than one might think, given the French-Canadian population in that part of the world.

Climbing trees in rural Maine and orbiting the planet come together in one important lesson: 鈥淲e need to think more about our environment. We need to take care of our beautiful planet.鈥�

The majority of an astronaut鈥檚 career is spent on the ground. Meir embraces the part of her job that involves inspiring children and offers these tips on how to be effective.

1. Remember to appreciate everything and everyone that brought you to this moment. Astronauts are the ones who get celebrated, but the entire NASA apparatus makes it possible. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 devise the experiments,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e the operators. And when it comes to physiology, we鈥檙e the subjects.鈥� In addition to growing plants, she participated in studies exploring why artery walls thicken in zero gravity. In six months, they may age the equivalent of ten years鈥攁 condition that might be reversed with exercise upon an astronaut鈥檚 return.

2. Practice your 鈥渆xpeditionary skills.鈥� This is NASA-speak for being a team player. Meir says that being the best, smartest or fastest will only get you so far. It鈥檚 also about what she calls 鈥済ood leadership and good followership.鈥� Think about taking care of equipment that other people have to use after you. Remember to share and cooperate, whether you鈥檙e in a space capsule or a pre-K classroom. 鈥淏e the kind of people you would want to go camping with,鈥� she advises.

3. There鈥檚 no shortage of worthy causes right now. 鈥淚 just like to encourage people to really get involved,鈥� Meir says. 鈥淭hink about those who are less fortunate.鈥� Whether it鈥檚 children in your own community, people on the other side of the world, or animals facing extinction, getting involved in an issue, becoming an expert and educating others is how humans make a difference. Social media can amplify lonely feelings if it鈥檚 directed inward, but it鈥檚 also a way of accessing momentum and energy that make you feel more connected.

4. Emphasize shared interests. Everybody knows we live in a time of deep political and ideological division, but if the view from the Space Station teaches anything, it鈥檚 this: 鈥淭here are far more commonalities than differences.鈥� If you鈥檙e going to work alongside someone or even co-exist, start with the things you have in common. Babies, dogs and the weather are extremely safe territory upon which to build a productive relationship.

5. Make sure you鈥檙e doing what you love. You鈥檙e far more likely to excel if you鈥檙e in a role that you enjoy. This doesn鈥檛 mean you won鈥檛 have to do anything you don鈥檛 like. Meir admits she鈥檚 bad at waking up. 鈥淓ven the morning of my launch,鈥� she recalls, 鈥淚 had trouble getting out of bed.鈥� She always wanted to be an astronaut, but she recognizes that some people don鈥檛 find their true calling until later in life. Until that happens, see steps 1 through 4.

This story originally published on Early Learning Nation and is now archived on 蜜桃影视. Learn more here.