Thursday, June 9, 2011
FUN CAN CHANGE HUMAN BEHAVIOR
Whether it be speeding or changing how we take care of ourselves and our planet, I believe making it fun is the key to success!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Water
This isn't pretty, and it isn't comfortable, but it is happening and it needs our attention. It isn't overwhelming if we all hold a small piece of the solution. Private industry isn't designed or motivated to change it--but individuals banning together can--we must.
http://waterlife.nfb.ca/
Saturday, May 21, 2011
GREEN? NOT TODAY....
This week was not unusually hectic, but it was busy-crazy busy. I'm not alone here. Chances are that anyone reading this can chime in with plenty of war stories on the state of their schedule, responsibilities, desires, and obligations. We all agree....our schedules are crazy making things. But, I'm not as much interested in focusing on my schedule as I am highlighting its affect on my experience this past week. While in the midst of swinging from one task to another in the kitchen during morning clean-up, I picked up a newly emptied plastic jar of peanut butter. "Ugh", I thought "there it is, staring me down with it's recycle me triangle on the bottom. It really should be recycled, but I HATE cleaning it. Of all things, those jars take the most time to clean, and I just don't have it to spare!" In any case, there it was, taunting me with guilt and images of landfill waste that never breaks down. "Fine! Fine! I thought. I'll do it." I then turned on the faucet directed it to hot and watched the water trickle down the drain wasted as I waited for it to heat up. Lord knows that stubborn peanut butter won't come out without hot--really hot water and plenty of it. During my cleaning session I thought, "which IS the better choice? Sending it to the landfill or wasting the heat and water to clean it to then recycle it......"
Even as I write this, I still have moments when I can't believe it is me who is writing. Seven years ago, I would have been panicked at the thought of a warming planet, and so quickly overwhelmed, I would turn my attention to something else and the faster the better. "Who am I? Little me? I can't affect anything....really." But then, one day my husband and I decided to move and everything changed. We moved our family into a new and experimental community at the time. It's focus: conservation and sustainability. We had homes that were cutting edge in their construction. For the time, they were extremely energy efficient. We had extra insulation, double hung gas filled windows, shingles that were sustainable etc. The neighborhood had miles of walking and riding paths, an organic farm and a neighborhood charter school that focused on sustainability. The whole package was really cool and made me feel good that I was doing right by my kids. And it was and continues to be a wonderful place for those and many other reasons, but there was one thing about this neighborhood that at the time seemed like a minor additional advantage. Little did I know that this "advantage" would play a significant part in steering the rudder of my focus permanently. What was this wonder of sustainability? A neighborhood chat group. Why was this seemingly innocuous platform important? Education and awareness. Yes, most of the information on this chat group has little to nothing to do with recycling, composting or any environmental issues, but just enough of the posts (apparently) do. I didn't really think about it when I moved in, but I had some pretty hard core environmentalists for neighbors. Most people were regular Joes, but some were truly impressive in their knowledge. What happened over time was much like the slow boil of a frog. Information seeped in, and seeped, and seeped to the point that my world view, focus and passion slowly changed. Yes, I still get overwhelmed, but I have loads and loads of hope too! And, it really is going to take all of us working together to sift through the data in order to make the smartest choices possible with our limited time, but little by little...then with bigger and bigger steps we can navigate this new world order that is at our doorsteps.
Even as I write this, I still have moments when I can't believe it is me who is writing. Seven years ago, I would have been panicked at the thought of a warming planet, and so quickly overwhelmed, I would turn my attention to something else and the faster the better. "Who am I? Little me? I can't affect anything....really." But then, one day my husband and I decided to move and everything changed. We moved our family into a new and experimental community at the time. It's focus: conservation and sustainability. We had homes that were cutting edge in their construction. For the time, they were extremely energy efficient. We had extra insulation, double hung gas filled windows, shingles that were sustainable etc. The neighborhood had miles of walking and riding paths, an organic farm and a neighborhood charter school that focused on sustainability. The whole package was really cool and made me feel good that I was doing right by my kids. And it was and continues to be a wonderful place for those and many other reasons, but there was one thing about this neighborhood that at the time seemed like a minor additional advantage. Little did I know that this "advantage" would play a significant part in steering the rudder of my focus permanently. What was this wonder of sustainability? A neighborhood chat group. Why was this seemingly innocuous platform important? Education and awareness. Yes, most of the information on this chat group has little to nothing to do with recycling, composting or any environmental issues, but just enough of the posts (apparently) do. I didn't really think about it when I moved in, but I had some pretty hard core environmentalists for neighbors. Most people were regular Joes, but some were truly impressive in their knowledge. What happened over time was much like the slow boil of a frog. Information seeped in, and seeped, and seeped to the point that my world view, focus and passion slowly changed. Yes, I still get overwhelmed, but I have loads and loads of hope too! And, it really is going to take all of us working together to sift through the data in order to make the smartest choices possible with our limited time, but little by little...then with bigger and bigger steps we can navigate this new world order that is at our doorsteps.
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