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Sustainable Living Every Day
Big Environmental Issues We Can All Act On 

A Day in the life of an Environmentally Responsible Citizen

From a tongue-in-cheek but serious look at environmental events website: http://www.grist.org

Dearest Reader,

So many annoyed readers wrote to chide me on avoiding the paper-or-plastic question. Sorry. I try to entice us all toward bigger themes, with mixed success. Here is an old exploration of the bag issue. The correct answer to the grocery bagger's question is, "Neither, thank you, I brought my own."

So what about the other choices we face every day? Remember, even though we are obsessed with them, they are not as important as we want to believe. Many of them make no difference, except in giving us another point on which to obsess, and we should be conserving our energy for more important -- are you still reading? OK, I will review the perfect tiny-choice day, as I currently understand it from my years of writing this column. You know I spend all day in the basement, so I'll have to scrape the brain barrel for this one, and I might not cover it all.

We wake up in organic and/or hemp sheets, take a shower not a bath, shave with a metal razor, put on air-dried clothes, and have fair-trade coffee. Greet the rest of our efficient household, with whom we share energy-efficient appliances. Pack our old metal lunch box or tiffin. Bike or bus to work. (If we drive, carpool, and at a steady, sensible speed in an efficient -- perhaps even alternative-fuel -- car. Also, open the windows instead of using the AC, and never idle.)

At work, we use a solid mug for coffee, buy recycled paper and reuse as much as possible, plus print as little as possible. We see that our computer goes to sleep quickly and is turned off, along with all other appliances and the lights, when we leave for the day. Maybe we don't work in an office: drivers, plot an efficient route; chefs, try to buy organic and compost scraps; teachers, encourage appreciation of nature in your students.

Then go home, stopping for any necessary errands on the way. No errands that involve purchasing useless, disposable plastic tchotchkes. We fill our cloth shopping bags with fresh, local, vegetarian, unprocessed foods and products with recycled content; no farmed fish, hair dye, nail polish, leg wax, flushable toilet-bowl brushes, diapers, scented candles, tropical fish, or new diamond rings. We cook dinner in the microwave or toaster oven, then put the unrinsed dishes in the efficient dishwasher and food waste in the compost, never using a garbage disposal.

We spend the evening with our family or friends doing a variety of low-impact activities. The following are out: snowmobiling, leaf-blowing, jet-skiing, pesticiding the lawn, tumble-drying clothes, cleaning the tub with toxic chemicals, turning the thermostat to 75 degrees. These others are recommended: walk to nearby entertainment, gather with neighbors and plan to destroy local invasive plants, turn compost, knit, pogo-stick, build a Christmas tree, read The Lorax out loud, watch Hayao Miyazaki movies, turn up the radio and dance all night.

Respectfully,

Umbra
http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2005/10/24/eco-day/index.html?source=weekly 

Ten Important Issues to Work On for an Environmentally Sustainable World

22 Aug 2005

Dear Umbra,

What are some everyday things I could do to protect the environment? Like choosing plastic or paper, that kind of thing.

Yours
Caring individual

Dearest Individual,

Your good question has a surprising answer, and it's one I'm happy to repeat as often as necessary: None of the important things has to do with paper or plastic, or any of the daily choices most of us spend lots of time pondering. We need to think bigger.

Think outside the bag. I've compared and contrasted a random pile of "Top Ten Things You Can Do" lists -- to see how my own Consumption Manifesto stacks up, and to see if there are any looming battles over What's Important. Nope. The pool includes: Sierra Club [PDF], Population Connection [PDF], U.S. PIRG, the David Suzuki Foundation, and the Union of Concerned Scientists (mwah!).

There are two items on which all agree: buy the most fuel-efficient vehicle possible, and use it as little as possible. Instead, use mass transit, your feet, your bicycle, etc. You know this, but do you do it every day? The only people who do are those who don't own cars -- and even they sometimes borrow mine. So we all can improve here.

Two other areas of harmony: light bulbs and letter writing. Compact fluorescent bulbs should be at the top of your shopping list until you run out of sockets. Then, under their soothing (and long-lasting) glow, sit and write your representatives (you can find their addresses online or in your phone book).

But wait! More agreement to agree: make your home, including your appliances, as efficient as possible. Some lists give this as multiple tasks, some as one, but all want you to determine where your dwelling loses energy -- an audit may help -- and then fix the leaks. Also, when you have extra cash, or experience tragic appliance death, replace large appliances with Energy Star versions.

I think that is plenty to keep you busy, what with licking stamps and caulking windows. But in case your home is already weatherproofed and your hand is cramped, here are the things vying to round out the lists: Plant trees in your neighborhood, yard, or vicinity. Choose clean power if it is available in your community. Reduce your water usage. Have a meat-free day once a week, and buy locally produced foods. Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Have a small family and teach them to tend the planet. And, finally, get involved by joining, supporting, or starting an environmental organization.

There you are. Nothing to do with paper or plastic, but I'm positive you can find something to do each day from this list. I know I can.

Contritely,

Umbra
http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2005/08/22/umbra-eitheror/index.html