Tonight I had the opportunity to serve as a moderator for the Richmond-Wayne County Legislative debates for contested seats in Wayne County. I did so under the label of a young adult professional, but also thoroughly enjoyed participating in the process as someone interested in local politics, policy and community-building. It was rewarding to see some of the questions I had helped to craft posed to the current and future leaders in our government, and while there are so many parts of local governing and elections that need improvement or replacement, I am energized by the commitment to service demonstrated by so many of the candidates in one form or another. Thanks to them for that.
Did you watch or attend the debates (or listen to them)? What did you think?
During the Third U.S. Conference on Peak Oil and Community Solutions that I attended last month, I found myself surrounded by an amazing group of hundreds of people who were trying to make changes in the world to move us (the human species) toward sustainability. While I do not limit my thinking on sustainability to the slogan "be the change you want to see in the world" (article on that is forthcoming), I thought it might be useful to take an inventory of the things I'm doing in my own life to reduce my impact on the world and my resource usage in our culture. I also thought it would be important to start to list the areas where I still need to make progress.
I don't publish this information as any sort of prescription for anyone else; there are millions of ways to make changes in our lives to do less harm, and not all of them look anything like the below (and some of them contradict the below), so I fully respect that this is what works for me as I experiment, and it may not work for anyone else. There is no one right way to be more sustainable. However, if you find this list useful, or have suggestions or feedback on it, I hope you'll contact me to let me know.
Things I do in my life to reduce my unsustainable resource usage:
I've created, participate in and financially support multiple community-oriented programs that promote and educate others around messages related to sustainability.
I have a rain barrel in my yard to collect rainwater for use in gardening and yard work. It reduces the amount of filtered and treated city water I use by just a little bit, but rainwater is also better for my plants.
I mow my yard less than neighborly convention might dictate. I'm working on using a scythe to replace my gas-powered mower (and increase my physical exercise!).
I replaced the old drafty windows in my house with newer and more sealed ones. This helps reduce the energy needed to keep me comfortable inside. Unfortunately, the replacement windows are made up significantly of petroleum-based products.
I had a super high-efficiency furnace installed in my house.
I don't use air conditioning at my house more than 3 or 4 days per year, and use ceiling fans, window shading, and other methods instead. (I do, however, work in an air-conditioned office, so I can't claim to be braving the heat every day.)
I live in a small town that is easy to get around, has the potential for great community-building, and has a heritage that involves peace and justice, sustainable agriculture and entrepreneurial solutions to difficult problems.
I've replaced all of the conventional incandescent light bulbs in my house with compact fluorescent bulbs. These are supposed to last much longer and use much less energy.
I wash my dishes by hand.
I purchased a high-efficiency front-loading washing machine
I also purchased a high-efficiency drier, but there really isn't such a thing, so I try to use a clothesline to dry my laundry in the sun when I can.
I have been working on putting my appliances that use phantom power on power strips that I can turn off when I'm not using them.
I participate in my city's recycling program
I compost all organic waste from my cooking and store it in the big compost bin next to my garden.
I try to buy goods and services from local businesses when possible. This reduces the amount of resources required to bring those items to me, and supports a strong local economy that can be more resilient to fluctuations in energy prices. I especially try not to buy goods and services from businesses that I feel are actively harming local/regional/national natural resources, engaging in slave labor, or participating in the cultural trends toward sacrificing our planet and its lifeforms in the name of increased consumerism.
I support my local food cooperative by volunteering and serving on their board of directors, and by ordering household staples in bulk from them.
I try to avoid eating food that will poison my body and potentially increase the resources needed to keep me healthy (now or in the future)
I avoid buying new products and clothing when I can find them in like-new condition by shopping at Goodwill or the Salvation Army.
I have installed or am installing low-flow shower heads in my showers.
I avoid using household chemical products that pollute and cause medical problems
I ride my bicycle when I have time. Having time to ride a bike is a relative/subjective/complex thing, so I'm working on ways to make more time for riding instead of driving.
I walk places when I have time. Having time to walk is a relative/subjective/complex thing, so I'm working on ways to make more time for walking.
When I do drive, I drive a car that gets reasonably high gas mileage (i.e. not an SUV) and I try to minimize my trips.
I have a garden where I sometimes grow my own food instead of buying it from retailers who have produced it with a variety of chemicals, packaged it with a variety of non-reusable materials, and shipped it from all around the world using a variety of petroleum resources.
I work on sharing tools and equipment with my neighbors when we can.
At the company I co-own, I direct our management and "human resources" practices to encourage community and sustainability in our business activities.
Things I do in my life that aren't so sustainable, or areas where I could improve (a beginning list...I'm sure this could be quite long if one looked at all the details):
I live in and contribute to a culture that is inherently unsustainable
My day job is centered around the use of computers and related electronics equipment , which are some of the most wasteful and energy-intensive products to produce in the world. Their production, usage and disposal is one of the top contributors to environmental pollution, workforce exploitation, and global consumerism in the world.
I still buy lots of goods and services from non-local businesses, and/or businesses that actively participate in harm against the land or against other people.
I have too much stuff in my house. Too much stuff means more time and energy spent managing and repairing that stuff, and less time having fun. I need to have more fun and less stuff.
I don't bike or walk nearly as much as I could if I made more changes to support that lifestyle.
I don't grow nearly as much food as I could if I made more changes to support that lifestyle.
I still eat foods that poison my body.
A significant portion of my income helps to fund violence and oppression committed against people around the world.
I don't put enough energy into being a more active participant in my community - getting to know my neighbors, developing relationships that allow me to give support and get support, etc.
...
The adventure of doing all of the above is certainly not reflected in these simple bullet listings. In some cases, they were simple changes that required little or no money or time. Others were significant financial investments or major lifestyle changes. And many are ongoing, where I'm still feeling out the effects of my decisions and still finding ways to do better.
I recently created a new website that I hope grows into a useful resource in our community. Progressive Wayne County is an interactive community site that promotes and chronicles the progressive efforts of individuals, organizations and businesses in the area. I figured there were enough places you could go to read or talk about not-so-progressive happenings, and I'm all into creating balance in the universe, so there you go.
The site still needs a lot of work to make it more collaborative and relevant, but I'm excited about the possibilities. The greatest part of it is that anyone can add content to it (news, events, blog entries, etc.) so it's not just about what I think of as progressive or know about going on. If you have comments or suggestions, send them my way!
I'm writing tonight from the Third U.S. Conference on "Peak Oil" and Community Solutions. You may recall that I attended the same event last year, and it's been an amazing time again so far. It's also appropriate that I mention from this context my involvement in a new non-profit called Sustainable Indiana, Inc, founded by my friend Frank Cicela (who also hosted the Indiana Energy Conference earlier this year). We're constructing it as an umbrella organization to facilitate building community resources related to sustainable living in Crawfordsville, and then making the process and "kit" from our efforts available to help other Indiana communities (and beyond) recreate the same kinds of resources in their area. Of course, I'll be working on trying out a few particular projects in Richmond as well. And we've already got some press coverage, a front page article in today's Crawfordsville Journal Review...yay. More soon on these important topics.
Every now and then (and several times recently), I'll hear someone use That Phrase, and it tends to be jolting. They have a troubling experience, and when they are recounting it, they say "it made me want to kill myself." Variations often include "it made me want to slit my throat" or "I wanted to blow my brains out" or, less violently, "Oh my gosh, I just wanted to die."
I know that the people who say these things usually intend them to mean "I was so embarrassed/disturbed/upset/whatever by that experience that it numbed my senses and temporarily made me unable to function." And I suppose that in an age where finding just the right expression to boldly and cleverly convey our complex emotions (perhaps without really revealing what they are) is all-important to being cool, using the very raw and attention-getting experiences of suicide, death and dismemberment as material is an appealing way to go. When someone says that something was merely "horrible" or "shocking," it's easy to tune them out since there are so many horrible and shocking things shown to us every day. But when they effectively say "it made me want to end my life," we're not yet so desensitized that we don't sit up and pay attention, at least for a little bit. Continue reading "It makes me want to kill myself"→
Earlier in life I had a job as the senior front desk clerk at a national hotel chain. I made reservations, served breakfast, transferred calls, checked people in, checked people out, cleaned the pool, cleaned rooms when housekeeping had left for the day, chatted with vacationers and placated frustrated guests. The experience has instilled in me a great deal of appreciation (and sympathy) for those who work in any sort of hospitality business, but it has also made me acutely aware of particular lapses by the same when I visit. Earlier this week I was traveling through Eastern Pennsylvania and ended up having to stay in a Ramada hotel when the camping plans I had (which I was really looking forward to) didn't pan out. Ooops. Here's what happened: Continue reading "Customer service done poorly by Ramada"→
In April of 2005, I made a personal commitment related to my purchasing decisions here in Richmond. I published the text of my pledge online, and have since found that hundreds of others have come to share that commitment in writing, and many more have communicated their support in other ways, which is very heartening. It was never been my expectation that everyone should share this commitment, or that my point of view is the right one and that another point of view is the wrong one. I was and am and exercising the great civic freedom to choose how and where I spend my money, based on my values about the businesses and organizations that I want to support. And as I recently heard it asked, "what is the point of having values if you don't act on them?"
As a resident of Richmond for eleven years and a business owner here for
nine years, I'm very much invested in the growth of our community. But growth means different things to different people. Shortly after the newspaper coverage of my pledge, I received a message from a prominent Richmond businessperson and political figure indicating his frustration with my actions. I thought the conversation we had that proceeded would be useful to post here, more than a year later. (I've removed any identifying information from the exchange; he can identify himself if he so desires.)
There's a book meme going around, and Eric has tagged me. As he says, "a meme is an idea that spreads...Meme ideas spread by imitation, by exact copying and inexact copying. Memes can be melodies, catch-phrases, stories, clothing fashions, and ways of making pots. Many memes spread unintentionally in the course of casual conversation and story-telling. Bloggers deliberately spread some memes as ways to inspire new posts."
So, here I am, answering the questions from this book meme:
It would be nice if some day we could say, "great, now we know about ALL of the human-made products and processes that can give us cancer and harm the planet, now let's start doing something about them." But alas, it seems that everywhere you look, there's a new story about a chemical or drug or food or way of raising your children that can endanger our lives. Some of it is fear-mongering, but some of it is an honest and long-overdue look at the products and practices that we take for granted, examining them for harm they might cause and seeking healthier alternatives. And in her award winning film Blue Vinyl, that's just what Judith Hefland has done with...get ready for it...vinyl siding. Continue reading "A review of Blue Vinyl"→
Over the weekend I visited the Fazoli's drive through on my way out of town - it's the closest thing we've got to an Italian restaurant (though maybe not for long) and I have a certain affinity for it after having worked at one as a teenager for one of my first real jobs (it did take me a 10 year hiatus to wash all of the garlic butter out of my clothes before I could go back, but hey...). This particular visit to the restaurant was horrible - garbled drive through communication, messed up order, improper packaging that led to messes and burning of skin, etc.
As I tend to do, I used Fazoli's web-based comment system last night to describe my experience in hopes of helping them make things better. I was really impressed that today, I got a calls from the store manager and the regional manager, both telling me how devastated (their word) they were about my experience. When I talked to the store manager further, she went into detail about the specific things they should have done differently, and mentioned what steps she was taking to prevent it from happening again. And of course, she said "it would make her feel better" if she could send me some coupons. I really appreciate that.
So from a customer service perspective, despite the negative initial experience, they did everything else right:
They made it really easy to contact them with my comments and concerns
They quickly and sincerely acknowledged my concerns, and showed me that it was important to them to take action
They addressed the specifics of my comments and what should have been done differently, without making excuses
