Green/Simple Living

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Yet another news story came out this week warning that children aren't getting outside enough on their own to play anymore. This one, from the Daily Mail in the U.K., cites government research finding that a full 25 percent of 8- to 10-year-old British children have never -- that's never -- played outdoors without adult supervision.

That's just sad, and it echoes a situation I commented on in an earlier blog post inspired by a news story about children finding nature "boring" unless it's on TV.

As the parent of a five-year-old boy who's trying to expand his boundaries on a daily, if not hourly basis, I understand the desire to protect your children. I also understand that not all families live in places with close access to a decent playground, a nice park or a bit of real-life nature. But there's got to be a way to do better by our kids, to give them a better chance to explore, learn about and understand the "real" world of nature. Second Life and Wii games aren't the answer.

So here are a few ideas for introducing kids to a world of nature, no matter where they might live: Plant a windowsill garden. Grow a few sunflowers in a patch of dirt outside. Sit on the porch, or even by an open window, and watch for -- and listen for -- birds. Buy some ladybugs to set loose in your backyard as natural pest control. In short, do, don't watch.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

There's no escaping the fact that we humans have done a lot to foul our planet. And just because our waste might not be in our own backyards doesn't mean it shouldn't concern us.

Case in point: A sailor named Charles Moore, taking a rarely used Pacific Ocean shortcut in 1997, came upon seas filled with plastic trash that just kept coming, day after day after day. Today, that "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" has grown to an area twice the size of the continental U.S. And it's likely to double in size over the next 10 years if people don't start reducing their use of plastic, Moore warns.

But how easy it is to buy plastic every day and not think about where it eventually ends up. In fact, it's darned hard not to buy plastic in one form or another: shampoo bottles, ketchup bottles, toothbrushes, computer keyboards, disposable pens, flashlights, dish scrubbers, etc. And even if you're fanatical about recycling as much as you can, it's almost impossible for the average person to recycle everything.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is just one sign that it's time for us to remake our lifestyles. Between climate change and depleting fresh water aquifers, dwindling fossil fuel supplies and expanding ocean dead zones, the message from Planet Earth is clear and growing louder every day: 'Stop messing me up, because you have to live here too.'

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

If you're concerned about climate change and looking for ways to be part of the solution, it's not too late to join in on the "Focus the Nation" teach-in, which kicks off on the evening of Wednesday, Jan. 30.

Focus the Nation organizers have signed up more than 1,600 colleges, universities, faith organizations and civic groups across the U.S. to participate in an all-day discussion of global warming and possible solutions on Thursday, Jan. 31.

Before the national teach-in, though, Focus the Nation participants can take part in a live, interactive Webcast of "The 2% Solution," which airs at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 30, on Earth Day Television. Leading the online discussion will be climate scientist Stephen Schneider, sustainability proponent Hunter Lovins and social justice activist and attorney Van Jones.

In addition to the all-day teach-in, Focus the Nation is also encouraging participants to join in a "Green Politics" movement by meeting with their elected officials to discuss their concerns about climate change. The movement is focused on establishing nationwide momentum for positive change before February 2008, when the newly elected U.S. president and Congress begin setting their agenda for the nation.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's recent announcement that meat from cloned animals was safe to eat launched an avalanche of commentary from foodies, consumer advocates, environmentalists and others, both online and off. If you really want to be green, though, the prospect of cloned meat needn't be an issue: you're better off leaving meat out of your diet entirely anyway.

That's because meat production in general is an environmentally costly business. For example, it takes five pounds of grain to produce a single pound of beef. And producing just a quarter-pound of beef requires 4,500 gallons of water, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The livestock business also uses up billions of pounds of fertilizer (to grow feed grain), produces trillions of pounds of manure and generates almost one-fifth of the world's methane emissions.

So leave it to others to worry about whether it makes sense to eat cloned animals. From an eco-standpoint, it really doesn't make sense to eat any animals at all.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

There've been many times in recent years when news from the outside world seems so bad I can't help but feel depressed and miserable. The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina sent me into a funk for weeks, and the ongoing news about climate change could easily push me into a permanent down mood, if I let it.

I've resolved, though, not to let it. After all, if I'm doing the best I can to live well and effect change for the better, shouldn't I also do what I can to enjoy what I have? Not stuff, of course: I can live without plenty of stuff. But the joyful things of life, even if they're only here for a little while or are threatened by global change.

For me, those joyful things are spending time with and talking with my family, playing silly games with my almost-five-year-old son, laughing at funny movies with my husband, getting a chill down my spine from a Mozart concerto or gazing on the beautiful blue-green waters and bright-white sands of the beaches near my home. It's listening to early-morning birds chirping in my backyard, spotting the first sprouts of the garden vegetables I've planted or taking that first sip of a really nice cabernet.

Too often, green-minded and environmentally-focused people are accused of being messengers of doom and gloom. While the real-world news might not be so great, we don't have to make it worse for ourselves with self-inflicted misery. So, whatever gives you joy -- smelling a rose, baking bread, taking a walk in the woods, sewing your own clothes -- be sure to find time for it, at least a little bit, every day.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

With the New Year just days away, most of us are probably thinking about ways to improve ourselves in 2008. Lose weight. Exercise more. Read more. Save more. Eat better. And on and on.

Rather than adopt such piecemeal resolutions, though, I believe it's more productive to make it my New Year's goal to live as environmentally responsibly as possible. That resolution, if followed, automatically makes all the other typical resolutions come true too.

How? Well, if you're following a truly green lifestyle, you're eating fewer processed foods, buying more local produce, consuming less meat and maybe even growing some of your own food in a backyard or container garden. All the latest research on diet and health tells you that means you'll be healthier and, most likely, lose weight too.

If you're aiming to be as environmentally responsible as possible, you'll also walk or cycle more than drive. Again, more exercise, better fitness, less weight.

Reducing your consumption of unnecessary goods, or buying used when you really need something, is not only environmentally kind but kind on your wallet as well. So you save money by trying to be more green.

And what about the resolution to read more? If you've made living green a personal goal already, you know that it helps to continually inform and enlighten yourself. The more you know, the more green you can be. (Just be sure to choose books from the library or used bookstores whenever possible, to conserve on resources ... and money.)

Clearly, the best resolution for the New Year is to live as green as possible. That done, many of your other goals just naturally fall into place.

On that note, best wishes to all for a happy, healthy and prosperous -- in the greenest of ways -- New Year!

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

It's easy to become frustrated at the lack of resolve we so often see among politicians and agencies dealing with environmental issues. There's so much they could do to improve the Earth for everyone, but so little they often seem to accomplish.

Feeling like that, though, can become a road to disheartenment and helplessness. That doesn't help anyone -- yourself included -- or anything.

So the next time you find yourself frustrated about yet another roadblock set up by a developed nation in the fight against global warming, or yet another vote for a polluting industry over environmental protection, take a deep breath and acknowledge you can't change everything. Then realize that, at least, you can always be a "green army of one."

That means working every day to make the best environmental choices you can. To reduce your consumption of fossil fuels, plastics, chemicals and junk. To reduce the amount of waste you produce. To make a difference -- however small -- for your own world. Because feeling like you can make a difference is always better than feeling powerless and frustrated.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

While I've been thinking about how to prepare for the coming holidays and what to give the people who mean most to me, I've discovered an interesting thing: the greener I get, the more meaningful my holiday celebrations have become.



When it comes to gift-giving, for example, I find that I spend more time quietly reflecting on the things my friends and family members would most need and appreciate. I also focus more on ways to make those gifts environmentally friendly, whether they're fair-trade, carbon-neutral, recycled or homemade. As a result, I discover I'm less likely to experience the negatives most people associate with the holidays: overflowing shopping mall parking lots, long lines at cash registers, obnoxious canned "holiday" music and junky gifts that no one either wants or needs.



In making a greater effort to work with what I already have and plan for celebrations that are both simple and eco-friendly, I've also found that the holidays are more stress-free and lighter on both the planet and my pocketbook. That's helped me to enjoy the holidays more for the reasons they should be enjoyed: to reflect on and give thanks for the blessings in my life, and to make the most of them all, whether they're family, friends, health or happiness.



I hope that you, too, find that going green helps make your holiday celebrations more meaningful -- no matter which holidays you celebrate.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Consumers. It's such a common description of people these days, we hardly bother to think about the implications. But if we stop to look below the surface and consider what it really means, we might find it's time to redefine ourselves.

Do we exist just to consume? Not our basic consumption needs -- food, water, shelter, clothing -- but stuff. Because that appears to be the way in which people are most valued these days, as shoppers, buyers and spenders.

As consumers, though, we're not encouraged to make choices that are wise, sustainable, healthy or green. We're encouraged only to get out there and support the economy, to keep the great engine of commerce chugging along.

Of course, a healthy economy is important for everyone. But an economy based solely on consumption for consumption's sake is what's led us to where we are today: a world facing dire environmental problems that threaten plants, animals and people alike.

The solution is to redefine ourselves first as citizens of the Earth or fellow human beings. Then, whenever we need to buy something -- whether it's a loaf of bread, a new pair of shoes, a birthday present or a coffee-maker -- we can let our purchasing decisions be guided by that environmentally responsible perspective, rather than by a label others have tagged us with.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

One of the more aggravating responses I often see to articles or comments about the damage we're doing to our environment is, "You just want everyone to 1) go back to the Dark Ages, 2) eat bark and live in caves or 3) die." While such reactions sound ridiculous, I hear them often enough that I believe they need to be addressed head-on.

Part of the problem stems from news and science itself: there seems to be such a growing body of bad news and disturbing new findings about climate change, biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and so on that it's hard not to feel pessimistic or depressed. Understanding the urgency of the world's environmental troubles, though, doesn't mean we as environmentalists want these troubles -- we're just acknowledging reality. The nay-sayers, though, see this as gloom-and-doom thinking.

The other part of the problem arises from a difference in philosophy. If you're green-minded and you're concerned about the havoc we're inflicting on the globe, you're probably taking lots of personal actions to make a difference and agitating -- online, in the real world or both -- for businesses, governments and other organizations to take action too. So, when you don't see enough evidence of such action, it's easy to feel discouraged.

Again, though, this doesn't mean we eco-minded types are hoping for disaster. We're just trying to get through to others who haven't yet acknowledged the seriousness of today's problems. And that's a step in the right direction, not a wish for doom.