We have been brainstorming a Green Manifesto for our Family… We didn’t want a slogan, so much as an action… Folk have spent centuries using their creativity to create more goods, it is time to use our creativity to create a lot less. It is time to stop saying glibly, that the environment can handle just a little more… it really can’t. We have to be the voice and say: “Let’s make a change.”It isn’t enough to be concerned for the environment, or offended by mismanagement… we actually have to do something, we have to get involved.
Respect, Repair, Rehabilitate
When I was a kid being green meant learning about all things ecological, but times have changed and being green is a lot more about being responsible for the environment that we live in. We are part of the environment and we need to make sure that we are a positive part of the environment. We have been talking about things around and around the table and while we can’t change the world there are things that we can do a lot better at. Whoever we are, we are going to make an impact on the earth and the environment, we would like to put a lot more effort into being a positive impact.
Our kids have grown up thinking that living green is fun… “reduce, re-use and recycle” are very much a way of life. They love trying to recycle all the garbage, the love even more to have no garbage… they love a good beach clean-up, they love figuring out ways to save water, do beach clean-ups, they are happy to march for green events and very happy to write letters that might make a difference. But there is a new impetus to our green efforts, and as our kids become more aware of green issues… it is no longer just about the fun, our kids are becoming more aware of the urgency. Our efforts have become bolder as we have become more aware of the problems and the simple changes we can make to our lifestyle to make a difference.
A study of the ocean, and we are thinking about plastic islands in our ocean gyres, a drive across town and we can’t but wonder at the lack of green, the further you get from the wealthier suburbs the further you get from anything remotely green. Our kids are old enough to notice these things, old enough to be concerned and old enough to do something. It is one thing to know that folk shouldn’t litter, it is quite another to see where your garbage goes and realise that we just can’t go on creating garbage mountains.
A lot of green living is simply life style choices, but a lot of it is more than that. Quite a few friends have said that until living green becomes more affordable there is no motivation for folks to change their ways. And I have to say, and I have said it before… not everything is about the money. Certainly when you think about living green it isn’t so much a financial concern but rather a critical concern: It is one thing to see pollution in the harbour and think it is distasteful, it is quite another to think that a small animal could get trapped in a recyclable soda can, or a bird could eat a plastic wrapper. Honestly, being green isn’t just about the money it is about making the world habitable for all the users. And while our environment in some places is groaning under the strain, it can’t actually speak… We have to speak out for the environment… we have to be the voice.
As a family we have made some changes, some folk think they are drastic changes, because we want to be better stewards. We reduced our electricity to a minimum, no tumble dryer and hot water for only a handful of hours a week. We went without a car for eighteen months… and learnt to just walk everywhere. We have a car now but only use it once a week, if all of us are going out. There are more changes we could make and we are always brainstorming more. We spent this Earth Day plotting and planning changes we could make and adjust to… some are big and some are small… but little by little we can make a difference.