Walking the talk
It's not enough to just sit and theorize, dream and write about a greener future for society. It's up to us to begin it.
The website of Path To Freedom urban homestead carries a list of “Steps Along the Path.”
I began keeping a list of the lifestyle changes we've been making toward a more Sustainable existence. My list includes enviro accomplishments, goals toward which I'm currently working, and big dreams for the future.
Here's a glimpse into our family life ...
FOOD, GOODS & HABITS
* Cooking from scratch, daily (for health, financial cost-savings, home-orientation)
* Have eliminated many prepared and packaged foods
* The predominance of the produce we purchase is either local or organic or both. A portion is from our home garden (was more significant % before book-writing hiatus).
* Emphasise “reduce” and “reuse”, understanding that “rebuy” and “recycle” are less preferable to reduction in the first place. eliminating the “disposable” mindset.
* Reduce: have eliminated most household disposables in favor of reuseable versions: kleenex (handkerchiefs), paper towels (dishtowels), paper napkins (cloth napkins), feminine products (gladrags), plastic baggies (reuseable jars, pyrex, plasticware), saran wrap (pot lids, inverted plates, cloth napkins)
* Reduce: minimal personal care items, such as makeup & “beauty” products
* Reduce: opt-out on junk mail and catalog mailings whenever possible
* Reuse: use canvas bags for most shopping
* Reuse: Heavy user of public library
* Reuse: buy second hand clothes, especially for children
* Reuse: outgrown clothing & educational materials are passed on to other families
* Reuse: refillable soap cannisters, reuseable garden accoutrements, reuse the few plastic bags we do acquire
* Reuse: salvage discards by residential and corporate neighbors (paper, furniture, building supplies, etc.)
* Reuse of home office supplies: use 2 sides of everything, use junk mail for notes
* Recycling everything possible, checking city website for updates in the list of things which can be recycled through the city program
* Rebuy: Use 100% recycled paper toilet tissue (Trader Joes brand)
* Rebuy: buy 100%recycled paper for sparing use in home printer (available at Staples); buy refurbished print cartridges and recycle when used
* Habits: have reduced “shopping” in general. Most shopping trips are for food purchases. We avoid chain stores such as Target, where we always seem to pick up more than we really need.
* Habits: Walk to some friends’ homes, to some children’s classes, to local support organization meetings
* Habits: use extra clothing, throws and quilts rather than turning up thermostat. Natural ventilation rather than air conditioning.
* Habits: utilize natural daylight, natural warming/cooling of sun/shade, natural ventilation in the home
TOOLS, TECHNIQUES, TECHNOLOGIES
* Energy efficient lighting: compact fluorescents in all key locations
* elect Green Power (renewable sourced) through our local power supplier
* use “solar-powered, wind-powered” clothes dryer most of the time
* NEW: selected Energy-Star energy efficient refrigerator, when old fridge needed replacement
* use a laptop rather than desktop (some sources say laptop is 20% less energy)
* Use low-impact cleaning products (diluted vinegar plus microfiber cloths for most cleaning; baking soda in lieu of Comet; biodegradable soaps such as Sal Suds, Trader Joes laundry and dishwasher soap; Citrasolv used sparingly)
* Functional handcrafts: knitting sweaters, sewing clothes, building and repairing household items
* Built 2 homemade solar ovens, and converted one to a dehydrator for the peach season
* Weekly shopping (in a community where most residents do frequent trips and much take-out cuisine)
* NEW: Wiser automobile: we use a Prius when we need to use a car (averaging about 44mpg)
* Carpool quite often
LAND & NATURE STEWARDSHIP
* Reclaimed more than 2500sqft of property (thus far) which prior owner had dedicated to lawn. Refrained from increasing any hardscape.
* Organic gardening, combining several sustainable growing techniques
* Seed-saving: Cultivating own open-pollinated vegetables - no longer purchase seed for snow peas, chard, cilantro, par cel, daikon, parsnips, salsify, arugula, frisee, currant tomatoes, tomatillos
* Enthusiastic composting
* Natural pest control (herbs, companion plants, predatory species)
* Preserved a rare heirloom pumpkin variety - grew out, and returned seed to seed bank after seed bank was destroyed by arsonists
* Xeriscape landscaping, segueing to edible landscape (plant list in .pdf)
* Backyard Wildlife Habitat, certified by National Wildlife Federation
* Familiarity with local native plants and with many local birds, butterflies, insects
CULTURE & EDUCATION
* Family size consciously limited to replacement value (2 children)
* Attachment parenting, stay-at-home-mom (previous era included natural childbirth, breastfeeding, family bed)
* Homeschooling, some unschooling
* Children participate in many of these earth-wiser practices
* Confidant autodidactic (= self-taught) in organic gardening, environmental issues, health, craftsmanship and more
* have boycotted most mainstream media sources (TV, newspaper, magazines) since circa 1988 to steer clear of the fear-generating sensationalist presentation, together with the consumption-promoting corporate influences
* Fallen in love with family and home, thus we’re quite content to be here
* adopting a family rhythm which allows for contemplation (as contrasted with overscheduling our calendar)
* paradigm switch (circa 1992) from mainstream status- and consumption-orientation to Sufficiency and a conscious effort to tread more lightly upon the earth
* adoption of Arthur Waskow’s “constantly moving standard in which the test is: Are we constantly doing what is more respectful, less damaging to the earth than we did last year?”
* Global thinker, via books and the internet; Local activist.
HEALTH & SPIRIT
* Natural health practices, much do-it-ourselves, many remedies from foods or garden
* follow a modified Sally Fallon (Nourshing Traditions) diet
* minimal use of sugar in diet (better for our health, plus eliminates a long-distance item which often supports detrimental socio-economic practices)
* minimal use of wheat/gluten in diet (better for our health, plus eliminates a long-distance item which often supports detrimental agricultural practices)
* eliminated coffee (better for our health, plus eliminates a long-distance imported item which is often not-fair-trade and often supports detrimental agricultural practices)
* paradigm switch (circa 1992) from mainstream status- and consumption-orientation to striving toward Sufficiency and a conscious effort to tread more lightly upon the earth
* Living our bliss: writing, music collecting, giving to a greater good
COMMUNITY
* Surrounding ourselves with like-minded friends, who encourage, support, inspire, admire, cheer our efforts
* Among our like-minded friends the “fashionable” is to strive for more awareness and earth-friendly choices. Less is more.
* Outreach: book, website, articles, public speaking
* Outreach: formed a support organization toward Sustainable urban lifestyles - the Westchester-based Environmental Change-Makers (my son and I walk to the meetings!)
* Outreach: seeing fruit of labors as Environmental Change-Makers members change their lifestyle habits, and as they reach out to other people and organizations with the message of lifestyle change
FINANCE, ECONOMICS, POLITICS
* made sacrifices to afford stay-at-home-mom family dynamic - “work less, spend less” (and thus much of this list is accomplished by one woman while simultaneously homeschooling two growing children)
* paradigm switch (about 12 yrs ago) from mainstream status- and consumption-orientation to Sufficiency (term of reference: Donella Meadows)
* Local economies: Heavy user of local farmers market
* Bought greenhouse gas / carbon offsets for our old car and utilities
* Buy used/second-hand items (= financial cost savings, but also Reuse philosophy)
* Support non-profits which pursue sustainably-oriented purposes (Heifer International, etc)
* Global thinker, via books and the internet
* Improve the extent to which we eat with the seasons
* Increase the % of our diet coming from our home garden (productivity decreased during down-time for book writing)
* Increase our dilegence at turning off lights
* Eliminate more of the remaining prepared and packaged foods
* Reduce non-local purchased foods. Select local vendors whenever possible, in an ever-decreasing radius (i.e. more local). As a start, strive to purchase only California-produced items.
* Working the solar ovens into our lifestyle (as contrasted with having them as a novelty)
* At least one car-free day a week
* Bicycle/scooter to local errands (farmer’s market, music lessons, library, local homeschool meetings) NEW: we now have bicycle saddlebags to carry groceries home!
* NEW: we're now rebuilding the solar water heating system, which was on the house when we purchased it, but had to be disassembled for leaks
* Beginning to substitute energy-efficient for older appliances, as they come due for replacement
* Beginning to network with other sustainability-oriented thinkers/authors/activists
* seek biodegradable personal-care soap, shampoo, deodorant (perhaps make it)
* Developing sustainability consciousness in children
* acceptance of the timeline required for cultural change. I am still quite impatient.
* Replace 3 major windows with solar glazed glass
* Cover glass, and block doorjams in winter. Return to previous practice of sealing living room as unheated to save energy
* Eliminate items on “stand by” around the home (cordless phones, clocks, timers, sensors, etc)
* Reuse laundry and shower water as greywater in landscape
* Experiment with taking the train (fairly awkward for our situation)
* Air drying of produce
* Switch from canned beans to dried
* switch to teas from garden rather than from stores
* as supply & labeling make it possible, segue to local dairy, local eggs, and more-local clean meats
* segue to more health solutions from herb garden, rather than packaged herbal products from stores
* swales to slow stormwater runoff
* Solar panels for electricity (big dream)
* Rainwater cachement (big dream)
* backyard chickens ??
last edited Dec. 2006
Photo credits: all photos by the author
