As we make new year's resolutions, it is important to think about the environment. Each of us has a hundred different steps we could take in this new year toward a more sustainable lifestyle. You should challenge yourself, of course. But the key is not to become overwhelmed. Pick a finite number of goals to get started with and add more later in the year when you feel able.
These, then, are my own three green resolutions to start the new year.
1. Get over my shyness: It's honestly been difficult enough for me over the past year to ask every single cashier I've interacted with to not put my purchases in plastic bags. (It's such a deep-seated habit for most of them.) I don't like drawing attention to myself if I don't have to! But I commit to going outside of my comfort zone and learn to live more sustainably outside of my own home. For example, we eat out a lot. I'm going to get started on this resolution by getting a steel carry-out container to bring with me to restaurants and use when I have leftovers to bring home (most every time!)
This is an important goal for two reasons. First, it's vital that I don't undo all the environmental progress I make at home. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, forcing ourselves out of the green closet can help others learn to live more sustainably. It can raise people's consciousness and give them concrete ideas about how to live more green themselves.
2. Get serious: I have a bad habit of avoiding things that stress me out whenever I can. The desperate situation the environment is in is one of those things. This year, I'd like to suck it up and watch some serious environmental documentaries and read some serious books about sustainability. I'm starting with the Omnivore's Dilemma and Peak Everything.
3. Eat better: Although the majority of the food we eat is organic, most is also processed and pre-packaged. I'd like to start cooking for myself more and eat more whole foods. This one is going to be really hard for me, since I don't currently do any of the cooking in our house. Hopefully Ben will help me! If Ben'll let me in the kitchen with him, I'll make up the difference in effort that it takes to prepare whole foods versus the processed stuff.
Right now, all of these goals seem very challenging for me. But we each must look at where we are today in our journey toward sustainability and recognize that we have "miles to go before [we] sleep." Let's make a genuine effort to be leaps and bounds further by this time next year.
What are your eco-resolutions for 2009? Please tell us about them in the comments!
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2 comments:
Kudos to you on your resolutions. I'm with you on trying to eat more whole foods and cook more at home. In the long run it's better for your tummy and your walet. I'm also trying to eat more local and/or organic foods.
As far as the bag thing, if you put the bag you brought with you on the counter before you put your purchases on, most cashiers will take the hint. If they don't, just politely say "oh, I don't need a bag, I brought my own." If you're at a store with a conveyor belt (most grocery and big-box stores) send your bags down the conveyor.
Our local produce market and our grocery store chain (yes, there is only ONE grocery store chain in Hutchinson, KS) both give a 5-10 cent discount for each reusable bag you bring with you!
I imagine that putting your cloth bags on the conveyor could work in many places. That's great advice.
That doesn't really work for us though because we use our cloth bags to carry food TO the cash register with us (instead of a cart). We find that it helps us only get the food we need if we have to carry it thought the whole store with us! It can sometimes be a challenge to empty our bag(s) before the bagger is ready to start filling them again.
This method has required us to simply unload quickly and be assertive when the bagger or cashier reaches for the plastic bags! :)
The national grocery chain Albertson's also gives a 5 cent discount for bringing in your own bags. It'd be nice if they did it by the bag though like your store; imagine the money one could save over the course of a year!
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