| Copyright (c) 2008 Virginia Ginsburg | | | | their lives in exchange for the positive impact he |
| It seems as if everywhere you go someone is talking | | | | believes he is making on the World. |
| about being "green," but what exactly does being | | | | The Moderate Greenie |
| green mean? And why should we do it? Most | | | | This person tries to make green decisions, but |
| importantly, how far do we need to go to make an | | | | sometimes must sacrifice her goal to be green for |
| impact? | | | | comfort, convenience, cost or effectiveness. |
| WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? | | | | Comfortable in the middle-ground, this kind of greenie |
| In its simplest definition, being green means taking | | | | weighs the cost-benefit ratio of her own desires with |
| into account the Earth's health when making choices | | | | environmentally-sound concepts. |
| about how you live your life. This means considering | | | | The Light Greenie |
| the ecosystems that support all inhabitants of the | | | | This type of person means well, and is indeed making |
| planet. In the big picture, being green means making | | | | a positive impact on the Earth, but the fact is that |
| choices based on the impact they will have on our | | | | there are a lot of other priorities in her life, and so |
| water, land and air resources. | | | | she doesn't always make decisions based solely on |
| Humans take a large toll on all three of these critical | | | | how green they are, and tends to forget that she |
| resources - every product that we purchase involves | | | | even has green choices. |
| taking resources from the Earth. Take a look at a | | | | 10 SIMPLE STEPS FOR ALL GREENIES |
| simple organic apple. Feels pretty virtuous, right? It | | | | Which type of Greenie are you? Regardless of your |
| absolutely is, but keep in mind the requirements of | | | | level of involvement in the movement, it is important |
| bringing that apple to your table: | | | | to remember that even the smallest steps make an |
| 1. Energy: the farmer relies on vehicles and machinery | | | | impact on the green movement, and everyone can |
| that run on electricity to grow and harvest the apple, | | | | always add just one or two more things to his list of |
| and the apple must travel in a vehicle to reach your | | | | green choices and move up the spectrum depending |
| home | | | | on life circumstances at any moment in time. |
| 2. Water: the farmer must use water to irrigate his | | | | Here are some simple steps that every Greenie can |
| fields | | | | take to move up the spectrum and ultimately make |
| 3. Air: the farmer's vehicles and all transport vehicles | | | | a greater impact on the green movement: |
| involved emit carbon dioxide | | | | 1. Buy direct from farmers, co-ops and free-trade |
| So you see, even for a very simple, good fruit, we | | | | distributors |
| rely on the Earth's resources. Many more resources | | | | 2. Eat minimally-processed food |
| are required and drained when producing a | | | | 3. Stick with organic and/or sustainably-grown foods |
| non-organic apple, and even more when creating the | | | | and textiles whenever possible |
| thousands of products that we rely on each day. | | | | 4. Reuse any materials that you can before you buy |
| THE GREEN SCALE | | | | new ones |
| Going green can be as complicated or as simple as | | | | 5. Recycle paper, glass and plastics |
| you want it to be - it all depends on the depth of | | | | 6. Do not dispose of toxic waste (e.g. batteries, cell |
| your commitment to the principles behind the | | | | phones, computer electronics, light bulbs, paint, etc.) |
| movement. Regardless of where you fall on the | | | | in the trash can |
| "Green Scale" of commitment, you can still make an | | | | 7. Take public transportation, carpool, walk, or ride |
| impact in an everyday way. | | | | your bike instead of driving alone in a car |
| The Hard-Core Greenie | | | | 8. Lower the heat in winter and raise the |
| This type of person makes every decision based on | | | | temperature in the summer; install fans to help better |
| having zero negative impact on the Earth. Additionally, | | | | circulate the air rather than using energy to heat/cool |
| they frequently seek to make decisions that have a | | | | it |
| positive impact on the Earth. This Greenie tends to | | | | 9. Lower the temperature on your water heater |
| make decisions that may have a negative impact on | | | | 10. |