Thursday, June 12, 2008
Venting a Little--Everything is so expensive!
As I have done research for ways for a family without much money to find inexpensive ways to "live green" in the city, I have become increasingly frustrated. There are plenty of articles, television programs, and web sites with great ideas about recycling and alternative energy sources and stuff, but they are, almost without fail, geared toward toward the upper-middle-class, two-income couple who wants to "feel good" about helping the environment. What about the people who do NOT have much money and want to recycle and use alternative energy just to help make ends meet? Those are the people I want to help. There has to be a way to live a "green" lifestyle on a low income!
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5 comments:
You go!!! Although shouldn't we really be stopping our compulsive consumer habit and not buying anything, regardless of whether it's green or a dirty shade of brown? I'm horrified by the magazines that cater for the 'greens' which are filled to the brim with cynical advertising for 'eco' products. Bah humbug. we can relearn to do without.
I agree. It's not just about the environment. It's also about our compulsive spending for things that are new and "better."
venting over. I was thinking about your couple in the city and what they could get with their $200, did their wages come through yet? I recommend they turn off their hot water tank and buy instead an on point water heater for their shower. These are very popular in Europe, where they can be gas or electrically powered, they are more difficult to find in the States, but can be found with some looking - I got mine on Craigslist. They are very easy to buy in developing countries, being the only source of hot water here, save a fire. It'll save them money and it won't be so horribly wasteful. And if you have soap and soak your pots, you don't really need hot water in kitchen or bathroom sinks.
I found your blog while meandering the internet. I like it.
Some good points about consciously changing your internal habits / image as a consumer.
Personally, I have been researching very heavily into cohousing and learning to grow my own food. I think this will be the only way I will be able to truly live in a more urban sustainable lifestyle. It also seems to create a strong community.
http://www.cohousing.org/
I think I will have to start my own group as I wish to really focus on growing as much of our food as possible. I have looked around in my area and found the structure at http://www.pugetridge.net/ to be the most appealing. They seem very organized on paper. I will be visiting them often to learn more.
I think one of the best sites showing that you can grow much of your food in an urban environment is http://pathtofreedom.com/. Great story and information there. I won't be able to match them because I don't get as much sun, but I can think of several ideas that could extend my growing season.
Sorry if I brought up stuff that has already been addressed, but I haven't had a chance to read the rest of your blog.
Have a good day!
Thanks for the comments, Ancel and Ken. Co-housing seems like a fascinating concept. I wonder if it can be done on a small scale, spred over different parts of the city, instead of concentrated in one spot, like Puget Ridge. The next new post will address Ancel's suggestion about point-of-use water heaters and include some thoughts on co-housing.
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