Green is kind of a big deal now. The environmental steward movement has gone local, national, global… and individual. It is hard to keep up!

My vote decides some things about policies, but my dollar decides just as much. Do I go locavore or free trade? Should I go with the product made with fewer chemicals, or with the one that donates 5% of the sales to rainforest protection? Carpooling, cycling and public transit are not options for me, but I bought a car with good gas mileage. Do I negate the positive effects of buying a more fuel-efficient car when I purchase discounted gasoline from a huge corporation?
Living green is not simple in this complicated world in which we live. Personal priorities can be in conflict. Locavore diet proponents encourage people to support local farmers by primarily eating foods produced within a set radius from your home. If you eat locally, you are also choosing to eat seasonally, which takes some real effort. On the other hand, you have the fair trade people encouraging us to pay a little more for coffee so that the Guatemalan family who grew it can make a livable wage. Then you might have to think, “Is my coffee worth the carbon footprint? Am I going to plant a tree to offset my carbon?” Thankfully, I don’t drink coffee. And yes, my bananas are worth it. No, I am not planting a tree for every bunch of bananas I eat. Yes, I will pay a little extra for organic bananas. They taste better.
I like to think that all of the little things do add up. I recycle more than I throw away. If there is no recycling bin available, I carry paper with me until I get home. If I see trash on the ground a reasonable distance from a receptacle, I pick it up and throw it away. I purchase bread from a local bakery and beauty products from a local company that uses recyclable materials, natural ingredients, and gives back in meaningful ways to our community. I teach my students about respecting the earth and its creatures. I can truthfully say that I think very hard about the choices I make, even if those choices end up being the less-earth-friendly ones. Sometimes all-natural dishwashing detergent does not get all of the food off and pre-rinsing the dishes wastes water. My all-natural laundry detergent, however, works and smells great.
When it comes down to it, there is only so much that one individual can do. I am willing to make some alterations to my lifestyle, but there are some things I will not give up. Organic conditioner is not for me. Parabens may be evil incarnate, but apparently I need them. My hair is one big dull horse-hair tangle when I use the all-natural, no-artificial color, no fragrance added, organic stuff. They don’t mention, by the way, that when no fragrance is added, you can smell the nasty “all-natural” chemicals. I’ll take the fake fruity flowery smells and shine, please. I can be a little more flexible on the lipglosses with 100% natural ingredients. Those do end up in my mouth, after all.
Buying sandwich meats without nitrites and nitrates, as long as the price is somewhat comparable, is not a hard decision for me. When I walk over to the egg section, though, I can sometimes end up standing there for an eternity trying to decide what is most important to me that week: Omega-3 diet or grass-fed? Free-range or organic? I find myself reading the labels trying to figure out just how “free” the chickens are on these “free-range” farms. Suddenly I’m picturing all of the millions of unfortunate un-liberated chickens with mangled feet and clipped beaks crammed in metal cages, pushing out eggs for people who will stand in front of a grocery store display and ponder whether white or brown eggs seem more natural. But then again, the economy is down. Maybe the cheapo store brand this time. It says Grade A on the box, so it must be good, right? How much cholesterol is in these things anyways? The cholesterol is in the yolk so I could always buy that egg-whites only liquid, but that one has more packaging. Is the packaging recyclable in my area? Wait, what time does this store close?

What is your version of green living? What are some changes you have incorporated into your own life? What are some not-so-green habits you are unwilling to abandon? Join the conversation on The Badger forums: http://www.thebadger.ca/forum

Kelly Wakefield
kelly@thebadger.ca