"Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish caught will we realize we cannot eat money."--Cree proverb
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For me, recycling has stopped becoming a cause and started being just a thing I do. It's not part of an ideological system or political leanings, but just something I do. I'll never get into composting...grosses me out...but I do the things I can do, and if we all did just those things, life would be a lot better. So, Adam and I toss our aluminum cans and plastic and papers into a recycle container and trudge out to the Dekalb Farmer's Market once a month or so to toss all the stuff in. It's so gratifying to hear the glass cracking against each other. And to see how many fewer bags we toss out than our neighbors on trash day.
I don't know how it started. My dad is quite the little conservative, but of the old school variety. Taking care of the land for future generations...I guess, he is a proud Eagle Scout and that helped him build an appreciation for that sort of thing. So, practically the second recycling became feasible, he started doing it. And still does it.
For me, I think, it's about walking the fine line between indulgence and convenience. Does this thing really improve my life--does it make something more convenient? Does separating the garbage really remove something from my life--is it inconvenient? Do I need to drive a Hummer? No...and few people do. Is a Prius practical and convenient for me? No to that, too. We need to truck to cart our dogs around in and because we like to go camping (and to deliver our recycling in).
I'm rambling. My point is just that if we treat environmental responsibility like a religion, preaching to people about it, shaming people over it, it will go nowhere. It seems like something that is much more likely to be adopted, by reasonable people, when dealt with on practical terms.
I don't know how it started. My dad is quite the little conservative, but of the old school variety. Taking care of the land for future generations...I guess, he is a proud Eagle Scout and that helped him build an appreciation for that sort of thing. So, practically the second recycling became feasible, he started doing it. And still does it.
For me, I think, it's about walking the fine line between indulgence and convenience. Does this thing really improve my life--does it make something more convenient? Does separating the garbage really remove something from my life--is it inconvenient? Do I need to drive a Hummer? No...and few people do. Is a Prius practical and convenient for me? No to that, too. We need to truck to cart our dogs around in and because we like to go camping (and to deliver our recycling in).
I'm rambling. My point is just that if we treat environmental responsibility like a religion, preaching to people about it, shaming people over it, it will go nowhere. It seems like something that is much more likely to be adopted, by reasonable people, when dealt with on practical terms.
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