The "Radical" Event of Our Generation?

Radical Simplicity by Jim Merkel was prompted by the toxic oil spill in Alaska, which was, at the time, the most toxic environmental event in US history. The new oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is quickly becoming the worst industrial disaster that this country has ever seen. The problem is that the media is not doing enough to cover this terrible tragedy that has befallen the environment and the oil workers themselves. 11 men were killed on the rig of the coast of Louisiana and thousands of sea creatures are being choked by the oil every day. I have been following the media via various mediums and have found that none of them can tell us the full impact of this event. On television, the focus is on whether President Obama has done enough (which is a legitimate question), yet it seems to turn into a partisan battle. Many on the right are calling this Obama's Hurricane Katrina. While that remains to be seen, people need to grasp the full impact of this event. The history of British Petroleum is as scandalous as the oil spill itself (http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/bp_billionaire_polluter_20100504/?ln). This is a link to a fascinating article about the history of BP. On the internet news, there has been decent coverage of the event, even on the Drudgereport, an ultra conservative news site. I just wish that people would become more engaged with what is going on. Very few of my friends know the extent of the oil spill and what is worse is that they don't care to know. The Exxon Valdez tragedy featured wall to wall coverage, with many books written about it. I can recall a trip to my school's library when I was in the 3rd grade to read an elementary school level account of the accident. This was years after, yet I wonder if anyone will write about this oil spill in years to come? The oil spill should also sound the alarm for more sustainable energy usage, especially the introduction of renewables. In an article in the New York Times on Tuesday, Tom Friedman wrote a great piece on the importance of the cap and trade bill in Congress. The problem with this is that it has not even been approved for discussion in the Senate because of political posturing by the right and some conservative Democrats. This is a crucial piece of legislation. Something needs to be done so we can avoid more fatal catastrophes. The problem is that no young people are being mobilized to fight the good fight. They remain uninformed and uninterested. This is something that people should be handing out flyers about on Bruin Walk. This should have been on the front page of the Daily Bruin. However, we remain ignorant to a problem that has occurred IN OUR OWN COUNTRY! We must act soon and figure out how to make our energy more sustainable. If not, history will repeat itself.

Field Trip Reflections

I really enjoyed the field trip to the organic farm. I am really getting into the whole organic thing because of the writings of Michael Pollan and research that I have done on my own. Getting to see what happens on an organic farm was a big treat for me because I am especially interested in organic food. When the farmer told us that strawberries are the most abundant crop, I thought that was a good thing. When he explained that it was also the most costly crop to grow, I reconsidered this investment. Its hard for me to cut strawberries out of my diet because it is one of my favorite fruits and it is coming into season so it fits into my project parameters. I am considering reducing my strawberry consumption because of its water intensive nature and how it has next to none nutritional value. I was also surprised at how diverse the farm was. In Omnivore's Dilemma, it seems as if the family farm is all but gone. The different crops at the McGrath Farm makes it seem like a "real" farm. Being on the farm also made me realize how much work it takes to produce a good crop, let alone the money it takes. Because of the nonuse of pesticides, the crops are not guaranteed to grow in a timely manner. Seeing the raspberries and that it takes 2 years to grow to full size made me see what an investment farming truly is. It is unlike other businesses because it depends entirely on nature and an organic farm is even more challenging. I felt that some sort of break is necessary for an organic farmer because they are at such a disadvantage to the chemical farmers. Besides, organic is healthier and more expensive to grow, thus making it more expensive to buy for consumers. If the government subsidized the organic farmers, perhaps then organic food would be more affordable and then more people could afford to shop at Whole Foods. The experience of being on an organic farm was interesting and informative. It makes me want to try even harder to buy organic and help out local farmers.

Project Progress

My project is to decrease my trash, reduce my water waste and make choices in the supermarket that are sustainable. So far I have done an OK job. My trash has decreased because I no longer drink water bottles or plastic Gatorade bottles, which were a huge part of my original trash problem. I now use my stainless steel water bottle that was given to me when I first moved into the dorms. I have also used very little paper waste, which was the second most waste I produced. I use a cloth towel to dry my hands or just let them air dry. The new hand dryers in De Neve have made it the best place to go to the restroom because it is the most sustainable. Though it is not as close as the bathroom on my floor, it is the best choice for the environment and I try to use it as much as possible. I thought that I could reduce my meat consumption but I just cannot eat vegetables all the time. I have reduced my consumption of red meat, something that I thought would be impossible. However, there is usually a chicken or vegetarian option that is just as good. Besides, who needs to spend $6 on a Double-Double? As far as water waste, I used to be the worst about leaving the faucet on while brushing my teeth. I now turn the water off while brushing and when I turn it on to rinse, I put it on as little as possible. I also thought that it would be more sustainable to brush my teeth in the shower, which I have done on a few occasions. I have also started showering in the afternoon, when water is least demanded. This has been an adjustment but now I run in the late afternoon and shower right after, which has been good for my health and the environment. For my last part of my project, smart spending at the market, I am very proud. I no longer go to Ralph's because it is mostly food from far away and it is made with many ingredients. Instead, I now go to Trader Joe's. I use the same technique my mom uses which is going to the store every so often rather than going one big trip and buying lots of stuff. I enjoy doing this because its nice to walk down to the store and put all the groceries in my backpack. It makes me feel sustainable. I only buy fruit that is in season and is grown locally. This meant no grapes because they were grown in Chile, which was a big disappointment. However, strawberries are coming back into season so it is a good trade off. I also am buying as organically as I can. Rather than spring for Oreos, I go with the organic chocolate chip cookie. It is less quantity, more expensive, but tastes surprisingly better. It has also encouraged me to eat better. After reading Omnivore's Dilemma and learning more about the industrial food chain, I have tried my best to break the spell that the corporations have us under. This means reading all of the ingredients on packages and trying to pick the one's with the least amount of corn products. This has been extremely difficult because of what Pollan says about the industrial food chain. All in all, my project has been going pretty well.

Response to Radical Simplicity

Response to Radical Simplicity

Radical Simplicity was an interesting book for me because I do not consider myself particularly "green". If it wasn't for this class, I probably would not have ever even heard of Merkel or his quest for a world full of global citizens. But I am glad that I was assigned this book and it taught me a lot. Going into the book, I presumed that Merkel would try to guilt us into living a lifestyle suited the concept of global living. While there are large chunks of the book where he does indeed do this, I don't think that that is his fault. We should feel guilty. The concept that we, as Americans, take up far more of the global potluck than our fellow man is inherently a guilt trip. I think that Merkel is simply stating facts, not espousing a Communist agenda (though he does do this as well). The guilt I felt while reading this book has struck a chord with me because I now think about the simpler things I can do, such as turning off lights and using less paper waste. It has also encouraged me and the other students who have read Merkel's account to take up a global living lifestyle. It seems difficult at first, but it is not impossible. For me, I think that living on Merkel's meager income would be next to impossible because of the lifestyle I am accustomed to and for the sheer fact that I think I can fulfill global living by giving back to charities who support sustainability and making choices that will benefit the environment. But I do agree that we must make better decisions and realize the full impact of the choices we make, especially with what we purchase at the supermarket, clothing stores, and car lot.

One thing that I don't think can happen as a result of Radical Simplicity is that people will cease going after the American dream and pursue more sustainable lifestyles. I think that people who are more affluent to start out can make the decision to become sustainable because they have a safety net to fall back on. Let's not forget that Merkel comes from a wealthier background. While global living is ideal, its just not practical for most people. Our culture has ingrained in us a thirst for consumerism and it will be next to impossible for us to wean ourselves off of the love of stuff. Poor people do not want to live the way they do because they want stuff, just like the more affluent people. I think that Merkel's ideas are well meaning but impractical because of the passion and desire to move up the economic ladder and we know that the richer you are, the more you consume.

All in all, I really enjoyed Radical Simplicity. It benefitted me because I want to learn more about sustainability and this was a good example for an introductory class for sustainability. Merkel's message has resonated with me and I am trying to change the way I see the world. It has also helped me talk to people who think that we do not have a problem because it has given me sound factual evidence to the contrary.

Personal Trash Inventory

1. I definitely thought that I was wasteful before this exercise and sadly, I am still pretty wasteful. I did take notice of how wasteful I am and am trying to find a way to change it. I realized that I use lots of Kleenex and toilet paper which is probably because I was a little sick this week with a cold. Also, I used lots of red cups and water bottles which is really wasteful. I also threw away lots of glass bottles and aluminum cans, which is a bad sign. However, I did recycle them, which is pretty good. I am slowly becoming more sustainable because of this exercise. I experienced guilt about the trash I produced, which would never have happened before this exercise. I also changed some of my habits, including reusing plastic water bottles.

2. The area that I was most wasteful in was definitely paper and plastic waste. I used lots of paper via toilet paper and Kleenexes. The water bottles were the most wasteful because I drink a lot of water and I never think to refill the tin water bottle. I also poured lots of juice drinks in red cups which produced lots of waste. The waste was bad because I knew it could have been avoided. Aluminum cans are also a bad problem that I had but I recycled them which is a way I can reduce my carbon footprint. The problem with water bottles can be avoided by using a reusable water bottle. I believe this is a good resource. Also, if you are pouring yourself a juice drink, you can have everyone bring their own mug to the party.

3. My cultural values represented in the trash inventory is pretty terrible. I am wasteful and have not ever thought twice about it. I throw away lots of bottles and cups which is a problem. It gave me really good insight into how terrible my waste habits are. It also showed how much juice I drink which is bad for my health. All that sugar and waste is not a sustainable practice for life. The red cups are also a bad habit. They are useless and if everyone brought a mug to drink, then there would be no need for red cups and there would be so much less waste in the world. My familial values show that we did not care for the environment and followed a very consumeristic approach to life. We rarely reused as children and recycled very little. This has changed in the past 2 years however, because we recycle EVERYTHING now. There are four large bins in our backyard where we separate the trash into its respected bins. We also changed the way we shopped by shopping at Trader Joe's and used canvas bags. My mom did this because the food is fresher, but you buy less. It also conserves gas because my mom would drop my little sister off at school, pick up groceries for the next 2 days and then would do the rest of the work for the day.