Shirley Siluk Gregory's Blog

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Looking ahead to the New Year, I've come up with a few wishes I'd love to see come true in 2007. I hope, in the coming year, that I see:

Government leaders at all levels all over the world finding the will to start taking immediate action against global warming and for a greater reliance on renewable energy;

The elimination of government policies -- farm subsidies, import tariffs, corporate tax breaks -- the result in processed and junk foods being cheaper and more widely available than healthful, natural and unprocessed foods;

A popular culture that starts valuing responsible living and conservation over conspicuous consumption and wastefulness;

An auto industry that voluntarily aims for the highest fuel-efficiency standards possible;

Grocery store chains that choose local produce over shipped foods whenever they can;

Programs and policies -- both governmental and business -- that make energy-efficient appliances and lights, fresh and healthful foods, and alternative energy -- affordable for even the lowest-income citizens; and

Continued success and ever-expanding influences for every person who's working -- whether at the family, local or international level -- to build strong, green, healthy and sustainable communities.

Best wishes for a green and happy New Year, everyone!

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Some things about living green are so easy, they're practically no-brainers: things like using compact fluorescent lightbulbs, turning your thermostat a little higher or lower, and recycling. But other green habits are harder to adopt and keep.

What habits? Oh, things like wrapping gifts in old magazine pages, which -- while noble -- still kind of screams "cheap and cheesy" to many people. Or not flushing the toilet when only liquids are involved, which still send the message, "Yuck!" in our so-called civilized society.

Not that these habits aren't right and worthwhile ... they're just harder to adopt because of the currently accepted social mores and practices. Being a green trailblazer can sometimes be embarrassing or even a little painful.

But here's the thing: sooner or later, the pressure will be on everyone to adopt green living habits, inconvenient, embarrassing or uncomfortable though they might be. The growing burden we're placing on natural resources, and the increasing scarcity of those resources that's likely in coming years, will reach a tipping point that will make the things we now take for granted too rare and too expensive to waste.

When that day comes, the habits some now call cheap, cheesy or yucky will probably take on new adjectives: smart, economical and responsible.

In the meantime, though, I have to confess that I'll probably stick with simply recycling my old wrapping paper for another day, and saving those flushes only when there's no one else around.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Every chance I get, I try to teach my almost-four-year-old son the virtues of green living. Not an easy task, considering the natural mercenary tendencies of toddlers, but I do see occasional signs that the lessons are sinking in. He's starting, for example, to ask whether we could save leftovers or reuse things around the house, rather than throw them away. I find that encouraging.

Now I believe green living habits are worthwhile no matter what our circumstances -- privileged or not. Unfortunately, I also believe my son's generation will be forced by necessity to live more green than my generation has: climate change, an ever-expanding world population and growing competition for finite natural resources make that almost a certainty. I think it's smart to prepare him now so the adjustment won't be so hard in years to come.

While that sounds like a bleak vision of the future, I do believe there's also cause for hope. More and more people are thinking green lately too, and taking action to change their own habits and lobby for wider change as well. Living green is also healthier, so my son won't be exposed to some of the junk I was as a child because we didn't know any better: fast food, processed foods, pesticide-coated fruits, toys made of PVCs, chemical-laden personal-care products, chemical-soaked pajamas and so on. I'm hoping that means he'll have a better, healthier start on life.

Finally, it's worth noting that the best way to teach kids green living habits is by example ... the way children always learn best. So I'm trying my best to improve my own habits every day, for him as well as for myself and the world at large. Seems like the right thing to do.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

One thing you discover when you start living green is a new tendency to study, really study, food labels.

The next thing you discover is how appalling the list of ingredients in most foods is. Sweeteners, additives, preservatives, artificial this, artificial that ... this is food?

The absurdity of how we've come to eat struck me yesterday while shopping for a simple jar of raspberry preserves. All I wanted was something with real raspberries and as few other ingredients as possible to spread on whole-wheat bread for my 3 1/2-year-old son's daily lunch of "jelly sandwich."

I started with one promising choice that claimed to be all fruit. Check the label: high-fructose corn syrup is the first ingredient. The next "all-natural" one ... same thing. The reduced-sugar variety? OK, raspberries came first on the list, at least, but the ubiquitous sweetener was still second. Most of my choices, it turned out, were moer corn-syrup/chemical/raspberry cocktails than all-fruit, natural raspberry preserves.

I finally settled on an imported variety (I know, too many food miles, but I had taken a stand against junk ingredients at that point) whose label at least started with raspberries and ended with nothing more offensive than citric acide.

All this for a simple attempt at a healthful, kid-friendly bread topping. Shopping for good food -- real food -- shouldn't be this difficult.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

How many times have you picked up a bag of organic grapes or a basket of firm, red organic tomatoes, only to put them back in the produce bin because they cost substantially more than "regular" fruits or vegetables?

It's OK to say yes. I've done it many times myself. After all, most of us aren't Paris Hilton (heaven forbid!) or Richard Branson: we're mere mortals who need to keep a running tally in our heads when we go shopping to make sure we don't empty our checking accounts or blow past our credit limits.

But living green involves more than choosing pricier, organic foods. And, I've found that, if you pursue an across-the-board green lifestyle, you'll probably save money.

I'm not talking about the long-term savings you'll reap by using compact fluorescent lightbulbs or a programmable thermostat either. You can live more economically by going green because of all the other expenses you can eliminate from your life.

Like what? Like the cost of paper towels and paper napkins (it really is easier most times to use wash rags, dish towels and cloth napkins). Or the cost of chemical-laden household cleaning products (vinegar and baking soda handle most jobs just as well, and are bargains when bought in economy sizes). Or the cost of pricey cosmetics and personal care products (pure castile soap, olive oil, lanolin and baking soda can take over many beauty tasks). Or the cost of gasoline (when walking or a bike ride can get you there instead).

Once you start looking at the big picture, you realize that living green doesn't have to cost a lot. In fact, it can save green -- both the tree kind and the cash kind.

So go ahead, put those organic grapes and tomatoes in your shopping cart next time.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

There’s a fast-food commercial on TV right now that makes fun of other fast-food establishments for serving “fresh” biscuits that are actually prepared and frozen in a far-away location, shipped cross-country, defrosted and then baked “fresh” in the local fast-food franchise. Unlike those other restaurants, the commercial goes on to say, the biscuits at this particular establishment are made from scratch on the premises.

Ironically, this commercial hints at what many people might not think about when eating fast food, and that’s that almost all the items on any fast-food chain’s menus are handled the same way: prepared in a uniform manner at a centralized location, then shipped hundreds or thousands of miles to franchises across the country. Fast food isn’t just about convenience for the consumer; it’s about efficiency all up and down the food supply chain. For some real insight into how the system works, just read Eric Schlosser‘s “Fast Food Nation.”

While this system works very well for fast-food chains, it’s anything but good for the environment: industrial farming practices, massive cattle feed lots and slaughterhouses, and cross-country shipping generate huge quantities of polluted wastewater runoff, chemical waste and greenhouse gas emissions (both from trucks and cows), and consume hugs quantities of fossil-fuel energy.

That’s why eating green – choosing locally grown, organic and humanely raised foods – is so much better for the environment, and our own health as well. Good food is about more than just “fresh” biscuits.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Living green means trying to reduce consumption, but we can't eliminate our consumer ways completely. Most of us are unlikely to grow all our own wheat, milk our own cows, weave our own wool cloth, and sew our own designer jeans.

So part of the challenge of green living is making green consumer choices. That is, buying what we need from producers and retailers who also believe it's important to operate in an environmentally responsible way. Think of it as the eco-friendly way of paying it forward.

There may be times when trying to become an informed green consumer can feel exhausting, and there are also times when buying green just isn't possible. But every time you choose a green purchase over a less eco-friendly one, think of it as voting for a better world with your dollars.

Ultimately, we all do vote with our dollars, by signalling to one company or another that we support its products and its way of doing business. If its way of doing business isn't green and sustainable, our purchases imply that's OK with us. That's why becoming a green consumer can have an impact far beyond the walls of our own homes.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Who's better at living a green, sustainable, environmentally responsible life: a vegetarian who drives an SUV or a meat-eater who bikes to work and eats only grass-fed beef? A vegan who lives in a 4,000-square-foot luxury home in the suburbs, or an omnivore (eats everything) who recycles and buys only sustainably caught or raised fish and meat?

These kinds of questions seem to crop up all the time on green-minded discussion boards and letters to the editor sections in green magazines. But here's my question whenever this topic arises: Why are we even having this conversation?

If we're posting on environmentally oriented discussion boards and reading eco-magazines, aren't we all concerned about living better, greener lives? Why worry about who's doing better than whom?

Let's face it: none of us is perfect when it comes to living green, and all of us could do better. One way to start is to acknowledge we're all different in what works best for us at this particular point in out lives. The only thing that matters is that we all try to do well, and then try to do a little better every day.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

There are many reasons we celebrate during the holiday season, but, too often, it seems like the thing we celebrate most is consumption. Whether it's turkey, pumpkin pie, holiday decor, candles, chocolates, toys for the kids, another tie and pair of socks for Dad, hostess gifts, holiday CDs, bottles of wine, holiday DVDs, dressy clothes and new jewelry for the company party, noise-makers for New Year's Eve or diet books for afterward, we probably spend more time planning to consume, consuming, or dealing with the aftermath of our consumption (indigestion, a mess of wrapping paper, credit-card bills) than we do celebrating what really matters: family, health, peace, love and gratitude for what we already have.

So why not plan to spend this holiday season doing more with less, avoiding the waste and needless spending, and -- when we do consume -- making sure our consumer choices are wise, worthwhile, sustainable and green? I'll spend the next several weeks writing about ways in which to do that, but, to start, check out Co-op America's National Green Pages, a searchable online directory of green businesses across the U.S.

Here's to a happy, healthy, green holiday season!

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

I'm baffled by people who attack the green living movement. To me, it's like coming out against being clean or being healthy. What's wrong with being green?

I'm not talking about critics of green extremists, here -- the types who torch auto dealerships, for example. That's fair game for criticism as far as I'm concerned. No, what I'm confused by are those who deride proponents of organic foods, sustainable agriculture and conservation. Again, where's the harm in any of those?

Critics' comments range from the sincere but uninformed ("I've been eating fast food all my life, and I've never felt any bad effects from it.") to the outright ridiculous ("You people want everyone to eat bark and starve.") In the first case, enlightenment might come from something as simple as watching "Super Size Me." In the second case, though, I doubt any amount of arguing, facts or studies will help. I've come to the conclusion that it's best not to aggravate yourself by trying to persuade these unpersuadables.

So save your energy (you are a green living supporter after all, right?) for the open-minded potential converts, and simply shrug off the others. Living well is its own reward.

Posted by Shirley Siluk Gregory

Since taking on the Green Living section here, I've spent a lot of time thinking about what, exactly, constitutes green living. I don't think the concept is as easy to define as one might think at first.

For example, my first impulse is to say something like, "Green living is living as natural an existence as possible, and eating the fruits of the region where you live." After reading Jared Diamond's book, "Collapse," though, I have to conclude it's more than that. Diamond profiled several cultures -- including the Greenland Norse and past Easter Islanders -- who've lived off the land yet faded away or disappeared entirely because they didn't live sustainably.

That's the key, I've decided: sustainability. If you eat nothing but vegetables you've grown yourself, but you're relying on heavy applications of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, and using lots of fuel to maintain greenhouses to support plants that normally don't grow in your area, that's neither green living nor sustainability. Green living means nature in balance, finding a way to live that's healthy and natural not only for you, but for everything in your environment as well.

Living that way is a challenge, especially in a Western culture like ours that seems to do everything possible to encourage non-sustainability (disposable goods, junk food, consumerism, etc.) But it's a worthy one, and one that I'll try to keep improving upon every day. I hope you'll agree it's a goal you'd like to achieve as well, and I'll try to help with all the information and guidance to get you there.

Till later!