For all the low-income environmentalists wandering through Gristmill, this week we're launching a new, sorta-regular column, "Ask a Brokeass."
As your resident Gristmill brokeass, I'll be (attempting to) address the concerns of folks with skinny wallets and big hearts.
If the organics section at Safeway makes you queasy and the conventional veggies section wrecks you with guilt, while even entertaining the thought of hitting the local, organic market seems far-fetched at best, lean in close. There are a lot of expensive ways to buy yourself out of a large carbon footprint, but there are plenty of cheaper ways, too. I'm hoping at least.
As a lot of people have now heard about, some folks down in San Francisco banded together last year in a pledge to buy nothing new, and got creative about getting what they needed. You can catch the play-by-play on the group, known as "The Compact," on their blog, as they've continued and grown in the ranks this year. As Compacter Rachel Kesel told WireTap Magazine, "We're constantly on the drive to consume more stuff. It becomes about habit and not necessity. (Compacting) forces you to look at what you really need."
Much like being broke.
By borrowing ideas from them (I'm attempting to follow suit this year, so, uh, you'll be my witnesses on how that works out) and other smart people, number crunching, price comparing, coupon clipping, creative creating, and dogged deal-hunting, we can figure out how to be earth-friendly on a budget. Hell, I'll even throw in some Q&As with expert brokeasses, so if you think you're a noteworthy brokeass, nominate yourself.
So pass along any questions, ideas, or advice you've gathered, and we'll be broke together -- and feel warm and squishy about being good to the earth anyway. Direct your electronic mail my way, 'cuz if you don't, I'll have to make them up. And I'll have to change the title to "Watch a Brokeass Invent Questions and Answer Them Herself."
And remember, as the old saying goes, it's better to be broke than to further the break-up of the Arctic ice shelf.
Comments
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dafiscus Posted 11:48 am
16 Jan 2007
This is a great idea and service. I am one of those starving greens who will check in regularly. I often announce that I want to take a vow of poverty, that this is my life's calling to be just very poor and very sustainable. Then my wife and kids tap me on the shoulder and look at me with questioning eyes as if to say, "Be poor if you must, but please bring home some sustenance for us". So...I really need some pragmatic tips on how to do this right (the kids are only 2 and 5 - they can't even work yet).
One question/comment often on my mind. It seems so hard and impossible to change culture, convert to sustainability alone or for a single family. Wouldn't it be easier, better, less painful, more fun to convert en masse, in groups, in small networks, as whole communities? But I also don't want to have to move - I live here, this is home. Is there any way for brokeasses to unite in solidarity and help each other? I mean, besides your excellent column...
Thanks a lot...
Dan Fiscus
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willa Posted 12:21 pm
16 Jan 2007
I think it was this book that inspired me, for instance, to make a scoop for my horses' grain by simply cutting the bottom off a gallon bottle that formerly held Ecover peroxide bleach, rather than spending $7 and a bunch of petroleum products to buy a heavier, clunkier item made for the purpose. Nothing huge, but if you live life the Dacyczyn way (which I don't think any normal person does, not all the time anyway), it really adds up. Well, and I recommed getting a non-library copy, because having the book around really helped me do the stuff, and when I returned it to the library I stopped being as good, and started having bigger credit card bills and fuller trash bags again.
On a semi-unrelated note, Kate, I'd love it if you would do a post about growing your own winter veggies, sprouts, etc, without spending a ton of money or using a ton of energy on special lights and soil and whatnot. I've never been a great gardener, but I would give it a go if I thought I could do better than the pathetic, expensive choices in the supermarket this time of year. Or is it just truly not possible to grow anything in this grey winter climate without a grow light? Well, sprouts, I suppose, but sprouts seem like such a pain, having to wash them every day till they sprout in a jar. Is there a better way?
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TeleChica Posted 2:39 pm
16 Jan 2007
The green movement is one I admire, but it often seems to entail even more consumerism and a further waste of resources.
Dan, I agree with you regarding the 'vow of poverty' and how impossible it seems to achieve change. Teach your kids cause and effect. Spend time talking to them. I have a four and six year old who are extremely aware of their actions because of our discussions and are very vocal about encouraging others around us to live more conscious of their shopping habits, food choices, driving habits--the list goes on. My kids seem to make the biggest difference in the lives of others. People are amazed and listen.
A community of supporters would make things a whole lot easier, but that rarely exists. I've spent a lot of my efforts trying to bring all of my closest friends and family in on the bandwagon with babysteps. The little things that I go out of my way to show them aren't always accepted, but they have effected some change and earned me new supporters in the quest for change.
For food ideas: try your local ethnic markets. We have an Asian supermarket nearby and the produce is local and extremely cheap. (We're veggie due to environmental/social/health reasons, so cheap veggies are a plus.) But also check out Steve Solomon's newest book Gardening When It Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times. He's my gardening guru!
Willa, grow lights are pretty much a necessity for indoor gardening. Except for sprouts. They really aren't so hard as it seems though. Once you get started it becomes pretty routine and you won't even think twice. I also make sure to plant a good crop of overwintering carrots in August. Otherwise, we just rely on what was preserved from summer.
That being said, I have been wondering about growing watercress (nasturtiam relative). It is really easy to root, but I can't make it thrive and was hoping it might be possible without a complete running water system, any ideas Kate?
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racje Posted 8:44 am
17 Jan 2007
In fact, not spending much money, living in a small space, re-using old stuff instead of buying new, taking the bus--all the things that broke people just naturally do--are great for the environment. We just need to make it sound as exciting and virtuous as buying a hybrid car or putting solar panels on the single-family roof!
My favorite green activities: riding my bicycle around town (I'm old enough to look impressive on it), tending my worm compost box on the 4th floor porch outside my kitchen door.
My next project: Getting my clothesline up, under the roof overhang on the porch, so I can hang stuff up even on drizzly days.
Joyfully,
Racje
--
Love doesn't just sit there like a stone; it has to be made, like bread, remade all the time, made new.
--Ursula LeGuin
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