Fay Watson

Re-Use - Recycle - Reduce - Rot

Although it makes no sense to me.  These words and phrases: environmentally friendly, green and sustainability, have become polarizing words.  Among certain people any mention of these words brings forth a vision of the proverbial hippie, a liberal whacko unkempt person not capable of hard work and unable to keep a job.  If you tell one of these people that your job is to promote environmental responsibility they roll their eyes and ask if you are one of those "DEMOCRATs!"

My political affiliation is none of your business.  What is your business, our communities business, and my business is how to make things last, how to build a community that isn't breaking down our environment by using resources that are nonrenewable.  I believe that we need to come together and develop some creative solutions to reverse our cycle of environmental degradation, but for now we can at least slow down the rate at which it is happening.

So, these R's, my R's are central to how we can begin and for some of us continue toward the path of sustainability.  They are words we can use and by consistent messaging especially to children make it a norm for them to be a call to action.  We need to do environmental education while avoiding the words and phrases that create a political divide so that we can better reach our community.

By incorporating these actions into your daily life you can do your part.  You can help the community and lessen your impact.  Re-Use, Recycle, Reduce and Rot... these are actions, check back in and I will elaborate on each of these separately.