Regular readers know what most people call “Christmas trees” I call by the more accurate name “Christmas pagan trees” because they come from pagan tradition. I document how many people pay for chopping down trees to use for a few days or weeks, then throw away just before or after Christmas. Today, May 11, I saw another on the curb for trash collection—a testament to how many trees we kill[…] Keep reading →

I spoke today to someone who co-founded a business making fashionable clothes from fabric that would otherwise have been disposed of. Even in sustainability, nearly everyone wants to make more. I’m not going to stop her. I support her salvaging stuff that would have become pollution, but more isn’t less. More than more “sustainable” clothing brands, we need fewer H&Ms and clothing overall, but more people are making “sustainable” clothing[…] Keep reading →

Our environmental problems have become a politically polarized issue. Why? I don’t know values of any political tradition that oppose clean air, land, water, and food, while all seem consistent with stewardship. Meanwhile, the main political tribes seem to see their opponents as obvious enemies, blatantly exacerbating the problems. Liberals say conservatives and libertarians don’t care and are greedy. They say they prefer profit over helping other people or wildlife.[…] Keep reading →

I don’t have to tell you that front page headlines are reporting how students across the country are protesting. Universities are struggling with how to respond. The university I got my (five) diplomas from, Columbia University, seems to be making some of the biggest headlines. A few days ago it decided to cancel its commencement. I started college in 1988. Many students then opposed Apartheid. I boycotted businesses that did[…] Keep reading →

Over and over I meet people who say they care about the environment and people affected by human impact on the environment . . . yet they refuse to acknowledge their impact. Still they complain how somehow others don’t care, even as their own impact is as great. What does it mean to care if your actions achieve the opposite of caring. What does you saying you care matter to[…] Keep reading →

You know several legumes that don’t need cooking, like string beans, garden peas, snap peas, peanuts, and snow peas. The bulk section of my coop also sells chickpea flour, which I believe is just ground uncooked chickpeas. At least I’ve put raw chick peas in a blender and gotten chickpea flour out of it, though not as fine as the store sells, and blending them is loud. I tried blending[…] Keep reading →

“What I do doesn’t matter” may be the most poignant sentiment of our time. A similar rationalization not to act: “I have faith that younger people will solve our environmental problems. After all they will be affected more.” People say these things to avoid acting, avoiding personal responsibility. Well, if anyone can say she deserves to relax and not have to work on problems, nobody would tell someone with incurable[…] Keep reading →