From Grey to Green by Kathryn Brennar (guest post)

Building a green infrastructure is no longer a new idea. Going “green” is actually becoming quite popular. However, the ways that people go about doing it can be new and unique. City developers are beginning to incorporate some creative strategies of their own. Specifically, there has been a recent spike in the level of interest that communities have had in developing their parks and outdoor recreation areas, as well as housing and building complexes. While incorporating and maintaining them has always been an important priority, especially within densely populated cities, the latest trends show that community developmental plans are now incorporating “green” design. They are realizing that there is an opportunity to provide people with a necessary recreation area while creating a positive impact on the global environmental crisis.

Currently there are a number of projects taking place in major metropolitan areas in an effort to reverse the negative effects that humans have had on the environment. One project that is currently gaining publicity is the green rooftop. Green rooftops utilize commonly unused space atop buildings and convert them into green zones, where gardens or turf are planted. These roofs help reduce the heating and cooling costs it takes to power a building, and also create a habitat for birds and insects. Additionally, green rooftops reduce the amount of contaminated runoff water that can collect in local sewer systems and waterways. Even major companies and organizations have taken notice and are beginning to implement similar environmental strategies. The Ford motor company installed a 450,000 square foot green rooftop on their new Dearborn Truck Plant. Recently studies have been preformed comparing green rooftops to conventional asphalt or concrete roofs and results show that temperatures on the green rooftops can be as much as 32 degrees lower than conventional black roofs. This proves that green rooftops could help reduce the “urban heat island effect,” which occurs when black top buildings absorb solar energy and radiate that energy in the form of heat.

The Right to Drink Water

Here’s the scenario: Fifty-year old Jane recently adopted a healthy diet and regular exercise routine. She briskly walks around the local park daily. Three times a week she jogs to the local gym, where she does yoga and a small work out. She ends up in their little cafeteria where she buys a healthy muffin and a bottled water, confident she is doing the right thing in avoiding the pops and high-sugar juices.

Great for Jane. There’s only one thing wrong with her selection: in choosing to buy bottled water, she is implying a choice against tap water. In doing that, she is supporting the implication that water is a commodity to buy and sell, rather than a national heritage and the right of all citizens of this planet—with associated individual, national and global responsibility to keep clean and sustain for our future generations and planet’s well being.

“Water is a public trust,” says Maude Barlow, Senior Advisor on Water Issues to the President of the United Nations. “This means that no one owns water in a jurisdiction but rather that it belongs to a nation’s citizens, the ecosystem and the future.”

To buy bottled water is literally to buy into a paradigm that accepts that water is not free but can be bought and sold. It makes water a commodity.

Environmental Education: Who, Me?...

In my last post I talked about environmental citizenship. So, I figure each of us has a personal responsibility as a caretaker of planet Earth. I recently read a cool paper on environmental education and, even though it was aimed at educators, I saw its relevance to YOU and ME. In other words: what can you and I teach ourselves and our children about environmental citizenship?
In their paper entitled “The Failure of Environmental Education (and How We Can Fix It)”, Blumstein and Saylan (Plos Biology, May 2007) discuss seven ways to improve environmental education to promote environmental citizenship in individuals. I’m going to look at four in my next few posts, the first one being:

1. Learning and teaching others about over-consumption. The magnitude of our impact, discussed by ecologists Holdren and Ehrlich, depends on population size, affluence and technology. As countries develop their environmental footprint expands and consumption rate becomes more important. What Blumstein and Saylan say is we need to teach ourselves about how to conserve consumable products. We need to teach our children where and how resources come from—that food, clean water, and energy don’t come from supermarkets, taps and power points.

What's an Environmental Citizen?

In the spirit of my last post, this one explores environmental citizenship: what it is and how we can promote it in our daily lives. According to Environment Canada, being a citizen: is “not just about voting or carrying a passport, it is about recognizing one’s membership in the community of all living things and acknowledging responsibilities toward this community.” The Oxford Dictionary defines the word environment as “surrounding region or conditions, especially circumstances of life or person or society.” This definition presents infinite possibilities just begging for interpretation. How many of us, for instance, fail to acknowledge our home as part of the environment?

Embracing environmental citizenship is not as easy as following green-fad prescriptions. It involves a personal acknowledgement, a fair amount of soul-searching, and a gradual shift in self-perspective. At the heart of this shift in environmental view are four key perspectives to nurture: self-esteem; an eco-centric view; optimism; and a local perspective. Dr. Val Schaefer of the School of Environmental Studies at the University of Victoria, says: “Being a good environmental citizen […] is not only recycling or taking the bus. It’s to do with how you deal with another person, whether you respect that individual and his or her views.” Dr. Peter Ballin, of Vancouver Community College, emphasizes that we must first respect ourselves, then one another, other creatures and the planet. It begins with a strong sense of self and belonging to the community that extends from one’s family outward to the community of life. Ballin reminds us that “someone who’s a good citizen doesn’t take himself or herself out of the picture.” Someone who’s a good environmental citizen doesn’t take himself or herself out of the environment.