Description: Some suggestions about everyday environmentalism.

 How can we be green every day?

Hill:  It really depends who you are and what you’ve done.  I think a lot of people . . .  What do they say, “Perfection is the enemy of the good” or something like that?  I think a lot of people will put the stuff off because they wanna do the right thing.  And I think logically, the way to approach your own personal situation in terms of the environment is to take some time; do a carbon calculator; figure out where you have the most impact; focus on those things first, etc.  I think the challenge with that is that people may put that off and put that off because it’s a big thing, and they just wanna do it right, and they just wanna make sure.  So I just try to counsel people just get started.  Pick something.  It doesn’t really matter what.  Pick something that matters to you and that just feels right and just start.  And I think that gets you on the path.  And then, you know, if you wanna be more strategic, great.  By all means.  Get one of those carbon calculators, figure out where you can have your impact and just do that.  So I think that’s . . . that’s a big one.  I think in terms of general concepts, there’s a very, very simple one.  Just small is sexy.  And it just applies . . . it applies to everything.  Like we have this perception that we need a lot of things or . . . or volume or what have you in order to be happy.  And we just don’t.  So whether it’s architecture . . .  You know the houses have gone from close to 1,000 square feet like 50 years ago to close to 2½.  So literally 2½ times as big while the average family size has shrunk.  So we were . . .  It’s not like we’re a lot happier now than we were in the ‘50s.  So you can live a great life and . . . in a much smaller home.  And by doing that, because the space is much smaller, you save on heating.  You save on cooling.  You save on lighting.  You save on furnishing.  And it just makes for an overall simpler life.  So I think focus on small.  Small is great.  And that can be cars.  That can be architecture.  That can be the size of your wardrobe.  That can be your number of weekend jaunts via plane.  I think just focus on that.  That would be what I’d say.

What is one thing we can do to have a disproportionately large impact?

Hill:        I think if we were . . . if we were very vocal with both our dollars in terms of what . . . what products and services we’re willing to support and what not; and in terms of the political process, I think that that in itself can have a tremendous impact because it also impacts the people around you.  So it sort of covers the consumer and the personal aspect.  It sends a message to business, and sends a message to . . . to governments.  So I think if we’re a lot more vocal and a lot less concerned about what other people thought, I think . . . I think we’d be well on our way.

Recorded on: Oct 16 2007