Eco Fest Speech

Below is a transcript of a speech I gave at Eco Fest last weekend. I'm sorry for not providing more substance on this post. I've been preoccupied with having jaw surgery. At any rate, I hope you enjoy the speech and take the message to heart.

Ideas for Rethinking What We Do: Building the 3 R's

Harking back to Sesame Street, I'd like to propose to you that today's Eco Fest was brought to you by the letter R and the #8.

We're probably all familiar with the 3 R's: reduce, reuse, and recycle, so I'm not going to spend time talking about them. Instead, I'd like for you to consider 5 more R's as you walk around the booths and talk to other people who are dedicated to protecting the environment.

The first R is Refuse. Some things are easy to refuse, like plastic bags. Think about how long you use a plastic bag for - maybe 2 to 5 minutes to carry your groceries from your car into your house? Or less than a minute to carry your Subway sandwich to a table? But those bags can last hundreds, maybe even thousands of years. So if you don't need it, refuse it. The same is true for junk mail and unwanted catalogs. There are easy ways to refuse those items and avoid the waste altogether.

But some challenges are more demanding - we need to refuse to be complacent. Though tempting, we must refuse to believe that someone else will solve our problems for us. We are that someone else! Yes, it is a tough challenge at times. But seeing you here today gives me confidence that we're all refusing to ignore these current environmental issues. And that's awesome.

The second R is Reply. We need to reply to elected officials, community organizers, friends and family. Your experience is just as valid as anybody else's. So are you replying to the call of action? Just this week, I attended the Community Forum for Economic Development. It was an eye-opening experience because I realized how many things I take for granted in our city. There are many people who work hard to make South Bend a great place for us to live.

But you know what else? I heard residents voice their concerns at the meeting. There were folks who wanted to know what action was taking place on Portage Ave regarding sewage issues; folks who wanted to better understand why power lines are being placed on Western Ave. These people replied to a message and took the opportunity to have their voices heard when it mattered most.

There's another call for public action on July 12th - I hope you reply to this message by going to the public forum to help guide the future of LaSalle Square.

And please reply to the Sustainability Network so that you can be linked to other groups and people in the Michiana area who are actively working on sustainability and conservation initiatives. Introduce yourself to Jessica at the Taproot Circle booth to join the Sustainability Network today.

The third R is Reeducate. Coming to Eco Fest today gives us a chance to reeducate ourselves about the food choices and lifestyle decisions we make on a daily basis. If you ever wanted to gain a better understanding about fair trade coffee, then stop by the Chicory Cafe booth for that free lesson. And if you want to learn more about portion sizes and the importance of reducing our meat consumption, then you'll want to visit Judith at the Earth Friendly Eating booth. Take advantage of this free reeducation!

The fourth R is to Remember the Big Picture. When you come to festivals like this one, it's easy to get bombarded with information about the do's and don'ts, the pros and cons, of just about any environmental issue. How will you protect yourself from "green fatigue"? Part of the defense is to remember the big picture, why we're doing this to begin with. For others, it's about caring for plants and animals and the ecosystem we're dependent on as part of our survival. And other people integrate global equality as part of their mission to protect the environment. There's probably a host of other reasons why people get involved in environmental action. Whatever the reason, take a moment to remember your big picture, and how you're trying to make this world a better place for yourself, your loved ones, other people, plants, and animals.

This leads me to the fifth and final R and that's to be Responsible. By refusing to give up, by replying to the environmental call to take action now, by reeducating yourself and remembering the big picture, you are taking responsibility. Now, this responsibility should not just happen on an individual basis, although it does start with you making a decision to act. We also need communities, businesses, schools, local, national, and international governments to take responsibility, too. Today is a testament to taking that responsibility seriously and doing so across the board.

So as you mingle around the booths and make new friends and contacts, I hope you will see for yourself that today's Eco Fest was indeed brought to you by the letter R and the #8. Thank you.

Join the Fun at Eco Fest Tomorrow!

I am so stoked about tomorrow's Eco Fest! There's a huge line-up of exhibits, activities, speakers, and live music. Folks can also bring their plastic bags and used computers for recycling (please bring $15 to recycle your old computers!).

I'm also happy to report that my speech is ready! I finished it yesterday so that I wouldn't have to worry about it today. Sean arrived from Philadelphia this morning, so I'd rather spend the day with him than fretting over an incomplete speech. I'm speaking at 12pm, so if you're in the neighborhood, please stop by and enjoy the festivities! I have a feeling this is going to be a big event, much bigger than the festivals we've hosted at IUSB, and I'm excited to see the community embracing the environmental movement.

I've posted the line-up of events for Eco Fest so that you can see the entire roster of events by clicking on the huge Eco Fest logo. Hope to see you there!! :0)

Sustainable Living Expo

I'm just now getting my act together by posting a couple of pictures taken at this weekend's Sustainable Living Expo.

I really didn't know what to expect at this event, which was hosted by 88.1 WVPE Public Radio, Notre Dame, and IU South Bend. And sometimes I think it's a blessing not to create any expectations, but to have an open mind and see what happens. Ok, I'll admit it - I've been experiencing some 'green fatigue' lately. It's just that I wonder if hosting and going to these festivals makes a positive difference in people's lives - I also wonder if it's just the same people going to these events. My larger concern is how to reach out to a broader group of citizens - who's being overlooked? What are the barriers that prevent more people from adopting a sustainable lifestyle?

With that in mind, I was pleasantly surprised and encouraged by the turnout. According to Anthony Hunt, Station Manager of WVPE, there were 1,000 people that attended the Expo. Wow! Of course, this picture doesn't do any justice because I took it pretty early on, but you can see that it was a pretty day on Saturday, which helped bring the masses to the festival.

And it was great talking to people who wanted to know more about how IU South Bend is adopting the principles of sustainability on campus. I spoke with a high-school teacher from California who was interested in BagFest. He really liked the picture of the bag pile. I told him that we filmed a documentary, which hopefully will be finished soon so that I can send him a copy. That way, he'll have a better idea on how the project began and what we did to raise awareness on the consumption of plastic bags. It also got me thinking how cool (i.e., educational, fun, and very important!) it would be to work with high-school students to engage in environmental action. That's a long-term goal I have - finally, maybe I can put my Master's in developmental psychology to use! :0)

In the meantime, however, I've been reaffirmed on the importance of sharing what's happening at IU South Bend. I'm very proud and humbled to join my colleagues in our quest to integrate sustainability with education.

So onward to this Saturday's Eco Fest in downtown South Bend!

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Join Team IUSB for Bike to Work Week!

If you haven't heard the news, next week is Bike to Work Week. This year's organizers are encouraging employee groups to "compete" as part of team. My colleague, Bruce Spitzer, has created an IUSB team, which I joined yesterday. There are other teams, too. The basic idea is to simply log the miles you ride during the week. So if you have a bike, and would like to join a team, go to Michiana Bike to Work to register.

Downtown SB's EcoFest

Well, the "green" theme may be contagious: Downtown South Bend is hosting an EcoFest next month! I'm excited and curious about this community event, which will be held on June 21st from 10am - 3pm. I've been invited to host a booth at EcoFest, which I'm happy to do. In the meantime, however, please mark your calendars. I hope to see you there! :0)

Trash Trooping is Contagious!

This morning, the pups and I ran into one of our neighbors and her two dogs. (It's the same neighbor who saw me picking-up trash last week and asked me if I was doing my civic duty.) Turns out, trash trooping is contagious. She said that after watching me pick-up trash, she and her partner did the same thing, only at other parts of the neighborhood that I had missed. Very cool!

We talked about doing this again. I had been thinking about doing another trash-trooping exercise, although I don't want to make this a daily habit. My neighbor suggested doing this once a week. I've been inclined to doing this once every two weeks, but we'll see now that she's planted that thought into my head! :0)

Trash Trooping Results: Part II

Heather and I went to Rum Village today to join the Trash Troopers. When we arrived at the park, however, we didn't see anyone. We asked the fellow who was working at the front desk if he had seen anyone picking up trash; he didn't. So we figured we might as well do it without them.

We walked just a bit past the Nature Center and quickly found a host of trash strewn in the woods. This time I had gloves on, so it was easier to deal with the trash and focus on not getting stuck by sticker bushes. Similar to my neighborhood trash-trooping experience, it didn't take us long to fill up our bags with discarded materials. In comparison to Heather, I did not find too many digusting items. She found a pantyliner, a bottle of beer (or urine! Who knows? We didn't open it to find out!), and part of a raccoon's tail. But I did find a used condom, which made me want to gag. Oh, for the love!

Not long after the condom encounter, we spotted the Trash Troopers. They were fairly conspicuous in their green attire. Heather and I apparently did not get that memo - I was wearing a pink shirt and she was wearing a yellow pullover. At any rate, we decided against joining the gang because we thought it would be best if everyone dispersed in their trash-collecting efforts. Plus, we were nearing our 1-hour commitment.

So as we wrapped things up, I brought up the question that Nate recently posed: By picking-up other people's trash, are we really enabling others to litter and pollute? Sheesh, this is a good and tough question to answer. It feels like a catch-22. No, it's not okay to litter and no, I don't really want to pick-up after strangers (especially that used condom; disgusting!). But it's also not okay to turn a blind eye to this problem. "This is what diffusion of responsibility looks like", I told Heather, as I carried a full trash bag. It's not pretty, but as you can tell from the picture, we did have a good time making Rum Village look more like a hospitable park, and less like a landfill.

Trash Trooping Results

I started with an empty Seventh Generation trash bag on yesterday's afternoon walk with the pups. It didn't take me long before I started picking up discarded candy wrappers. And it certainly took no time before that trash bag started to get full. A few of my neighbors were outside enjoying the warm weather. "Feeling environmental today?," one of my neighbors asked. I said it wasn't a big deal as I was just picking-up trash along my regular walking route. I noticed a piece of paper on their lawn. "I'd pick that up, but it's on the other side of the fence." "God bless you," was their reply. (I noticed that piece of paper was picked up this morning.)

Another one of my neighbors asked me if I was doing my civic duty. I guess so, I thought to myself. But I can't take sole ownership for this task. Hopefully, this is our civic duty, right? Who really wants to see strewn styrofoam cups, candy wrappers, cigarette packages, beer bottles*, or condom wrappers? (All of those items, by the way, were picked up on yesterday's walk.)

I did not, however, pick-up any cigarette butts, although I did see plenty of them on the grass. I wasn't wearing gloves and believe it or not, it wasn't long before my back started to complain from all that bending down. (Yes, I'm getting old!) Plus, as some of you know, those Seventh Generation trash bags can't really handle a lot of weight. I actually had to stop picking-up trash midpoint of my walk because the bag was starting to rip at the bottom. So if it doesn't rain today, I'll bring another bag and do a second round of trash trooping in my neighborhood.
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* I took the beer bottles out of the trash bag; they're now in my recycling bin.

Trash Troopers!

My friend Heather emailed me today about becoming a Trash Trooper with her this weekend. Trash Trooper? What the heck did I get myself into this time? ;0)

It's actually a simple plan to pick-up trash at Rum Village (by Ewing). We'll be cleaning up the park for an hour, and with 20 volunteers already on board to help, this should be a cinch (I was going to say a walk in the park, but that would be too cheesy!).

This clean-up adventure also reminds me of the St. Joseph River Clean-Up I did last year, which I thought was fun (and reflective).

So, we're going to get there at 3pm on Sunday - hey, anyone else interested in becoming a Trash Trooper? :0)

More Green Michiana Pictures!

Well, be careful of what you wish for, I reminded myself as I viewed photos taken by this joker. I was expecting to receive more "typical" photos from the fair, like this one:

But that would be too ordinary and predictable! So I hope you enjoy a more nuanced view of the Green Michiana Fair!

Blue Monster Recycled

A Soggy Sign

A Frugal Sign

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And here's a fun demo comparing the amount of energy required to light an ordinary vs. CFL lightbulb!

IUSB's Green Michiana Fair a Success!

I'm happy to report that Saturday's Green Michiana Sustainability Fair was a huge success! By my rough estimate, I think ~1,000 folks stopped by throughout the day to recycle their plastic bags, styrofoam, cell phones and old computers. And many folks stayed to check out the myriad booths from local businesses. Wal-Mart and Home Depot passed out free reusable bags; other businesses sold their goods, including fair-trade coffee and clothing.

In addition, the South Bend Tribune ran a story about the fair in yesterday's paper. If you have any downtime, I encourage you to read the story. At the moment, I'm gathering some photos taken at the Fair. (If you have pictures you'd like for me to post on the blog, then please send them my way!) In the meantime, please enjoy these photos!

Ten Thousand Villages

Martin's Grocery Store

Shacklee Products & Chicory Cafe
(That's Chancellor Reck on the right!)


Uni-Solar Panels



Just Goods


Bicycle Safety!

Dessie & Michelle
(Dessie is my friend Jessica's baby!)



Live Music!

IUSB Students Blog about the Environment

One of my colleagues, Bruce Spitzer, has integrated blogging into one of his courses this semester. Naturally, I was intrigued. I've really enjoyed having a class blog - there were several occassions in which students inspired the class to become more eco-friendly (like using toilet paper made from recycled paper!). Some of my other colleagues have shared similar positive experiences by hosting class blogs. So if you have any downtime, check out these cool environmental blogs posted by IUSB students!

Michiana Call to Action!

Tomorrow I will be co-hosting a booth that promotes environmentally-friendly action at the Michiana Social Forum. This event will be held at the St. Joseph Public Library. If you have a chance to attend this event, please stop by my booth to say hello! :0)

(The event will be held from 12pm to 4:30pm.)

South Bend Rallies for Climate Action!

So yesterday was the big day when we rallied for governmental leaders to take action to help reduce carbon emissions. Approximately 90-100 students and faculty from Notre Dame, Saint Mary's, and IU South Bend met with community members and local organizations at the Morris Center in downtown South Bend. Although it was a wee-bit nippy, I was encouraged to hear politicians speak about this issue. Congressman Joe Donnelly discussed how grassroots efforts helped sway the votes to prevent BP from polluting Lake Michigan any further. Mayor Steve Luecke talked about South Bend's efforts to reduce pollution in the St. Joseph River and use methane for generating electricity. And several Green candidates asked the audience to vote for them in tomorrow's election.

Click here to watch a news clip from yesterday's rally and click here to read about it in the South Bend Tribune.

P.S. I submitted my NSF grant today (3:07am, to be precise) - Woo hoo! :0)

Kerry Temple's Last Call to Step It Up

In today's South Bend Tribune, Kerry Temple asks the question of what a person's to do in response to global warming and climate change. In short, we're asked to do the right thing. He writes:

And that means taking some simple measures to improve one's quality of life and the life of the planet. Maybe it means finding support and encouragement in a group of like-minded people. Maybe for some it means finding cooperative initiatives to make one's local community better (mending the Earth one place at a time and avoiding that overwhelming sense of global despair). Maybe it means sending a message to government and business leaders that they, too, need to step up, and now.

Read the rest of Kerry Temple's op-ed piece here.

Nix Your Unwanted Catalogs

In today's New York Times, I learned about an online service called Catalog Choice, a non-profit organization that helps consumers eliminate unwanted catalogs from the mail. Catalog Choice only been existence since last Wednesday and already 30,246 people have used this free service.

Naturally, I went online to check-out this site. It's really easy to create an account and start nixing those unwanted catalogs! I only get two catalogs: J. Crew and Barrie Pace. The J. Crew catalog I can live without because although I love their clothes, I'm not going to spend a fortune on their products. And I get Barrie Pace because of a former resident who lived in my duplex. I can definitely live without that catalog!

So with Catalog Choice, I can stop placing those catalogs into the recycling bin. Now I won't have to deal with these catalogs anymore. I'm sure trees everywhere are exhaling a sigh of relief!

It's Blog Action Day!

Today, 15,861 bloggers worldwide are posting their thoughts and concerns about the environment, sustainability, and climate change. I can imagine thousands of people giving their .02-cents about various environmental issues today, which is fabulous.

But today I decided to go down memory lane and reflect upon my experience hosting BagFest. In just four hours, folks in my community donated 72,571 plastic bags for recycling, which filled up half of a Wal-Mart semi-truck.

That's me captured in a spontaneous moment of acting silly inside the truck. I remember being somewhat awestruck when I saw those bags getting ready to be hauled for recycling - We actually did this - Unbelievable! It's beautiful to remember how everyone worked together to help make BagFest a successful event.

But I certainly didn't plan this event just for me to act silly in front a pile of plastic bags! And six-months later, I'm chairing the recycling committee and working on research projects that investigate the relationship between cognition and environmentalism. Why do this? Am I some kind of sado-masochist? No, I think not.

There's perhaps several reasons why I'm passionate about protecting the environment, but the bottom line is this: There is more to life than just thinking about me (my career, my relationships, my future). I remember years ago feeling quite depressed about getting a job right out of graduate school. In trying to console me, a good friend of mine said that life is much bigger than this (i.e., the state of affairs I was experiencing at that time) - and she was right. Her words, in some circuitous fashion, have led me on an journey to explore just how large, complex, and magnificient this world really is and how someone as small and insignificant as me could find her place in this world.

Beth Reflects on Tess' Trash Challenge

Beth from Fake Plastic Fish was interviewed by Tess Vigeland on NPR's Marketplace regarding her participation with Tess' Trash Challenge.

Well, I'm glad I listened to the interview. I didn't know I could compost my paper plates and napkins. Those suckers will be relocated to my compost bin and deducted from my trash-collection spreadsheet. Sweet!! :0)

Thanks for the tips, Beth!!

Well, It Certainly Looks Like Garbage...

So today's my last day of participating in Tess's Trash Challenge. Woo Hoo!! I must say, I've been obsessed about how much trash I've accumulated this past week. I learned that while it was easy for me to produce less garbage when I was doing my usual routine (get up, go to work, come home, play with pups), it was exceedingly difficult for me to produce less waste when I was in a social situation (going to a friend's house, dining at a restaurant, going out for a hot chocolate or tea afterwards).

Overall, I think I did okay (though my data are at work, and of course, my camera was at home today, so I can't provide you with all the details at the moment--I've chalked this up to being a Monday!). One area for improvement, though, is for me to *remember* to bring a container for my leftovers when I go out to eat. And I was thinking that I should request a mug (or bring my own travel mug) when I go to a cafe, too. I thought of this when my friend Len and I went out for hot chocolate on Saturday night. But then two thoughts immediately followed: 1) I would've had to have ordered a medium or large-sized hot chocolate in order to use the cafe's mug (and I ordered a small) and 2) I didn't want to violate this social norm while I was out socializing with my friend. So as you can see, I successfully rationalized my way out of engaging in this eco-friendly behavior. As penance for this gross inaction, I've decided to hang onto my styrofoam cup and container for next Spring's IUSB Styrofoam Recycling Drive.

And really, this is only an approximation of how much trash I actually generated this week. I'm sure more trash was produced on my behalf when I went out to eat, for example. Case in point, last night my friend Dan and I went out to dinner. After eating our meal and having dessert at a nearby cafe, we inadvertantly walked behind the restaurant en route to the parking lot. The timing was perfect; employees were taking out the trash. "You see, this is what I was talking about earlier," Dan said. He was referring to all the indirect trash that's generated throughout the process of consumption. Indeed, we were walking through the underbelly of this Italian restaurant. Bags upon bags of trash were thrown into the dumpsters.

So, I must say, my eyes have been opened a bit more, thanks to this exercise. I'm glad I did this, and I would recommend you trying it for yourself. If you think you can't handle doing this for a week, then try doing it for 2-3 days. I promise you'll think about your trash (and your behavior) with a different perspective!

Day 4b: But It Doesn't Help to go Dancing

Well, folks, I fell off the wagon. It happened tonight when I attended my dance lesson. After teaching stats at 6:45pm on Thursdays, I go to Dan O'Day's Ballroom for my group lesson, which starts at 7:15pm. Tonight, we covered the foxtrot and swing, which was fun (but that's besides the point). And after the group lesson, there's a party from 8pm to 10pm.

So all that's to say is that I was absolutely starving by 9pm. And it's at this point when I began committing the following infractions:

1. I used 4 paper towels tonight (two trips to the girl's room).

2. I had refreshments and ended up using one styrofoam plate, one plastic fork, one napkin, and one plastic cup.

3. I threw those disposable products in their trash bin since I forgot to bring my own trash bag with me.

So there you have it. I'm not proud of this, but I'm not going to give up on myself so quickly. Tomorrow's another day, another chance to hop back on the wagon.