Culture Artist

A New Mindset for the New Year

By Chuck Hall

[December 31, 2007]  As the Western world winds up another year, many people are considering the annual tradition of making New Year's resolutions. This week's column started out to be a laundry list of things that you could do to live a greener lifestyle in the coming year, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that such information is widely available on the Internet and from various other sources. Instead of writing yet another column of lists, I think it'd be more meaningful to examine the motivations behind green living. Why does it matter? By looking at our relationship to the environment, green living becomes a way of life instead of just another list of things to do.

We interact with the environment, and the environment interacts with us. For those who know how to listen, the wind in the trees can sing to us. The view of a mountain range or a moonlit ocean can tell a story. The smell of the first flowers of spring can speak just as clearly as a loved one's voice can. On the other hand, a crowded, polluted city street can communicate as well. The messages we get from our environment have an impact on us, whether or not we are consciously aware of that impact. It changes our sense of self and our sense of well-being.

When I started speaking in public on the topic of sustainable living, there was a great deal of interest in the topic, but there was also a lot of resistance. A lot of the comments I got were along the lines of, "What you say sounds great, but I just don't see myself being able to make a change right now," or "Wow, that sounds expensive."

People thought that sustainability was a great idea, but they saw it as something they didn't have the time to work into their already busy schedules. It was then that I realized that what was needed was a complete paradigm shift.

When I speak of a paradigm shift, I'm talking about a fundamental change in the way we view life. I mean a change in values -- a new way of thinking about what's important. I personally think that applying a few sustainable ideas here and there in our spare time is the moral equivalent of sticking a band-aid on a cancer patient. The time for systemwide change on a global scale is rapidly running out. The more people who can change their way of thinking about and interacting with the ecosystem, the better off the future of this planet will be.

So for this New Year, instead of simply adding a few "green living" tasks to your daily agenda, try re-examining your assumptions about the world and your place in it. Think about how you interact with the environment around you.

Ultimately, what happens to the Earth happens to its inhabitants. We are all part of many circles that make up the greater circle of life, and the Earth is our home. What we do to the Earth, we do to ourselves. In the long run, sustainable living means treating ourselves in a better way by treating our home, the Earth, in a better way.

Have a happy new year and a greener tomorrow!

Chuck Hall is a cob builder and author. His latest book, "Green Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave," is now available at www.cultureartist.org. You may contact him by e-mail at [e-mail].

[Text from file received from Chuck Hall]

Chuck Hall is a sustainability consultant and author. You may contact him by e-mail at [e-mail] or visit www.cultureartist.org.