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The Green Maven

Going Green

While lost in a moment of introspection, I found myself pondering what I would say in this column and exactly how to express it, when I was struck by the parallels between my mental indecision and our situation here on Earth.

I think that collectively as a species we too seem to be waiting around and milling over our environmental responsibilities; anticipating the right time to arise when we will step forth and heroically take action. Perhaps we have been waiting for someone else to solve the problems or make the changes.

I realized I was never going to manifest more time to write, have more ideas or a greater literary ability.

And so that is how this column has come to be. Just in case you were wondering about the name, “Green Maven” is my super hero alter ego. My superpowers as Green Maven would allow me to peacefully transform unsustainable practices into holistically sustainable systems with my power ring. I would also have a really killer recycled costume and a sustainably built secret headquarters.

And as for the name, I found out after my selection that it is also the name of the Green search engine www.greenmaven.com so that ought to be easy for us to remember when the need to look up green information arises.

I hope you join me in on the adventure of becoming “green.” This is an adventure we are all collectively taking together here on our small planet whether we like it or not and whether we participate or not. This adventure is taking place both globally and more tangibly, locally.
There is a wealth of amazing talent and diversity around us. There are people working hard here in the foothills to learn about and preserve the natural beauty we all enjoy. These are people I hope to connect with to glean as much information as I can to pass on to you.

Unless you have been hiding out in a mountain hermitage you have probably noticed recently that the environment has been thrust into the mainstream media with some quite frankly dire-sounding news.

The words Green, climate change, carbon footprint and Global Warming are everywhere now. At times the media paints a rather dismal picture. But fear not, there are ways we can individually effect a positive change.

Let me first attempt to define the concept of Green.
Green is an ideology encompassing politics, personal philosophy, economics, science, the building industry, business, agriculture and ethics, which places high importance on environmental and ecological goals. Green is a way to weigh the impact one’s actions have on the environment and to gauge levels of sustainability. (More on sustainability later).

While hardly a new concept this green philosophy has finally worked it’s way into the mainstream psyche. Our global consciousness has been forever changed regarding our place in and effect on our environment. The Super Bowl even touted itself as being green this year for crying out loud.

What does green mean to us in our everyday lives and how do we put it into practice?

First, if we don’t know what the problem is we can’t fix it, so education is a perfect place to start. Fortunately and conveniently there is an amazing wealth of knowledge available on the Internet and in print. With education one may then think about our daily choices. Giving our children an environmental education is a powerful and invaluable gift, which will help them to become more aware adults. As Americans we are consumers and as consumers we produce twice the environmental footprint of our European neighbors and several times more than that of our friends in developing nations. Let’s face it, that places a large responsibility on Americans to clean up our act.

Here in the United States we have the technology and financial resources to model sustainability to the world as well as to provide leadership and aid. We are known internationally for our grandiose consumption. Not really something to be proud of if you ask me.

As concerned, educated consumers we must then sift through the haze of shady green washing and false claims. As I am personally finding out these days, “natural,” “cage-free,” “green,” and other forms of product labeling do not necessarily guarantee best and sustainable practices are assured. When we know how and where things are made it empowers us and through our choices we become responsible consumers. For example, organic fruit bought here in Placer County, but produced in Brazil, consumes more energy and resources than conventional fruit produced locally in Placer County and sold at the farmer’s market.

This may sound like a lot of work and as with anything new it really just takes a bit more concentration, but with practice, greener thinking becomes second nature.

There is a challenge in defining what counts as green. In the end it is more a matter of how green you want to be, how much time you are willing to spend reading labels, asking questions and educating yourself.

Did you know?
• The United States produces and uses 1/3 of the world’s paper supply.
• Making paper from recycled content creates 74% less air pollution and 35% less water pollution.
• Producing one ton of paper requires 2-3 times its weight in trees.

Maureen Murphy has recently moved back to Auburn after many years of adventures elsewhere. She is currently taking her Architectural licensing exams, lives with her two girls, husband and two cats. She enjoys eating local organic foods, learning about sustainable building, buying locally produced goods and can be found making her own eclectic fashions out of recycled clothing, producing electronic music, and designing green buildings. Her column, “The Green Maven,” publishes monthly in the Sentinel. Messages for Maureen may be sent to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and they will be forwarded to her.

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