Nature-Deficit Disorder

There is a fantastic article in Newsweek on what Dr. Andrew Weil refers to as America's "Nature-Deficit Disorder". Here is a quote from the article,

"In my experience, the more people have, the less likely they are to be contented. Indeed, there is abundant evidence that depression is a disease of affluence, a disorder of modern life in the industrialized world. People who live in poorer countries have a lower risk of depression than those in industrialized nations. In general, countries with lifestyles that are furthest removed from modern standards have the lowest rates of depression."

He goes on to highlight the work of another psychologist Stephen Ilardi who has conducted research among the Old Order Amish that has found that members of this religious group -that shuns modern conveniences like cars or mobile phones- have far lower rates of depression than other Americans.

It seems that the more time we spend in doors in front of our t.v.'s and computers, the more depressed we become.  Behaviors strongly associated with depression such as reduced physical activity and human contact, and eating processed foods are the very things that nowadays our jobs and home lives literally force us to do.

I have always argued that a more sustainable life-style is also one that coincides with a happier, and healthier one. Just from my own experience those evenings when I come home from work after sitting in front of the computer all day and crash in front of the t.v. are the days when I feel more stressed and anxious. When I come home and talk with my neighbors, cook a nice meal, and go for a walk with my husband, I feel a lot more calm and relaxed.

So, I guess the moral of the story is that all of us need to conquer our "Nature Deficit Disorder", not just for the sake of the environment, but for ourselves as well.

Carnivores vs. People

There is a great article in the NY Times this morning on the changing relationships between wolves and ranchers. If you don't follow the state of large carnivores in the western U.S. here is that back story: In 1995 grey wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. The wolves had long been extirpated from the area and, as a result, elk populations had exploded and were destroying the vegetation in the park. The program was a success and wolves rapidly spread outside the park boundaries.

The relationship between ranchers and wolves has always been a tense one. Most wolves do not prey on livestock but a minority can become chronic livestock predators. One of the ranchers had an interesting take on the situation. He argues that if Americans along the coasts want to see the grey wolf maintain a presence in the western U.S. than they should have to share the costs. I agree. And I also believe that maintaining healthy large carnivore populations is a necessary if we truly care about the health and diversity of our ecosystems and that the cost is well-worth it.

The red wolf is native to the southeastern U.S. They became extinct in the wild but, thanks to a captive breeding program, are now successfully breeding in North Carolina. I wander if the range of the red wolf starts to spread and the animals move into populated areas, will easterners be as eager to provide protection for this species versus the grey wolf which is out of sight and, therefore, out of mind for the most part?

Beware of exotic carnivores

This summer when our illustrious leaders tried as hard as they could to shut down the federal government, I got in the habit of rolling my eyes at folks when they excitedly exclaimed that we would all be better off if the federal government did indeed shut down. I rolled my eyes because we Americans take for granted all the great things that yes, gasp, the bureaucrats inside the Beltway actually do for us. These things I am referring to include the availability of clean drinking water, the development of life-saving vaccines, and providing safe air travel.  I am now happy to add another item that the federal government should take up: protection of citizens from exotic animals. If you somehow have missed out on this story it goes something like this: Ohio has some of the weakest exotic species laws on the books in the U.S. A crazy man (he qualifies as crazy in my mind) was able to house upwards of 50 exotic species of mammals on his property. These animals included lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Local officials had to warn people to stay in the cars and homes for fear of becoming dinner.

Where the federal government comes into play with this issue is that federal legislation should be enacted to prohibit the private ownership of exotic animals. Amazingly, the illegal trade in wildlife is second only to that of drugs in the United States, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Federal law is often circumvented by breeding these animals in captivity and selling them with state lines. No one needs to keep a Bengal Tiger as a pet. Most people can barely take care of their golden labs.

Women in Science

This week I had the privilege of sitting in on 51 presentations given to the Technical Committee of the DoD's ESTCP (Environmental Security Technology Certification Program) Program. The presenters came from private industry, non- DoD federal agencies, and the Department of Defense and compete for grant money. The point of the program is to fund innovative alternative energy research to benefit the DoD and, if successful, the American public at large.

As the presenters came up, I noticed a trend rather quickly. When the presenters were women, few were married and the ones that were tended not to have children. These are bright and dynamic scientists and engineers. As a country, can we not figure out a way to keep women from dropping out of the R&D world if they decide to pursue a family?

There is a tendency to view America as falling behind in scientific research relative to the rest of the world. We could go a long way in addressing this concern if we found a way for female scientists and engineers to combine a career with raising a family.

It's a Freecycle World

So, if you haven't tried it out I would suggest that you join the Freecycle network. Its a nonprofit movement of individuals and organizations dedicated to keeping stuff out of landfills. It works by electronically (email) connecting individuals in a community. You post that you have something to freecycle and if someone wants it, they will respond with an email. You then pick the person you want to freecycle it to and, voila, a stranger shows up on your doorstep and takes it away with a smile on their face.

I have so far freecycled a dish washer and a dresser that even the Salvation Army wouldn't take but which my husband and I didn't have the heart to throw out with the trash. (Yes, it seems that nonprofits are picky when it comes to their furniture). The dresser is now in the bedroom of a ten-year old girl.

You can also send an email requesting an item. Folks will email you if they have it and want to see it come to second life helping another.

So, sign up today and Freecycle something. Your an American and more than likely have enough in your home to keep the Freecycle community in operation until the end-of-the-world.

Verbaling for the environment

So, last Thursday I did something I never thought I would do: I verbaled someone. If you don't know what verbaling is, let me enlighten you. To put it simply the act of verbaling involves yelling at someone from your car as you are driving by ensuring that you are free of reprisal from the person you just yelled at. (I first learned about verbaling from my husband. It appears to be something that college-aged men do rather frequently).

So, who and why did I verbal. I would peg the man to be about 45, single, maybe a computer programmer? On second thought I am going with a government employee. He had just left Target and, lo and behold, in the bottom portion of his cart sat a twelve-pack of bottled water. Before I could stop myself I yelled at him out the window that he was being ripped off by Coke (he had a thing of Dasani) and was the poster boy for lack of environmental awareness in this country. (My husband, at least, wasn't so horrified by my outburst - all the college verbaling he did, I guess - but he did tell me I had bad eye sight because the guy obviously had bought Aquafina and not Dasani).

So, why did I have my little meltdown in the parking lot of the Fairfax Target? Well, because I am fed up with all the bottled-water buying people do. I mean, lets be real, we all are guilting of buying the stuff but these days we have so many more options (think aluminum water bottles that you can fill up with tap water). We Americans have the BEST drinking water in the world and it is literally free and piped into our homes and we insist on turning around and buying that same tap water from Coke or Pepsi. (Yes, some bottled water does come from underground aquifers but a lot of it is just tap water sold back to you at an exorbitant price). And, on top of this, we then litter our planet with plastic bottles after we are done drinking our tap water that Coke just sold to us even though we can get it ourselves for virtually nothing. Who doesn't see plastic water bottles strewn about everywhere when out on a walk these days?

So, I apologize to the random man I harassed in the Target parking lot, but maybe what we need more of in this country is some environmental verbaling to change our behavior.

Would you like your tomato with or without chemicals?

It seems that organic farming is coming to a college near you. There are now over a dozen colleges that offer degrees in sustainable/organic agriculture.

I am trying to do a better job of buying locally-grown produce. Growing up, my grandmother in Mississippi had a farm and so each summer we would load down my dad's 83 Chevy impala with fresh vegetables destined for my mother's deep-freezer. My grandmother passed away over ten years and since that time I have been struggling to find another way to ensure that I have fresh, locally-farmed vegetables to consume all winter long.

I shop at Wegmans and have found that they do a pretty-good job of making available a selection of produce from MD and VA. I have even started to buy organic but, as with most people, I sure can tell a difference in price. Strawberries are a prime example of this: this is a fruit that should be purchased organically but have you noticed how much organic strawberries cost????? $5.99 per lb. versus $4.99. In actuality a dollar difference isn't that big of a deal but  people don't have a lot of money to spend these days and my fear is that organic, sustainably grown produce is going to become a province of the rich.

My only hope I have decided is to convince my husband to move to a farm in Loundon County, VA and grown our own food. Except, I don't like country living. What I need is a friend/family member that does and can grow me sustainable/organic food out of the kindness of their heart.