turtles, and it's not easy being green

View from the sundeck of our little cabana in Grand Rivere, as I was writing in my journal.

This post was written in my personal diary on Saturday, May 27th. The photos below the text of this post were taken Sunday, May 28th.

As I write this, I'm sitting on the sundeck of our cabana at the eco-hotel Acajou in Grand Riviere, on the north coast of Trinidad. We're here on our annual trip for the nesting of the giant leatherback turtles, just as we did last year. We're not going to actually see the turtles until after dark (when they come ashore to dig their nests on the beach), and, ostensibly, at dawn tomorrow morning (when the last of the turtles are returning to the ocean). However, for now, Marcus has taken Alex to the beach to play, and I'm enjoying a few moments of solitude.

While sitting here listening to the birds among all this lush vegetation, I can't help but notice how much I've been thinking about the environment lately. I honestly don't know the reason why -- maybe it's because that in spite of the beauty that surrounds me here in the tropics, Trinidad is facing its own environmental degradation. Or maybe it's that now that I'm a parent, I feel more of a responsibility to leave the earth, at the very least, in as good shape as it was before I got here, because I owe it to my daughter. Regardless of the reason, it is this new... awareness, I guess I'll call it ... that has moved me to do things like create Emerald Market.

Anyway, this new awareness also had me eagerly anticipating the May issue of Vanity Fair Magazine, dubbed the "Green Issue" -- devoted to the environment and eco-friendly matters. I've just finished reading it here on this deck, and while this month's publication does have its disappointments (it's not printed on recycled paper, for example, and really, shouldn't that be the case for a magazine extoling the virtues of enviro-friendliness?), it is pretty impressive. The magazine did everything from helping me realize all-new levels of my disgust in the current U.S. administration (e.g., the systematic and deliberate policy of ignoring all things environmental, up to and including the ridiculous adoption of the much more benign-sounding phrase "climate change" to refer to the very real danger of global warming) to increasing my admiration of people like Edward Norton, George Clooney, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and Bette Midler, who don't just talk the envirotalk, but actually walk the walk.

Recently, I was speaking with an online friend about living a green life (especially because this friend is inspirational when it comes to living authentically), and she mentioned that she felt many people "go green" because it's the vogue thing to do, rather than because they truly understand the implications of not doing so. I suppose, in a certain way, the Vanity Fair Green Issue is testament to this. But I'd argue that every little bit counts -- and if people are becoming green just to be fashionable, well, perhaps eventually some of their actions will eventually just become second-nature.

So at any rate, with all these readings and conversations about the environment that have been swirling around me lately, the upshot is I have new resolve to begin incorporating more sustainable and ecofriendly habits into my life. Thus far, I've hardly been the poster child for conscious living, but hey, it's a start. And for those of you who might be looking for ways to start doing the same, check out these "Fifty Ways to Help Save the Planet" -- some of them are surprisingly easy, like going vegetarian for one day a week (not for animal-friendly reasons, as you might think, but because "to produce one pound of beef requires 2,500 gallons of water—that's 40 times more water than is used to produce a pound of potatoes.") Or just take your own bag to the supermarket, instead have having to wrack your brains about which is better, paper or plastic. Or hand the Starbucks guy your travel coffee mug when you stop in for that morning java pick-me-up, instead of taking the disposable cup you're offered.

Because, again, every little bit counts.

Comments

[dave / higher powered]

Those are some great ideas and actually make being environment-firendly much less overwhelming. If a fraction of people did the simple things, it would make a big difference in the long run.
The hypocritical leaders and (some) followers of Greenpeace could learn a lot.

[Dani]

I applaud your decision to live more consciously. I began that journey three years ago, not because it was fashionable, but because I felt it was important for me to walk the walk after so many years of talking the talk. (At the time, I was headed into parenthood and thinking about the person I wanted my daughter to emulate.) Most of the changes I've made have come easily, but some were real sacrifices. I still sometimes dream about paper towels, for example.

[Margaret in Germany]

Here in Germany, it is MANDATORY to separate your personal trash so it can be recycled. Before moving here in '95, I never thought twice about the importance of recycling. The military bases have recycling points and they face very stiff fines if they fail to properly separate the trash.

For now, it seems that in many parts of the world, living green is the IN thing to do, whereas here in Germany, it is THE thing to do, and has been for years.

In a couple of months Kennedi and I will be moving to North Carolina, and I will continue to do my part to help the environment. Every little bit helps.

[Deb]

One of the best things we ever did was go to cloth diapering when we adopted our third baby just 18 mons after our second. Two kids in diapers at once REALLY made me think about all that TRASH. We experimented (since I am NOT the kind of Mama who would usually LIKE cloth) and we discovered a great, EASY system that has worked well for us, www.FuzziBunz.com
I know we have saved money, the kids have been more willing to toilet train, and WOW, all those dirty diapers we did NOT add to the landfill! I would recommend Fuzzi Bunz to anyone like me who thinks, "Ugh,I would never use cloth!" You may be surprised.
I love your idea for Emerald Market too, a great way to share earth friendly finds with others who are interested!
Deb

[Marieke]

I don't think "the environment" cares if people act Green because it's fashionable or because it's "the thing to do", as long as people are willing to use their possibilities to change their behaviour.
Personally I find it real hard to tell ignorant people (like those tossing their batteries etc between their regular garbage) they should really be changing their behaviour, whilst I'm not willing to give up my sort of frequent shopping trips (flying from Amsterdam to New York/London/Milan for a few days) and overseas holidays...
How much of a hypocrit does that make me?
(And I'm not even into Greenpeace LOL)

[Marieke]

PS: The giant turtles sound really exciting! I hope Alex enjoys it as much as you expected!
PS2: The current Dutch weather (rain rain rain) is making me want to look at your pictures even more than usual. I love the very different (sun)light...

[Christine]

Great post and love the photos! I work at an environmental NGO (policy research institute) so your post was near and dear to my heart. I find that a lot of people use today's catch-phrase of "global warming" or "climate change" to get people to care about the environment (For example, here in Japan, the Ministry of the Environment "endorsed" the film "The Day After Tomorrow" as part of their global warming campaign.) I find those tactics frightening.

But paying more attention and understanding the dwindling resources that we have (once they're gone, there's no where else we can get them) is so important for every single person to realize. Thanks for the thought-provoking post!

[Bron from Oz]

In my professional life I work on getting the community engaged in greenhouse issues. It's important for all of us to do our bit to address global warming - and not think it's just about big business - 20% of our greenhouse emissions come from households and if we all make small changes the combined impact can be great.

[rabi]

if you want to be green, be VEGAN! it is the single biggest and best way for a human consumer to reduce her environmental footprint. vegans use a tiny fraction of the energy and resources that lacto-ovo vegetarians do. so even if you just do one veggie day a week, make it truly *plant* based. :)

& if your plants are organic and locally grown on top of that, it's just (dairy-free) icing on your (eggless) cake.

[Francine]

truly amazing photos. seeing the turtles at Acajou has long been one of my things to do :) I applaud you on your green efforts, it is near and dear to my heart. France is not forward thinking as Germany, but is getting there. We recycle, and also use reuseable bags for our groceries. Plus I have just about eliminated all cleaning chemicals from our home and use good old-fashioned vinegar and baking soda, the elbow grease is good exercise!

[Alicia]

Interesting the Vanity Fair tip about planting trees suggested using styrofoam cups to get the seedlings going...!

I am with Deb though - used cloth nappies for my first child and will use them for the next one due in October. Doing things like this that are good for the environment gives you a boost everytime you do them. And with nappies, that means a lot of boosts!

Finally - where I live in London, the council makes it really easy to recycle: we don't even have to separate items...we just put all bottles, paper, cardboard, plastic, etc into a big green box which they collect every week. We don't even have to take labels off bottles, etc., they do it for us! It's always great when your local government encourages environmental responsibility; I am hearing that some councils will be starting to impose fines on people who do not take advantage of the recycling services provided by their councils.

[zander Srodes "Turtle Talks"]

Hi, Last year my mom contacted you about Grande Riviere. I was coming to bring copies of a children's activity book that I wrote on Sea Turtles. Then I was 15 yrs old, this year we are coming back. We stayed up at Mt. Plaisir. We had a wonderful time and the Leatherbacks are awesome. It was cool to read about your trip there. Since then I got the book translated by the Spanish club at my high school, here in Florida. In Oct. I took books to Tortuguero, Costa Rica. That is a nesting site for Green turtles. Your eco blogs make a lot of sense. Zander