Don’t Forget to Wear Your Green
by Deborah Steele
There is no doubt about it, being green is in fashion. Unfortunately climate change is such a serious issue it should rise above that of being fashionable, but people are busy and it is worth catching some people where they are. As I’ve said before, the term ‘green’ implies such a range of technologies and personal habits that the term should hardly be used, and some companies are eager to hijack the term to promote what is truly a dirty dangerous energy scam, such as the dirty lie of “clean coal.” But this problem is not going away in my lifetime, so it is best to get informed and participate in the solutions. And I, for one, am not going to feel bad about looking good while doing so.
When designers were developing the second generation of the Toyota Prius, they wanted to create a car that people knew was a hybrid car. In the first generation designers were afraid consumers did not want to stand out or look strange but they soon realized something very basic about human behavior; we want credit from each other for doing good things. This newer, obvious hybrid design was so popular and perhaps functional that competitor Honda’s Insight bears a striking resemblance. In Toyota’s third generation of the Prius, they stuck with the overall concept.
Luckily we do not have to spend an extra 10 thousand or so dollars on a car to be seen as an environmentalist. For those who want to help or at least be less damaging to the environment, I propose you get a water bottle. Reusable beverage containers offer an outlet of creativity and individual expression while showing off your environmental awareness. I think baristas enjoy knowing customers are less likely to walk away with the wrong mocha, too. I carry one for water or cold beverages and one for coffee; the best of materials tend to break down if they go through extreme temperature changes. In this same vein are reusable grocery bags, and almost every store sells bags with their logo on it. I‘ll admit it is hard to remember to keep them with you when going shopping, but these bags are more functional than plastic. I can’t speak to who has the best logo on a bag; I prefer to turn them inside out most of the time.
While I am happy and often amused by green fashion statements, I have to be real here. Unfortunately, I’ve had to check my activist assumptions about strangers wearing environmentally minded T-shirts. In the past when I have sought signatures for various environmental issues, I’ve learned that not everyone who wears a recycle symbol cares about clean air, for example. I am speaking from experience; this is about more than someone who really does not have time at that moment. This is probably more a statement about our disconnected society than an individual’s mindset. We are better consumers than citizens much of the time. And while I do not doubt there are definitely huge ways we can help the environment by recycling or buying locally grown food, it is just sad when people assume being green is only done in the consumer realm.
Our elected officials are bought and sold by dirty energy companies, and here in Ohio there are numerous culprits from both parties who take enormous campaign contributions from companies like First Energy or American Electric Power. Until we as voters hold them more accountable and we ourselves do not fall into the false dichotomy of the environment vs. jobs, this cycle will continue. So I do wear lots of T-shirts with environmental messages, but more importantly I often take action, even if I do not always look cool doing so.
