Wil Andruschak
Lauren Maris
Lauren Maris on reducing our ecological footprint
A new year rings in new desires and goals and increasingly those resolutions reflect a commitment to “go green.” According to the World Wildlife Fund Calgarians have the largest environmental footprint in Canada so there’s a lot of work to be done. To help ease people into this local author Lauren Maris has put together Live Green Calgary! (EarthWise Solutions 59 pp.) a guidebook of environmentally friendly products and services in the city.
Maris explains that the book grew naturally out of her work at EarthWise Solutions where she helps counsel homeowners on ways they can reduce the energy consumption of their homes. “I recognized that people often think in Calgary that there’s not a lot of environmental options that they don’t exist they can’t get here or else they’re really expensive. I was already coming up with all these options for people to put in their home so I decided to just compile it make it a little easier for people to live a little greener without having to spend a lot of cash and do a lot of running around.
“People are interested in living just a little more sustainably but are busy doing other things in their lives” she adds. “They don’t want to spend the time to research where they can get more sustainable clothing options building options transportation options or waste and recycling options. I think a lot of Calgarians feel we are living a little bit too far beyond our means in terms of resources. It’s important but it never quite makes it to the top of the priority list.”
One of the reasons people are often intimidated by “going green” is the cost. “People think it’s not possible to eat locally and organically without being fairly expensive” Maris says. “My experience has been that there are some things you pay a premium on but if you keep an eye out the local producers are really trying to be competitive. It’s just a matter of thinking about the choices you make considering local businesses or packaging.”
Like large packages of toilet paper that come with rolls individually wrapped in plastic? She laughs. “For some people that’s just the way it is and they don’t think about the fact that’s horrifically unnecessary and wasteful packaging. Where does it come from? Does it come from China? Could you have purchased something that was made and manufactured in Canada? Asking people to think about their purchases: do they really need it? Does it have to be new? That’s probably one of the simplest things asking people to look at their consumption.”
Food is a good example of where people can reflect more on the purchases they make Maris says. I reluctantly admit to buying my preschool daughter strawberries one of the few pieces of fresh fruit she’ll eat even in the middle of winter. “I hear that all the time and it’s no judgment — you do what you need to do for the health of your children” she says. “But maybe you can buy some from a local hothouse. They might be 50 cents more expensive but there are options and we all have to make choices that are practical for us. That’s one thing I emphasize — no judgment try to be practical and it will all balance out. Apples from New Zealand? That’s really a long way and there are apples that are more local.
“The biggest surprise” she adds doing some reflection of her own “was the volume of resources available. I was not that surprised by how little the province of Alberta offers in terms of services or incentives. The city however offers many programs and has their fingers in many pies. They’re doing a lot in this arena and that actually surprised me. I don’t think that Calgary’s getting a lot of credit for it from its citizens. It seems to be getting awards and recognized from outside but not from the average Calgarian.”
Live Green Calgary! contains the contact numbers and addresses of many local businesses that will help you cut down on your ecological footprint whether it’s by shopping at a flea market or installing more energy-efficient appliances. There are more than $10000 in rebates and subsidy programs available to Calgarians to help offset costs that may arise Maris points out. As with other New Year’s resolutions she adds sitting down and establishing a multi-year plan to go green makes the transition more likely to succeed.
