Urban Guilt versus Green Utopia
When you envisage being truly eco-friendly, do you imagine an idyllic farmstead, free range animals, potatoes and beans set out in rows, a hen house and an herb garden? We tend to think that being green requires us to be self-sufficient within our own space because when we look for an example of how that is done we look back to pre-industrialisation. And, because for almost all of us that is a very long way from our daily reality, we turn a little ashamed to recycling a few glass bottles and buying a few local vegetables in the market on the way home from work. The image of the self-sufficient tiller of the soil would have many of us believe that we should not be looking to live in cities. If only we each had our own little parcel of land, we could all return to a more innocent time, before the evil car was created, and we started destroying the planet.
I say this tongue in cheek because I believe the very opposite to be the case. We should be looking to live in a more densely populated way if we really do want to be better stewards of creation. Living more closely together rather than creating more and more urban sprawl massively reduces the servicing necessary to enable folk to live in the manner to which we are accustomed. Namely, with electricity, running water, flushing toilets, trash collections, phone, Internet and TV. Every time a new house is added to the periphery rather than the centre, just think about the additional driving that is done by the owner, let alone the
Hot off the Keyboard
Ros Leverett (2013)
Zack Ingles (2013)
postman, garbage collector and visiting friends and family. Then there is the works and materials in the ground necessary to service the new house. These elements alone easily eclipse any efforts to compost buy local produce or recycle bits and bobs from the garbage.
Whilst there is a tendency to blame the car for CO2 emissions in the woe of the media about global warming, it is the construction industry that produces the greatest percentage of emissions. In 2011, the building sector was responsible for nearly half (46.7%) of U.S. CO2 emissions. By comparison, transportation accounted for 33.4% of CO2 emissions and industry just 19.9%.(1) Though this is a U.S. statistic, it would be naïve to think that the numbers would be very different for most other Western developed economies. Living in urban areas not only reduces construction costs, but since many people walk and use public transport as the most convenient means of getting around, it has an impact on both the building and transportation sector figures quoted.
So city dwellers, don’t feel so bad. There is no need for guilt and it annoys me when I hear about how much greener we would all be out in the countryside. By choosing an urban lifestyle you are likely to be living in a far more green way. If you are that bothered, just think how much better professional farmers are at producing food than you are. It would be better to grant them the space they need to continue to feed our growing population.
(1) Architecture 2030 Challenge: architecture2030.org
March 2013 - #2
And We All Rode Home
I live in a city, not quite in the downtown core, but in a really nice neighbourhood on the edge of everything I think is worth doing. Most of the time I walk to work, to events, to restaurants and coffee dates. I have even started taking the bus a bit more often. But at $2.60 a ride I feel a little guilty riding five blocks down Rideau Street, even in the bitter cold.
And what a funny thought to have. To calculate your rides. Is this half hour walk worth $2.60? Well, it seems frugal enough but it is a little funny considering I rarely think about the cost of gas when I drive the car. A car is not a necessity for me, as I can walk to work or church in ten minutes (the two places I seem to be most often) but I am certainly glad for our sexy 2001 white Buick Century when I am carrying a cookie sheet of green-slathered cupcakes to a St. Patrick's Day Party.
This leads me to the reason we have the car. My husband is a worship leader and musician. I can barely lift and move his guitar amp a few feet, let alone five blocks away. Then there's the bass amp, the guitars (acoustic, electric, or bass), and my piano and mandolin, and then there are pedal boards and cables, mic stands and guitar stands...etc. The list could go on and on. His rider is certainly more comprehensive then our monthly chore list.
So, we have this great excuse to use and own a car, but we struggle with adjusting to the urban lifestyle which really doesn't necessitate the car for any other activity. We both grew up in places and families where the family car was needed and/or used
Pickwick
Musician
From the moment I first heard the band’s demos, a couple years ago, I was instantly hooked. Pickwick reconciles the soulfulness of R&B and the catchiness of modern pop music in a genre I like to call "Rhythm & Pop". Recorded in a living room onto 1/2inch tape, Can’t Talk Medicine leaves the listener with that under produced and raw sound reminiscent of those old Motown records we all have collecting dust in our closets.
Hits like Hacienda Motel and The Round have been carried over from the band’s previous Myths EP. What struck me most about this most recent release was that I didn’t gravitate towards the typical upbeat singles. It was the soulful side of Brother Roland and the ambience of Santa Rosa that sold me on this album. For fan of the band’s more upbeat you’ll find yourself gravitating towards the classic bass line and incredible harmonies of Sharon Van Etting on Lady Luck.
The band is currently hitting up the SXSW Music Festival in Austin. If you’re lucky enough to take in one of their incredible live shows you’ll be left with a jaw-dropping performance and songs that are on their way to joining the international hit list with the likes of The Black Keys, The Flaming Lips, and the White Stripes.
If you want to get your hands on a copy of Can't Talk Medicine then head on over to Pickwick's site at pickwickmusic.com.
frequently. And, as young people finally on our own we relish being able to go wherever whenever. But, the emotional thinking over rides our common sense and the consequences of it all don't sink in until we are at the gas pump.
Most people here walk, bike, carpool or bus. It is an honest hassle to have a car. Parking is hard to find and there is always maintenance. In fact, we have an issue that if we don't use it often enough our battery likes to die on us. The car literally begs us to be driven with threats of unreliability.
This is probably one of our toughest struggles right now. With Ros discussing urban density and its benefits in the above article, I write as the resident who moved from a sprawling suburb into a dense urban environment. I am fighting the good design of friend urban planners and architects. I am the person making their earth-friendly designs pointless.
Maybe I sound a little hard on myself, but we need to be hones about these things. I can rant and rave about how amazing it is that we have these great bus systems and sidewalks, but it is pointless if I always drive. I so easily fall into the self-reassured trap of thinking I'm so green and hip because I walk to work. But, 2/4 times I'm driving.
So, my reasonable goal? I want to cut my driving to 1/4 of the time. I won't eliminate it but I want to keep reducing it. I may not hop on a bike just yet, but $2.60 isn't sounding so bad. It might seem like a lot, but at least it means only one vehicle on the road as opposed to two.
Selina Ingles (2013)
This is the album cover for Pickwick's newest release titled Can't Talk Medicine, March 2013.
