A golden opportunity to make changes

When I first found out about peak oil, I was pretty freaked out. So it’s easy for me to understand the frightening scenarios that go through the minds of those of us who come to know that peak oil is no myth. But rather than be willfully ignorant to the issue, I’ve come to understand that though I may be one person the actions I take can have a positive impact in lessening the crisis ahead. In this Georgia Straight article by Rex Wyler, he explains why …”we might discover that the new normal is a golden opportunity to make changes that we will have to make anyway. We may discover that we can have much richer lives with far simpler means.”

Peak oil has me concerned not only about my own family’s future, but also the future of my friends, strangers, their children, and all the other creatures, flora, and fauna that inhabit this planet. Here are some of the very easy choices I have made in my own efforts to slow down peak oil and global warming:

• I have never owned a car and never will – I walk or bike where I need to go when I’m not taking public transit.
• I eat a vegan diet that I am working on centering around seasonal locally produced food I will either grow myself or buy from local farmers within 100 miles of Vancouver (and I walk home with my food).
• Anything not local I try to buy organic and fair trade, if possible.
• My partner and I plan to have only one child that will be born and raised vegan, and  we will use reusable diapers, tempered glass reusable bottles (when not breastfeeding), home-made baby food from locally grown sources, to name a few alternatives.
• I have made the switch to some pretty awesome reusable organic feminine products from Lunapads.
• I have an apartment vermicomposting systemI use to compost my kitchen scraps and create my own garden fertilizer.
• I am contemplating changing my fashion habits to rely more upon second-hand and vintage clothing.
• If I drink any wine, it’s locally produced and made from grapes grown in BC (organic is even better, though not to drink any wine at all would be the best option in terms of lessening the strain on water, land, petrochemicals, and other resources)
• I do recycle, but when I do purchase packages goods I try to make sure the packaging is reusable (i.e. glass jars) and I minimize what I do have to recycle.
• I have made my own reusable produce bags (a DIY will  be posted here shortly).
• I have purchased a food dehydrator to preserve foods and will also be getting into canning.
• There are mostly energy efficient bulbs in my home (though I am questioning if these bulbs are really the best option).
• I use only reusable shopping bags, some of them made from vintage pillowcases  (not those recycled plastic shopping bags that are everywhere now)
• I use mostly biodegradable grabage bags in the kitchen and bathroom.

The idea here is that I do what I can with the resources that are available to me, and it can be just as easy and fun for many of you. And the best thing about my choices is that they have actually simplified my life and shown me just how many resources go into producing all of the things I buy.