| Sensible Sustainability |
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| Tuesday, 30 June 2009 19:00 |
It seems I'm having the same conversation a lot these days, which is a good thing. Even I get tired of talking to myself sometimes. People discover my blog, my writing, my values, and they often pepper me with questions:
Russ Parsons of the LA Times writes about this desire for simplicity in his provocative piece entitled Organic Label Doesn't Guarantee Quality or Taste. While I like and respect Russ, and am grateful he opened this discussion, I think the article suffers from the same quest for simplicity that he skewers. He doesn't quite go far enough into the murky waters that surround all the questions consumers have. It's not enough to scold us for wanting simple litmus tests without giving us tools or advice for making better decision. Therein lies the rub. Quite likely he is aware of this and simply could not do it in the space of one column. But this IS the dialog we must be having. If we have reached a moment in time which is unique or a "tipping point" where consumers want to make changes to their food buying habits in alignment with their values, then we have to be prepared to open up a Pandora's Box of complex issues. Are we up for it? Where is the guidance to help us separate the wheat from chaff? Some would like a single source expert to make it easy for them. "If I buy what Michael Pollan says is okay then I'm golden." I'm not sure Pollan would agree and I'm pretty sure that would be insufficient. With respect to seafood - we have wallet cards. We have iPhone Apps. We have Mark Bittman telling us it's too complicated for him. He winds up giving us very Pollanesque advice, eat less fish, only what's sustainable and only where you can trace its sourcing. I paraphrase here but you get my point. Simplicity Loves a Villain In the quest to "win" rather than to "inform" or to "understand" we often want simple black and white arguments. What would a Western be if no one wore the black hat? We need to acknowledge that if a huge industrial producer goes organic, that will have a net effect of reducing the negative environmental impacts downstream. It doesn't mean we stop supporting local farms or we only buy organics at Wal-Mart. Neither does it mean there is no good to come of that producer going organic. I've been bashed by locavores for not giving up rice. Well, I ask them, what wine did you drink with your local meal last night? And where did the pepper in your mill come from? You know it can get silly. And no one "wins" in these score-keeping arguments. In fact, my rice is not locally grown. I am responsible for some carbon impacts because my rice comes from Koda Farms in California. They are a true family farm, farming in responsible, organic ways, and keeping an heirloom varietal rice in the marketplace. It's fantastic rice I really enjoy and wholeheartedly support. My local farmers who grow in a "everything but organic" way - meaning they do it but haven't paid for the increasingly questionable label, also are not themselves locavores. So does that mean we through locavore out the door? Sensible sustainability says we keep it as a principle and make decisions to buy locally grown, harvested food when we can. Forget the Studies, Embrace Incompetence I embrace my incompetence. I don't know everything and can't know everything. I want to give you tools, not be your expert. Maybe your goals are different from mine anyway. But even if I thought I had all the answers today, it'll change tomorrow. Rather than get distracted by whose studies prove or disprove the relative nutritional merits of organics, I'd like us to put that decision in the context of our larger goals and values. I actually don't care what those studies say. What I care about is the reduction in the use of pesticides, and in supporting local farmers that I think also share that value and who produce good food. I don't care how "perfect" a food is (and I have had many discussions with folks from all sides on these); if it's not delicious, I don't want to eat it. There I agree wholeheartedly with Russ. The challenge is that once we've opened our minds to the issues, we are quickly sucked into much larger debates than we might have thought we were signing on for. And, we can't know what the right things are with any finality, because things change and we have to be prepared for living with some incompetence. Nowhere is this more true than with seafood. Even if one could absolutely nail every bit of data today enabling you to make a perfectly sustainable choice, it will change tomorrow. Tomorrow we'll have new data that will tell us something about the health of a fishery, the destruction of a method or the heinous practices of a fish farm that we thought was sustainable. Does that mean we give up, and just eat whatever we are served or whatever is in the fishmonger's case? No one who is generally interested in making better choices is really going to be comfortable reverting to a head-in-the-sand approach.
Sensible Sustainability I like to encourage is what I call Sensible Sustainability. Here are some core concepts and examples:
Sensible Sustainability Steps you can Take 1. Start with baby steps. I call it the What About Bob approach. Go for low-hanging fruit like no more Bluefin Tuna. It's nearly extinct, no one disagrees. 2. Begin a dialog with your butcher, your fishmonger. Tell them what you prefer and why. Ask them how they can improve traceability of their meat or fish. 3. Tell your grocery store managers, owners that you want them to provide more sustainable, organic, local options. 4. Reduce waste. People want to focus on Recycling, but there would be less garbage to recycle if we bought less and consumed less. Everyone's heard of "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." Those three Rs were meant to be addressed in order of importance. People who want to sell you stuff to be green are trying to sell you stuff. Do you need more stuff? 5. If you're concerned about the environment, make a meat-free meal one day a week. Much of the world eats meat-free or nearly so every day of the year. You can do it one day a week. 6. Involve the family in the growing if you have garden, the cooking, the shopping. The more people are involved, earlier on, the better it will go. Kids are often more open minded than we give them credit for. 7. Allow for imperfection, remember - embrace incompetence. So you try some new recipe for a meat-free meal and you don't like it. Doesn't mean you ditch the idea. 8. If you have kids, help them devise a research project like tracing the ingredients in one of their favorite foods. They'll probably enjoy being like that toddler that won't stop asking why. 9. Take the family to see Food Inc. or End of the Line or Fresh. 10. Talk to other people about what resources they've found, who they turn to for help and advice, what tools they use.
I'm going to begin posting a Sensible Sustainability Tip frequently, maybe each day, if I'm good. Look for it up in that sidebar box "Featured". How Lo(cal) can you go? How about your own lettuce on your fire escape or window box?
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written by RichardA , July 03, 2009
An excellent post, with tons of sensible and practical advice. The dogmatic approach has so many flaws, and you have pointed out many of them. Rather than provide specific answers to very specific questions, you have helped guide people to a way of thinking which will help them make the decisions right for them, and hopefully right for all of us and the world. Everyone concerned about sustainability should read this post.
Richard
written by Jacqueline , July 04, 2009
Thanks. I know I packed a lot in there, but I want to lay the foundation for this dialog. I want to get people engaged in feeling it's okay to ask questions, it's okay to choose different priorities one day than another.
It's a start, yes? 
Great post!!!
written by Marisa , July 12, 2009
This should be hanging on people's walls:
Dogmatism is not a good dinner companion. Reading Pollan's In Defense of Food right now, and you're so right about him not having all the answers. He admits it wholeheartedly! It's a difficult but worthy pursuit - asking questions constantly and being so invested in what you're ingesting. Considering all the work and energy that goes into creating our food, it's really not all that much to contribute.
Wading through what it means to be sustainable
written by Carolyn Jung , August 07, 2009
Thanks for a most informative post. It is indeed a mine field to wade through the grocery store these days. It's very difficult to make the right choice, or so it seems. Thanks for giving us advice on what to think of when we make our purchases.
By the way, is that your lettuce growing in the pot? It's gorgeous! What a fine salad it will make.
Carolyn
written by Jacqueline , August 08, 2009
That lettuce was indeed our own home-grown. I had a couple of containers that got us through until the aphids took over. By that time, the Farmers' Mkts were open again so, we made it.
Thanks for the comment, too. A lot of folks who didn't drop a comment have emailed me to say similar things. I do think it's difficult and that's why I really dislike the overly simplistic advice or rules some recommend. It's not that easy! I hope the simple steps help people feel engaged and empowered. We can do better in small ways, almost every meal.
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written by Lia Huber , August 27, 2009
Awesome, awesome post, Jackie. I just--literally just--wrote an e-mail to someone in response to that RP post that sounded a heck of a lot like (a cliff notes version) your post. Keep up the great work!
Lia
written by Jacqueline , August 28, 2009
Yes, cliff notes...I'm a better writer than an editor. I'm lucky folks still stick with me, all these long posts. Some stuff just needs full exploration. Thanks!
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written by Hector , October 05, 2010
Jacqueline, right on point. We have had some of these discussion in the past and I love that you have put a majority of the ideas so succinctly in one place. I grew up in a community that preached (literally) a one-sided ideology and as such, missed out on a very amazing and exciting part of life. I feel we are entering a time when militant food ideology is driving away what could be the most transformative food revolution opportunity we have had in years.
Sensible sustainability is not only a great idea, it shows the transformative power of caring and nurturing. Revolutionary militants rarely care about the long-term effect of their actions. They are like a sledge hammer breaking to pieces the world around them. Sometimes it is a necessary evil, but rarely, if ever, does it lead to lasting change. You alude to the black/white, yes/no culture that we have been indoctrinated in. Unfortunately, that outlook on life goes all the way back to the Greeks. Another issue is that as a community we have lost the ability to grow our sustenance. Just as a thought, could the hunger epidemic in the US be addressed by showing people how to grow things in their own space? As you have shown, there is opportunity for home grown food, even in a big city (if you call Boston big  ). Keep up the writing and I look forward to reading your next Sensible Sustainability post. |
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