ML's blog: Cause Consumption, Green Consumers and then some

Ok. Here goes. I’m on maternity leave and I’ve got a little time to finally get down some thoughts that might just resonate with some of you out there. I (along with every other marketer, journalist, celebrity agent and over-educated privileged person) have been thinking a lot about the environment as my cause. For a long time I was content to say, “oh, yeah… I’m just not that in to the environment as a cause per se” and I spent most of my spare time working on “people” issues- homeless advocacy, immigrant rights, AIDS education in Africa- always hands on with people and the whole environmental movement just felt so nebulous and distant. It reminded me of the super crunchy (and kind of foxy/smelly) guys I knew in college that were mature enough to cook for themselves and spent most waking hours snowshoeing or mountain biking after class. Sure, I recycled. And I donated to the Sierra Club and even started drinking water exclusively out of a Nalgene (which I later trashed for a SIGG). Over time (with many instances of awakening) I began to see and palpably feel the extensive relationship between humans and the environment and social justice and I started to eat up Michael Pollan, subscribe to Conscious Choice, really notice all of the coverage beyond Earth Day, and WHAM! When I had my first child a few years ago, that was the tipping point. As I considered what went into my body while she grew inside, what I was doing to the place that she was going to live in once she was out of my body,etc.etc.- I began to examine my actions and how they were impacting the planet and I started to think of interconnectedness (go ahead, light the incense) and that’s when I began to get green.