Joy extolled the virtues of Eugene, Oregon, in her “Living in America’s Greenest City” post.  One of our readers, Amy, commented that it’s hard to strive for greenness when your city doesn’t have a recycling program or other eco-friendly amenities.  I can relate!  I currently reside in ultra-green Portland, Oregon, but I haven’t always lived in such progressive places.  So what’s it like being a lone tree-hugger in the non-green parts of the United States?

When I first moved to Portland years ago, one thing I loved was how accessible everything was.  I worked in a retail shop two blocks from my apartment. The library, post office, grocery store, coffee shops, and anywhere else I wanted to go were just steps away. Where I grew up, everything was so spread out that driving was a necessity-and a way of life.  So for me, the worst thing about living in a non-green city is the dependence on cars.

Recycling was also difficult in where I grew up.  Yes, it existed, but at the time we didn’t have curbside recycling, so it wasn’t easy to do, especially if you were a teenager without a driver’s license.  On the plus side, though, we got more creative about reusing items.  A high school friend and I won a prize in our school’s science fair by designing a Glockenspiel out of old glass bottles, and we saved newspapers to burn in our fireplace (not really green, I know).  I remember collecting toilet paper and paper towel tubes to donate to elementary schools for craft projects.

If you live in a non-green town, people may not look kindly upon your “wild & organic” yard as they would in Portland.  Where I grew up, in the high mountain desert, many people maintained vibrantly green, weed-free lawns. They may have looked nice like the one in the photo, but I’ll bet behind most flawless yards are bottles of pesticides and chemical fertilizers.  I’m happy to report that my hometown has taken a few steps towards eco-friendly landscaping.  Over the years it’s become more popular to keep the native climate in mind while designing outdoor spaces, saving precious water.   

Of course the biggest downfall of living in a non-green place is the lack of access to like-minded tree huggers.  When I was pregnant, I wasn’t afraid to breastfeed, use cloth diapers, or make my own homemade baby food (from my homegrown organic produce!) because those things were seen as normal.  It’s certainly more difficult to jump into an eco-conscious lifestyle if it feels like you’re the only one who’s ever heard of global warming. 

Now we want to hear from everyone else!  How do you make your place of residence greener-or how do you stay green despite the obstacles?