The Palisadian-Post has partnered with locally founded environmental organization Resilient Palisades to deliver a “green tip” to our readers in each newspaper. This edition’s tip was written by Lisa Kaas Boyle, environmental attorney and Resilient Palisades Zero Waste team member.
Nobody’s perfect, but every good thing we do adds up, just as the bad things do.
I am an environmental attorney who has done much to benefit the planet in my career, from helping draft federal legislation that banned plastic microbeads in consumer personal care products to leading the successful legal battle to stop Washington Mutual from building a city in Malibu on Ahmanson Ranch that would have destroyed the Malibu Creek Watershed and Surfrider Beach. (The land is now parkland!)
I try to be environmentally low impact in my personal life—I drive an electric car, I don’t drink bottled water, for example. But, here comes the confession: I am far from a perfect environmentalist.
My friend and fellow Palisadian Sheila Morovati has written a book that speaks directly to me—and to us all.
In “Imperfect Environmentalist: How to Reduce Waste and Create Change for a Better Planet,” Morovati “encourages readers to adopt new behaviors and shift their perspectives so that they, too, can make a difference.”
“Imperfect Environmentalist” also dispels the myth that to be considered an environmentalist, one must be all in, or live “zero waste,” to have a meaningful impact on combating climate change. Small modifications, such as committing to eating eight plant-based meals per week or cutting out plastic utensils, can add up to a large impact.
Each chapter includes 10 action steps for readers to adopt in their daily lives to become more eco-friendly, resulting in a comprehensive manual of creative tips for eliminating “habits of waste.”
Just as Morovati’s book was published, I had a shock when a routine blood test showed my bad cholesterol was high. I couldn’t believe it. I’m thin, I exercise. What could be the cause of this dangerous condition?
My doctor asked me what I ate that week. I began, “Well, besides my morning tea with cream and my oatmeal with whole milk, I made ‘Marry Me Chicken’ for my family … ”
“What’s that?” asked my doctor.
“You take a cup of heavy cream, add parmigiana cheese … ”
He stopped me there: “That should be called ‘Kill Me Chicken!’ You are clogging up your arteries. Anyone in your family have strokes, blood clots … ”
“Ummm, yes and yes.”
“Well, you need to cut all that cream right now.”
I protested, “But my maiden name is Kaas, that’s cheese in Dutch. My father’s people moved from Holland to Wisconsin and kept making cheese. It’s literally in my blood.”
“No kidding … ” said my doctor. “Stop. Now.”
So I did. I await my next blood test to see the impact. But the impact of my ditching dairy, or at least reducing it (I am a Kaas), is not just on me. My action impacts the environment I fight to protect. There have been many Green Tips in this paper written by our Resilient Palisades Vegan Solutions team about the high climate change impact of factory farms and dairy.
So what I do for my own heath, and the health of my family, has an impact on the climate and environment we all share. The familiar adage is that acting locally has a global impact. So true. But the corollary (and coronary!) is that acting personally has a significant impact on our planet.
As imperfect as I am, I am learning, and growing healthier and better all the time. If you want to know more, read Morovati’s book (available at imperfectenvironmentalist.org) and join resilientpalisades.org in our friendly group of imperfect environmentalists working locally toward a better future for us all.
