“Human nature exists and operates in an environment… as a plant is in the sunlight and soil.” — John Dewey
I started teaching a college course on environmental philosophy in 2007.
Seven years later, I became a dad.
As much as I enjoy talking with undergraduates about moral obligations to the environment, sustainability, and deep ecology— it pales in comparison to watching my son build the habits of a conscientious Eco-citizen and a thoughtful member of our family.
I’ve discovered that those two roles actually reinforce one another…as each involves a special kind of care for others. After all, whatever sort of environment each one of us inhabits, it always begins in the ecosystem of family. These kinds of habits have to be enacted. To build, one has to do.
To borrow the words of my favorite 20th-century American philosopher, John Dewey:
give the [kids] something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking, or the intentional noting of connections; learning naturally results.
That’s a philosophical truth I’m starting to understand more deeply, now that I’m a father twice over.
With this in mind, here are 8 tips — with relevant links — for making sustainability a bigger part of your family’s life.
Tip 1 — Get Everyone Involved
One of the best ways to make sure new habits persist is to get the whole family in on the act. Sustainability is no different. Try teaching toddlers about recyclables by allowing them to collect and dispose of containers around the house. Remind them that when something is thrown away there really is no “away”… it has to go somewhere!
Spend family time on hikes and in the garden. Fostering an early emotional attachment to the environment helps children internalize their kinship with nature and has been correlated with improved focus, better test scores, and reduced stress levels in children.
Besides, when kids grow veggies… they eat veggies!
For older kids and teens, try connecting sustainability to social issues. For example, organizations dedicated to gleaning fruit trees on public lands and donating to local food banks can be found in many cities. Seeing how such environmental efforts can make a difference to others can really drive these points home for young people.
Tip 2 — Remember the 3 “Sheds” of Sustainability
Ecologists use the word ‘shed’ to talk about all sorts of regional environmental factors. The oldest, and probably most familiar, environmental ‘shed’ is known as the watershed — which maps the flow of water (drinking water, wastewater, drainage, and catchment) in a particular region. Management of watersheds began with the passing of the Clean Water Act in 1972. Try incorporating a lesson about your local watershed into a younger child’s study of the water-cycle (usually between kindergarten and 1st grade). Also, many municipal water reclamation plants allow walking tours for older kids.
Slightly newer and probably less familiar is the notion of a foodshed — the geographical area in which food “flows” from production to consumption (i.e. farm to table). As transportation and agriculture became increasingly intertwined over the last century, most urban areas began sourcing food from hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away. Try taking the family to a local farmer’s market. Ask the vendors questions about their farm and the local food system. Their insights can be eye-opening… even for the adults.
One of the newest ‘sheds’ on the ecological scene is the walkshed, which refers to the area around a location easily reachable by foot — within about 5-10 minutes for most people. It turns out one of the best ways to determine the walkability of your community is to take a walk with a child.
Keeping these concepts in mind and remembering that in each case “smaller is better” can help your family make more sustainable choices.
Tip 3 — Map out Your Local Walkshed
Now let’s talk about specifics! We can start with that newest kind of “shed” first.
In a study by the Pacific Institute, researchers found that walking 1.5 miles — even for those with large carbon footprint diets — produces just a quarter of the greenhouse gas that driving the same distance would emit. So, walking to those neighborhood errands is one of the best (and easiest) things you can do for the environment — and your health!
Mapping out your local walkshed is a terrific first “step”…
Your map should include services/destinations within easy walking distance. (Scroll down for an example.) To help get you started, the Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (ITDP) has created a tool for measuring neighborhood walkability. It’s interactive, and allows users to analyze a city, neighborhood, or street in detail, based on transit standards.
Walk score is another organization that makes walkshed mapping easier. It incorporates rental information for those hoping to relocate to a more walkable neighborhood.
And, here’s a nice walkability checklist for assessing your community, with advice on taking local action.
But, to make this a family affair, consider creating a large map of your neighborhood on paper (although, buying one is okay, too, since kids seem to really enjoy coloring on those large, fold-up road maps). Encourage your kids to mark their favorite places to walk (playgrounds, nature trails, etc.).
Tip 4 — Plant Veggies (or a Food Forest) to Shrink Your Foodshed
Growing some of your own food is also near the top of the list of easy ways to care for the environment. The goal isn’t to become a subsistence farmer, but to help take some of the pressure off our local foodsheds.
This is something even city-dwellers can do.
The amount of food that can be grown in a single square foot is pretty amazing — once we start thinking outside the (garden) box. “High density” gardens use growing space in 3 dimensions (adding verticality), incorporate companion growing, and stagger seed sowing, in order to get as much yield as possible out of each square foot. For example, tomato plants can grow “upside down” when hung from above, corn stalks can act as scaffolding for pole beans, and squash can provide moisture-trapping, weed-resistant ground cover.
Taking these ideas to the next level is where the food forest comes in…
An edible food forest is a kind of permaculture planting technique that can yield even more food by mimicking the natural symbiotic relationships between many plant species. (Scroll down for an example.)
Food forests combine the space efficiency of high density gardening with the added benefit of being pretty low-maintenance. With the right perennials and a little strategic planning up front, you can mostly leave them to their own devices.
For instance, a group in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood has recently built its community garden around the concept of edible forest permaculture. Getting the family involved in this sort of project can be a great learning experience and a nice way to meet other like-minded families.
But, even if you aren’t blessed with a green thumb, some other ways to shrink your foodshed include: going to local farmers markets or joining a food co-op.
Tip 5 — Protect your Watershed with Drip Irrigation in the Garden
Responsible water usage is essential for any environmental citizen, but especially for those who are watering their own gardens/food forests!
Drip irrigation is a targeted system of low-pressure watering. It can suit nearly all of your (non-turf) watering needs. Drip hoses can be attached directly to a standard garden hose and (with the addition of an electronic timer) deliver water directly to a plant’s root zone precisely when needed — which significantly reduces runoff waste.
Drip irrigation is very versatile and can even be implemented indoors or on balcony gardens. The lines are easy to install and can save 30 to 65% on your daily water usage. My son really likes helping with the drip hose assembly (they look a little like a set of toy building sticks).
Tip 6 — Double Down on Watershed Conservation with Rain Barrels
To REALLY cut down on water usage, try integrating your drip irrigation system with rain barrels to catch roof runoff. (Just be sure to check your roof type before using the water on edible plants.)
Rain barrels capture water from a roof and hold it for later use such as on lawns, gardens or indoor plants. Collecting roof runoff in rain barrels reduces the amount of water that flows from your property. It’s a great way to conserve water and it’s free water for use in your landscape. Many cities and towns distribute rain barrels to residents through annual sales.
Since 40% of household water usage occurs in the drier summer months, rain barrels are also a great way to save money. The EPA estimates a rain barrel can save about 1,300 gallons of water during peak usage.
Some states have restrictions on collecting rainwater, so check out this site to see what’s allowed in your watershed.
Tip 7 — Create your own Backyard Certified Wildlife Habitat
Another ecological “shed” starting to gain some attention from urban planners is the bioshed — i.e. the “flow” (and diversity) of living organisms in an area. But, unlike the other 3 sheds, in the case of biosheds… bigger is better!
The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) sponsors a program that helps anyone to turn their yard, balcony garden, office landscape, or schoolyard into a certified wildlife habitat — which can help increase your area’s bioshed.
The process is quick and easy and requires only a $20 donation to NWF educational programs aimed at addressing the issues leading to declining habitat for wildlife nationwide.
My kids love watching the critters — including butterflies, hummingbirds, wild turkeys, deer — that come calling in our backyard. But, even if your local fauna consists of only squirrels and sparrows, you can still qualify for certification.
As the NWF website states:
Every habitat garden is a step toward replenishing resources for wildlife such as bees, butterflies, birds, and amphibians — both locally and along migratory corridors. By adding pollinator-friendly and monarch-friendly plants when you certify, your garden also counts toward the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge.
Tip 8 — Garden All Year Long in a Walipini
Those of us living in hardiness zones with shorter growing seasons often turn to greenhouses as a way to beat the cold. But glass greenhouses can be pretty expensive to build and difficult to maintain throughout the winter.
If you have the time and space (and older kids willing to do a little ‘hard labor”) a walipini is an economical and effective alternative to a glass greenhouse. Walipini is a word for “place of warmth” in the language of indigenous peoples of the Andes mountains, and it can really deliver on that name.
It’s essentially an underground greenhouse that gets its heat naturally from geothermal regulation (the temperature of the earth) and thermal mass collection (the sun heating the earthen walls).
As Masha Goepel, writing for Garden and Happy puts it:
With the help of a walipini, you could either extend your growing season year-round, or just give yourself an extra few months for those slow-growing crops.
You can find an extensive manual for constructing your own walipini created by the Benson Institute at BYU.
The Takeaway
Sharing environmental values can bring families closer together and instill the kinds of habits that help children grow into healthy, successful, and environmentally responsible adults.
Or, as John Dewey put it:
Any genuine teaching will result, if successful, in someone’s knowing how to bring about a better condition of things than existed earlier.
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This post was previously published on Medium.
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Photo credit: Author [Author (and son) planting trees at a community food forest.]