America seems to be having a love affair with recycling. Today, almost wherever you go there is accessible recycling bins any 10-cent refunds for plastic water bottles. Across America people are beginning to sort through their garbage in search of newspapers, plastic and steel cans on trash day. Colleges are consciously making efforts to adjust lifestyles of America’s youth, instigating new policies limiting water usage, placing a recycling bin in every dorm room and even offering prizes for those who recycle the most.
What I have noticed as a teenage growing up in the new “go-green” era is the popularity this movement has gained in such a short period of time. After my peers and I have watched environmentally aware celebrities or athletes sporting shirts with recycling logos with lines such as, “recycling is for lovers” naturally the fad caught on quickly. Most of the time this movement appears to be one big fashion statement. Often I view girls walking down the street with their proactively aware high-end clothing advertising as issue such as global warming while juggling their starbucks macchiatos with their new blackberry storms. All in all, what this new faction of society seems to be accomplishing (besides looking fabulous) is nothing.
What we need to be asking is, what are the intentions of these people? I can’t believe the origin of “going green” is entirely based on circulating crazed fads. There must have been a genuine spark that initiated a new environmental awareness. Despite what stylish followers are wearing or what BMW bumper stickers may be preaching, the intentions are at the very least harmless. People are making an avid attempt to help the planet and I don’t see it as an issue.
The real issue is looking past the trendy reputation of going green. The true question is regarding the substance behind the fashion front of this subject. People are overlooking the importance of recycling and thus not considering it as a serious matter.
Once we surpass the façade of shallow followers, we can gather information and develop an educated opinion. Without the proper output of public data regarding the recycling process we will never be able to understand recycling for what it really is. To make a decision we must gather as much knowledge about the subject as possible.
To better inform readers in the process of recycling, “A Recycling Revolution” has posted many different ways to recycle as well at the benefits of doing such (http://www.recycling-revolution.com/recycling-benefits.html). Learning more about what is involved within the movement will allow citizens to make a much more informed decision on how they truly feel about the issue.
If one decides that recycling is very beneficial and an act that everyone should participate in this website will better help people in their endeavor of saving energy and waste: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/11/celebrate-zero-waste-day.php
In contrary to the pro-green attitude, one can also choose to continue living their lives as before, recycling free. Here is a video clip produced by the famous magician duo Penn and Teller: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1444391672891013193. This clip enforces the idea that recycling is all for not, that it is a waste of time and shouldn’t be an issue of severe importance.
There have been people that find the new recycling agenda invading, almost offensive, violating their right as an American to use as much paper as they would like and throw it away where they please. At the University of Denver our cafeterias are implementing a new “Trayless Tuesday” rule in attempt to reduce the water usage on campus. I have only noticed the negative responses from students and there seem to be a lot. Upset that one has to walk an extra 200 feet to make a second trip back to the soda line because they couldn’t carry all their plates at ones seems to be a lot to handle for some Denver students. While some students kick and scream about being forced to find other means of getting all their food from the cafeteria to the table there are far worse issues that deserve their resentment and frustration. For example, smoking bans on campus or even prevalent drug usage of youth today or the current war going on in the Middle East. All in all, there are concerns better designated for resentment and bitterness.
Small steps to a better environment cannot hurt. Although what may be needed are more drastic means of change in our daily life, the fact that we are making an effort is something to be admired. So view this endeavor as useless of even moot but in the end trying is the least we can do.
Whichever side people choose to support, remember there is a substantial basis we must reach that lies behind the popularity of recycling.
Even though I agree that we should look more substantially into the recycling movement instead of simply following another fad, I believe that this fad still helps progress the necessary green-mentality. Maybe not all the wearers of “recycling is for lovers” t-shirts are making real changes in their waste-disposal habits, yet they are making the first step by advertising for a serious movement. These shirts should instead include some facts from the websites you cited such as “Recycling creates 1.1 millions U.S. jobs” or “Every ton of paper that is recycled saves 17 trees.” These are real facts that may promote an effective change in the way our world reacts to the recycling movement. People may look at the substantiality of the movement rather than simply see the environmental focus as just a fad. Hopefully this is not just a fad, but a more permanent movement towards a global change. It is proven just how much going-green helps the environment and, for the economically-conscious, how much money is saved by going-green. So why not catch on to this fad (or non-fad) and actually make a difference?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Katey. This may be a fad to some people and there of course are going to be the followers who give the sustainability efforts a bad name: like Mariel said, the people who walk around in their "aware" high end clothing and drive BMW's.
ReplyDeleteI think you made a valid point about the people who consider their rights violated by not being able to use as much paper and energy they want. However these people need to realize that in the future, probably not in our lifetime, there will not be enough trees to use limitless amounts of paper. What about the rights of the people then? Even if a ton of recycled paper will only save 17 trees, think about the impact this will make in the long run. We need to think about the future now, and it has to start small. Not everyone is going to be on the bandwagon to recycle right away, but after raising awareness on the small scale, this movement can be allowed to grow worldwide.