 |
|||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
Hi'iaka's Healing Herb Garden : Column Index : 2005 : April05
Coming Soon...
Sustainability Begins At Home
DOCK STRIKE! The very mention of these words can strike terror into the hearts of kama`aina, who know that store shelves can quickly empty of essential products like rice and toilet paper. In fact, the mere threat of a strike by workers who load and unload the ships that bring us over 90% of life's necessities is all it takes to make people run to the store. When the possibility of a dock strike looms, we become aware of how dependent we are on imported food and almost everything else we rely on as members of a non-sustainable society. And with the world situation so shaky, what would we do if our supply of gas and oil were cut off due to terrorism or an embargo? We would have to become sustainable very quickly. I believe the time to start is now; we can all begin with small steps to take us in that direction.
For this special Sustainability issue, I'll be talking about some things everyone can do to live a little more sustainably, and proposing some ideas to help make our island culture more sustainable for the long term.
What Does Sustainable Really Mean?
I think of sustainability as the things that make up what I need to survive. The basics, of course, are air, water, food, and shelter. But what about other things that we depend on? Consumer items such as toothpaste, deodorant, electricity, and a million other things we have grown to "need" make up much of what it takes to live comfortably. But it goes beyond that: when we look at the giant topic of food, most of us are not growing our own dinners--not even a side vegetable--because we don't know how, nor do we have the land or resources. The human race has lost a lot of knowledge in the past 100 years, when our great-grandparents stopped living in a sustainable fashion and began relying on cities and factories to provide them with their goods and services.
Hawai`i Functioned Sustainably In the Past
All primitive civilizations were sustainable and Hawai`i is no exception. Ancient Hawaiians were clever at utilizing all the elements of their physical world. They ate fish, fruits and vegetables that they cultivated or collected from the wild. Their shoes and clothing came from native plant fibers. Their homes were made of local trees. Their medicine came from the Earth. Although they had no written language, they made a type of paper (tapa, or kapa) that they used for functional and decorative purposes. If they needed toilet paper or Kleenex, they used a large, soft leaf.
Grow Some of Your Own Food
Even apartment dwellers can grow some food on their lanais. Potted lemon or lime trees do very well and you can take them with you when you move. (I hauled a Meyer lemon in a large pot with me for 10 years before I bought my first home!) It's easy to grow a few herbs in pots on your balcony or a sunny kitchen window. And if you have more land, by all means put in some fruit trees and perhaps a small salad garden. Don't focus exclusively on ornamentals. Think ahead to the dreaded dock strike that will happen some day, and prepare yourself, at least a little bit, for becoming more sustainable.
What Grows Here and What Doesn't
Let's look at some everyday food items that we take for granted, those which are imported from faraway places.
Bread, pasta, cookies, crackers, cereal: Even if these items are made in Hawai`i, they all contain wheat, which is not grown here. Imagine life without sandwiches or spaghetti (not to mention chocolate chip cookies!). Other types of flour exist, such as spelt, soy, corn, and even garbanzo beans. Is anyone growing these commodity crops? Is anyone thinking about doing it and setting up facilities to grind them into flour for the food items that have become staples of American life? If we want to become a more sustainable island economy, we should be exploring these possibilities.
Rice: Where does our rice come from? A lot is grown in California and Asian countries. Would it be possible to grow it in Hawai`i? Has anyone tried? Why are we so dependent on this imported food?
Orange juice: Almost everyone loves orange juice. What would breakfast be without a yummy glass of orange juice? Oranges grow very well here, but is anyone growing them on a large scale and turning them into a value-added consumer item?
Fish, poultry, beef: Many varieties of these protein foods are imported. Thank goodness we have such wonderful local fish: I try to eat only locally caught fish and avoid frozen fish from far away. Chicken and turkey? Do poultry farms exist in Hawai`i or are we dependent on the Foster Farms products at our neighborhood grocery? We have good local beef, but comparatively little of it, and it can be expensive.
If we start thinking about these foods differently, we might think twice before buying whatever looks good at the store and begin to focus on supporting local farmers and learning about the joys of growing some of our own food.
Turn Unwanted Trees Into Paper
We have a very serious problem with invasive species here in Hawai`i. From unwanted guava to the Miconia and other trees that choke our forests, control of these plants is overwhelming. Here's an idea: since toilet paper is such an indispensable part of modern life, why don't we harvest the invasive trees and set up a factory that would produce paper products, such as toilet paper, tissues, paper towels and plates, newspaper, etc.? Here's a call to entrepreneurs to create a successful business by acting on this idea.
If we all change our thinking a bit, we can easily begin to become more sustainable. If you haven't thought about where your food and other consumer items come from, start the next time you go to the store. Make a point of buying locally grown and produced products in favor of something that is obviously imported. Eat papayas instead of nectarines.
Sustainability Begins At Home
DOCK STRIKE! The very mention of these words can strike terror into the hearts of kama`aina, who know that store shelves can quickly empty of essential products like rice and toilet paper. In fact, the mere threat of a strike by workers who load and unload the ships that bring us over 90% of life's necessities is all it takes to make people run to the store. When the possibility of a dock strike looms, we become aware of how dependent we are on imported food and almost everything else we rely on as members of a non-sustainable society. And with the world situation so shaky, what would we do if our supply of gas and oil were cut off due to terrorism or an embargo? We would have to become sustainable very quickly. I believe the time to start is now; we can all begin with small steps to take us in that direction.
For this special Sustainability issue, I'll be talking about some things everyone can do to live a little more sustainably, and proposing some ideas to help make our island culture more sustainable for the long term.
What Does Sustainable Really Mean?
I think of sustainability as the things that make up what I need to survive. The basics, of course, are air, water, food, and shelter. But what about other things that we depend on? Consumer items such as toothpaste, deodorant, electricity, and a million other things we have grown to "need" make up much of what it takes to live comfortably. But it goes beyond that: when we look at the giant topic of food, most of us are not growing our own dinners--not even a side vegetable--because we don't know how, nor do we have the land or resources. The human race has lost a lot of knowledge in the past 100 years, when our great-grandparents stopped living in a sustainable fashion and began relying on cities and factories to provide them with their goods and services.
Hawai`i Functioned Sustainably In the Past
All primitive civilizations were sustainable and Hawai`i is no exception. Ancient Hawaiians were clever at utilizing all the elements of their physical world. They ate fish, fruits and vegetables that they cultivated or collected from the wild. Their shoes and clothing came from native plant fibers. Their homes were made of local trees. Their medicine came from the Earth. Although they had no written language, they made a type of paper (tapa, or kapa) that they used for functional and decorative purposes. If they needed toilet paper or Kleenex, they used a large, soft leaf.
Grow Some of Your Own Food
Even apartment dwellers can grow some food on their lanais. Potted lemon or lime trees do very well and you can take them with you when you move. (I hauled a Meyer lemon in a large pot with me for 10 years before I bought my first home!) It's easy to grow a few herbs in pots on your balcony or a sunny kitchen window. And if you have more land, by all means put in some fruit trees and perhaps a small salad garden. Don't focus exclusively on ornamentals. Think ahead to the dreaded dock strike that will happen some day, and prepare yourself, at least a little bit, for becoming more sustainable.
What Grows Here and What Doesn't
Let's look at some everyday food items that we take for granted, those which are imported from faraway places.
Bread, pasta, cookies, crackers, cereal: Even if these items are made in Hawai`i, they all contain wheat, which is not grown here. Imagine life without sandwiches or spaghetti (not to mention chocolate chip cookies!). Other types of flour exist, such as spelt, soy, corn, and even garbanzo beans. Is anyone growing these commodity crops? Is anyone thinking about doing it and setting up facilities to grind them into flour for the food items that have become staples of American life? If we want to become a more sustainable island economy, we should be exploring these possibilities.
Rice: Where does our rice come from? A lot is grown in California and Asian countries. Would it be possible to grow it in Hawai`i? Has anyone tried? Why are we so dependent on this imported food?
Orange juice: Almost everyone loves orange juice. What would breakfast be without a yummy glass of orange juice? Oranges grow very well here, but is anyone growing them on a large scale and turning them into a value-added consumer item?
Fish, poultry, beef: Many varieties of these protein foods are imported. Thank goodness we have such wonderful local fish: I try to eat only locally caught fish and avoid frozen fish from far away. Chicken and turkey? Do poultry farms exist in Hawai`i or are we dependent on the Foster Farms products at our neighborhood grocery? We have good local beef, but comparatively little of it, and it can be expensive.
If we start thinking about these foods differently, we might think twice before buying whatever looks good at the store and begin to focus on supporting local farmers and learning about the joys of growing some of our own food.
Turn Unwanted Trees Into Paper
We have a very serious problem with invasive species here in Hawai`i. From unwanted guava to the Miconia and other trees that choke our forests, control of these plants is overwhelming. Here's an idea: since toilet paper is such an indispensable part of modern life, why don't we harvest the invasive trees and set up a factory that would produce paper products, such as toilet paper, tissues, paper towels and plates, newspaper, etc.? Here's a call to entrepreneurs to create a successful business by acting on this idea.
If we all change our thinking a bit, we can easily begin to become more sustainable. If you haven't thought about where your food and other consumer items come from, start the next time you go to the store. Make a point of buying locally grown and produced products in favor of something that is obviously imported. Eat papayas instead of nectarines.
| Home
| Tour the Garden
| Learning Center
| Buy Our Book
| Blog
| Stay at the Garden
| Giftshop
| Join Us
| Contact
| Friends and Favorites
|
