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Living green is a way of life. See how three hip Minnesotans—one in her 30s, one in his 50s, and one a very active 69—are leaving a light footprint on the earth.

Ami Voeltz-Schakel
Age: 33
City: Minneapolis
Family: Married with two rescued cats
Occupation: Environmental consultant/educator (Twin Cities Green Guide executive director and Community POWER Waste Reduction grant manager)

Q. Why do you think it’s important to “live green?”
A. I believe as individuals, we each possess a great amount of power and responsibility to live as light on the planet as possible to care for our environment, resources, and ourselves. I also strongly believe in living out my values 100 percent—and living green/sustainably is a big part of my values. This is the definition of living green that I live by: Making daily lifestyle choices to ensure our impact on the environment is as minimal as possible so that we meet our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Q. At what age did you realize you wanted to be good to the environment?
A. I was 15 when I went vegetarian and wanted to be “good to the animals,” but had my ‘a-ha’ moment at 22 when I lived in Japan and saw all the wasted packaging, disposable chopsticks, clothes and electronics being thrown out because they didn’t have used stores or recycling facilities at that time … the general wastefulness in Tokyo affected me. I came back to Minnesota and decided to live better for the earth. I started to research ways I could do that and found it hard to find the answers. I thought, “If it’s this hard for me to find sustainable ways to live, it’s probably this hard for everybody.” Therefore, I started to compile a small guide that I was going to print and give to friends and family. Through my research I was encouraged to apply for a grant for a publication I was working on and received money to publish the Twin Cities Green Guide and form a 501c3. We now publish an annual called “Do It Green! Magazine” and an online resource at  www.doitgreen.org.

Q. What, in your opinion, are some of the easiest ways a person can adopt a more environmentally friendly way of life?
A. The top three simple things a person can do to live a more environmentally friendly lifestyle while making a positive impact on the environment:

• Bus, bike, or walk to destinations four miles or less from home.
• Buy or grow seasonal organic, local, and vegetarian foods.
• Switch every lightbulb at home to a fluorescent bulb and turn the heat/cool down/up 2 degrees.

Q. What have you done around your home/outside of your home to make it more “green”?
A. My husband and I just purchased our first home last fall. We have already made the following green improvements:
• Repainted needed areas with no voc, non-toxic paint (Safecoat)
• Installed recycled/recyclable carpet squares in our basement (FLOR)
• Had our furnace tuned up and replaced • Replaced all lighting with fluorescent or LED lightbulbs
• Purchased used furniture or new furniture made from earth-friendly materials (found at IKEA or on Craig’s List). We bought a dining room table made of rubberwood—an eco-friendly timber—natural fiber rugs, etc.

Q. How do you shop green?
A. For groceries, we shop once a week at the farmers’ market in the summer months, and in the winter, we try to buy seasonal and as local/organic as possible at our local food co-op. We refill detergent, cooking oils, maple syrup, and vinegar, and buy in bulk for nuts, dried fruits, and grains. We also try to buy in bulk or as large of a package as possible to reduce packaging waste for packaged items: soy milk, toilet paper, cereal (in bulk bags rather than the smaller boxes). We recycle our toilet paper tubes and plastic packaging whenever possible.

For clothing I usually buy used as much as possible. It’s fun because you know you can have unique clothes no one else will have. I’ve also gotten some of my clothes from a clothes swap.

Q. What is your primary source of transportation?
A. Train/bus, carpooling, and car. Biking in warmer months.

Q. Where, in your opinion, are some of the most environmentally friendly places to shop and eat in the Twin Cities metro?
A. Ecopolitan Restaurant, Birchwood Café, Café Brenda, Lucia’s, local food co-ops, farmers’ markets, and used clothing, appliance, and electronics stores, and www.twincitiesfreemarket.org. Other great places include the Fast and Furless Boutique, Birch Clothing, and Natural Built Home.

Q. What do you tell people who say, “I’m only one person. I can’t make a difference.”
A. Never underestimate the power of one person. Through the years as an environmental educator, I have found that more than any other means of education, serving through my own personal example of living a sustainable lifestyle has affected more people than I ever would have thought. We shouldn’t think “What difference am I making in the whole scheme of things?” but rather focus on the fact that we are living out your values and that is as much of a contribution as any.

Q. What are the biggest challenges in maintaining a green way of life?
A. I would say that using alternative transportation is the biggest challenge for me. I have a hard time taking the bus to St. Paul, for example, when I know I can get there in less than half the time by car. It’s a matter of finding ways to spend that extra time on the bus by reading, calling a friend, or writing a letter.

I would say the second biggest challenge is the cost factor. It is often more expensive to live “green”—organic foods, non-toxic paints, 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper can all be more expensive. While I don’t have a lot of money, I make these products a priority because—although the upfront cost is more—the cost to the earth is less.

Q. What are the biggest rewards?
A. Feeling good about how I live, knowing that I am lowering my impact on the earth’s environment and that I am more healthy because of it. Also, feeling good that I can help others live this way too—knowing they will be feeling as happy and healthy as I feel.



Rich Huelskamp
Age: 55
City: Red Wing
Family: Wife Ellen and son Nate, 25
Occupation: Employed at the University of Minnesota, owns The Sun’s Warmth, an energy-consulting business (www.sunswarmth.com), and is executive director for CREED

Q. Why do you think it’s important to “live green?”
A. Living green is more beneficial to the earth than taking from the earth.

Q. What, in your opinion, are some of the easiest ways a person can move toward a more environmentally friendly way of life?
A. Eat organic foods and implement energy conservation. It can be as simple as changing your incandescent lightbulbs to compact fluorescents.

Q. What have you done around your home/outside of your home to make it more “green”?
A. We live off the grid and grow our own produce.

Q. How do you shop green?
A. This again is a hard one…we shop the farmers’ market and Salvation Army. In a small town, there are fewer choices than in a large city.

Q. How do you stay “green” in the workplace?
A. I recycle. I also work on a dairy farm doing research and my electricity comes from the cows.

Q. How can parents inspire their children to leave a small footprint on the earth?
A. They learn by example. Everyone should be required to watch “An Inconvenient Truth,” read National Geographic, and visit the Science Museum.

Q. What is your primary source of transportation?
A. A Prius.

Q. When shopping, what choices do you make to maintain your lifestyle?
A. I buy organic and look for very little packaging.

Q. Where, in your opinion, are some of the most environmentally friendly places to shop and eat in the Twin Cities metro?
A. The farmers’ market, Simple Abundance, and Nortons.

Q. What do you tell people who say, “I’m only one person. I can’t make a difference.”
A. One plus one plus one = a movement (in the famous words of Arlo Guthrie).

Q. What are the biggest challenges in maintaining a green way of life?
A. Living and shopping in a small town that’s growing into a rurally confused suburb.

Q. What are the biggest rewards?
A. Showing people it can be done!



Emily Moore
Age: 69
City: South Minneapolis
Occupation: Works part-time at the Pollution Control Agency in the Prevention and Assistance Division

Q. Why do you think it’s important to “live green?”
A. I always think about our grandchildren and their grandchildren. We owe them a world that’s sustainable.

Q. At what age did you realize you wanted to be good to the environment?
A. It happened when I was in high school. I was looking out my window at the full moon one night and made a silent commitment to the environment to do what I could to protect it.
 
Q. How do you stay “green” in the workplace?
A. I ask myself before I print or copy, “Do I really need this printed or copied?” If I’m preparing copies for a meeting, I always use the double-sided copy feature, and if the document is only one-sided, I use previously used single-sided paper. I participate in the composting of food waste and paper towels at my workplace. I advocate for lower thermostat settings in winter and higher ones in summer.
 
Q. What have you done around your home/outside of your home to make it more “green”?
A. My biggest green investment has been the five solar (thermal) collectors on my roof. They preheat the water going to my hot water heater and boiler. My boiler is upgraded to a more efficient one. I’ve tried to reduce the heat leaving my home by covering the windows with either insulated “warm window” shades or plastic film.

I made a rain barrel at a workshop sponsored by our neighborhood organization and intend to purchase more. I have reduced the amount of lawn I mow, and I use a push mower unless the grass has gotten too long for it to work. I use non-toxic chemicals on my lawn. I also compost my food and yard waste and use the compost on a small vegetable and herb garden, on my flower gardens, and on the lawn. This year I harvested 15 acorn squash from my backyard compost pile.

Q. How do you shop green?
A. I try not to buy clothing that I don’t really need and use what I have until it’s well worn. I buy organic whenever I can and buy locally grown products whenever possible. I try to eat lower on the food chain, within reason, choosing grains and legumes instead of meat for a significant part of my protein purchases.

Q. How can parents inspire their children to leave a small footprint on the earth?
A. The best way is to help them develop a love for nature by spending time in the outdoors with them and creating opportunities for them to experience the natural world.
 
Q. What is your primary source of transportation?
A. I drive a Prius and carpool with a co-worker who drives a Honda Civic hybrid.
 
Q. When shopping, what choices do you make to maintain your lifestyle?
A. I avoid products containing ingredients that are bad for human health and the environment whenever possible, and I try to keep an open and inquiring mind about what’s environmentally preferable. I also ask myself whether I really need the item and whether it is durable.
 
Q. Where, in your opinion, are some of the most environmentally friendly places to shop and eat in the Twin Cities metro?
A. The Wedge and all the other food co-ops are best for environmentally friendly food shopping. There are a lot of restaurants that try to source organic and free-range raised meat and produce. One of my favorites is Restaurant Alma, at University and Sixth Street in Southeast Minneapolis.

Q. What do you tell people who say, “I’m only one person. I can’t make a difference.”
A. If I have time, I tell the story about the man who was throwing starfish back in the ocean from a beach utterly littered with stranded starfish and—when asked how he thought he was making a difference—said, “It’s making a difference to that one” as he threw one more into the ocean. And there’s Margaret Mead’s quote: “Never doubt that a group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

Q. What are the biggest challenges in maintaining a green way of life?
A. My biggest challenges have been to make choices that have the greatest impact, and balancing convenience with theory in my choices. For example, on a recent trip, I was determined to use public transit to get to and from the airport. Well...we just barely missed the lightrail on the way home, had to wait 45 minutes for the next train, and got downtown too late for a bus, because it was so late the buses had stopped running. So we ended up with a cab ride from downtown Minneapolis anyway.
 
Q. What are the biggest rewards?
A. The biggest rewards are when I’m watching the green life become mainstream. There is nothing more heartwarming than hearing a young person declare a love for the environment and a commitment to protect it.

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