In a few minutes I leave for Dallas to address the nursery industry on Sustainability, specifically is this a consumer trend consumers that has staying power? Next, it’s a dash up to Washington, D.C for a presentation to home gardeners at The Green Festival. So, for the next 48 hours, I’ll be doing a lot of talk’n on eco-friendly gardening to industry insiders, home gardeners and weekend warriors.
Regarding my thoughts on the staying power on sustainability? Lucky for you I have a plane to catch. But don’t get me started! Absolutely, it’s here to stay and frankly, it has a long way to go before people put their money where their mouth is. There is a lot of talk about wanting to be more environmentally responsible but the stats don’t yet support this widespread acceptance. We (you and me and other gardeners, educators, retailers, etc) who really are doing something about it now, have a lot of work to do to debunk much confusion and a lack of consistent information out there for others to make an informed decision on a change to a greener way of gardening.
So, expect a much more embellished post when I return on Monday and I’ll add to this thought and share with you some of my take-aways from the weekend. In the mean time, feel free to chime in and let me know your thoughts too. Thanks.
JL
About Joe Lamp'l
Joe Lamp'l is the Host and Executive Producer of the award winning PBS television series Growing A Greener World. Off camera, Joe dedicates his time to promoting sustainability through his popular books, blog, podcast series, and nationally syndicated newspaper columns. Follow Joe on Twitter
Sustainability Advocate, first of all, I love your title! Secondly, were you just at my presentation in TX??? That’s EXACTLY what I was telling the audience. Although we hear that people want to be more sustainable, very few can really put into words what that means. Fortunately, the interest is greater than ever and more people are providing simple ways to get started. Clearly, it will take the collective efforts of us all to change the direction of our non-sustainable lifestyles. Glad to have you as an advocate!
I agree, sustainability measures and trends are here to stay, but we have such a long way to go. Because it is “hot” many businesses are jumping on the band wagon, but they are really not doing a whole lot. To make a difference, we need to work to develop a shift in people’s minds and behavior patterns. Keep it up, slowly we can make sustainability a fundamental part of everyone’s life.