Low Carbon Indulgences
Posted by Andrée on Wednesday, February 4, 2009
originally posted May 13, 2008
In some ways, the JP Green House is an odd project for Ken and me (that's him in the photo below, along with my two boys, Kuba (10) and Simon(7), on the left, and Ken's boy Eli (8) peeking over his dad's shoulder; I'm the brightly colored one. We're all looking a bit scruffy after a week camping at Ponkapoag in the Blue Hills).
We both strongly oppose the notion that any real progress on global warming can be achieved by individual pledges to change our light bulbs, carry canvass shopping bags, or even put up solar panels. (Although I can't take credit for it, I like the analogy of"carbon off sets" being akin to the indulgences sold by the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages to absolve the purchasers of specific sins!).
Individual action just ain’t gonna save us!
Why, then, invest time, sweat and capital in creating a sustainable household?
Partly it’s because this is the way the world is turning—must turn—if we are to survive. We want to find and suggest creative, cheap ways to reduce carbon dependency and share them with our neighbors. We want to suggest that this is doable.
We are also, frankly, quite smitten with the sad old building at 133 Bourne St. It’s tall, inelegant but funky, and mainly it’s central to Bourne (it used to be the community store.) One can easily project dreams onto it: picture a barn-red exterior, wisteria vines hanging off the roof, kids playing basketball on the back patio, a plethora of veggies supplying a neighborhood farmstand, a potter’s wheel and kiln in the basement. Picture the big front room open for yoga classes, neighborhood singalongs, discussions and potlucks.
Sustainability is about more than the energy we burn. Communities are sustained through relationships and shared work, and we want to create space for that.