Family Attempts to Have Zero Impact on the Earth for One Year
So what exactly has the family cut out of their lifestyle in order to help preserve the environment? They only eat locally grown foods, do not use public transportation, do not use paper products (such as paper towels and toilet paper), and will even eventually give up electricity as well.
Mr. Beavan appeared on Good Morning America recently in order to share his story. According to Colin, a typical morning in their home seems pretty normal until you take a closer look. They have no morning paper, no television blaring in the background, and no coffee. Where did they coffee go you ask? If it is not locally grown the family will not consume it, so coffee is off limits as well.
"I miss my iced quad espresso," said Colin's wife Michelle. "That was my drink -- four shots of espresso over ice. Saturday night, I dreamt about coffee."
Even if there were a local supply of coffee, it would still be off limits if it came in a package. But the Beavan family didn't stop with food packaging either. They have purchased nothing new nor will they throughout the year. They will not buy anything that comes in a package, food included, and any food they do purchase has to be grown within 250 miles of where they live.
As far as transportation, like I stated earlier, they do not use public transportation (not even elevators). So how do they get around the city? The couple shares a scooter or they resort to walking. On average they walk up and down around 50 flights of stairs a day.
Colin apparently did some research on the amount of waste we create as humans and found that the average food that an American will have on one plate ends up traveling approximately 1,500 miles just to get to that one plate. "That produces a lot of carbon dioxide," Colin stated.
But the entire experiment doesn't focus solely on saving the environment. Since beginning the project, Colin has lost 20 pounds. "Everyone tells Michelle she looks like she's glowing... We're in shape. It helps our minds, because we're not watching TV."
Up to this point of their quest they have gradually made simple changes. The next change comes this Saturday when they will turn off their lights and try to live without electricity. They will have friends over to celebrate and then actually flip the switch.
At the end of the experiment the Beavans will sit down and figure out which parts of their "no-impact lifestyle" they will want to keep and what things they will not keep in their lives. Meanwhile, Colin will be writing a book about his family's experiment and will also make an appearance on Nightline tonight at 11:35 P.M. Will the family be able to pull it off until the end of the year? It will be definitely be interesting to see the outcome of their project.
*Sources*
-ABC News Online. URL: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Story?id=3159955&page=1 . GMA. 2007May10.
-No Impact Man Website. URL: http://noimpactman.typepad.com/blog/ . Beavan, Collin. 2007May10.
Published by Miss Faith
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- The Beavans plan to live without toilet paper and TV for a year.
- The family will not eat any food that is not locally grown.
- The Beavan's plan to live without electricity beginning May 12th.
9 Comments
Post a CommentSpider Lady thanks you for a great article. I encourage people to go green when possible. I think if we all cut don it helps. I suggest eveyone check out free cycle and craigs lists. 98 percent of what is under your Holiday Tree will be in the dump in six months.
I was wondering how they would get by without any electricity as well Elizabeth...great point about refrigeration. I was also wondering about how they get their little girl around if all they use is a moped type motorcycle (when needed) as well as bikes and walking. Short distances would be okay, but what if they would have to take her several miles for some reason? I like what they are trying to do, since I am very big with my recycling and so forth, but where do you draw the line?
I wish more people would at least try to cut down on the amount of waste we as humans produce. But do they not need refrigeration? That would consume electricity, wouldn't it? Thanks for the article.
If you check out Colin's blog (the dad) under the links you will see that apparantly he has been trying to save the environment for a while now. I don't think what he's doing is strictly for publicity but I'm sure it won't hurt him sell more of his other books that he has already written.
I commend the family for the efforts that they are putting forth to reduce the negative impact that many of the things that they are eliminating has. Publicity stunt or not, this is a great endeavor. I believe that more people should live this way and receive the recognition that this family has. If this became the new "trend" think of the positive impact that it would have! Great article!
I'm curious to see if they can last the year.
I think it's a publicity stunt. Lots of people already live zero-impact; they just don't brag about it.
This is very interesting! I am excited to find out how their year goes.
This is such an interesting article. Great subject! I enjoyed. Nice work.