SEEING GREEN

By Gabe Dixon

For me it all starts by trying to stay conscious of how my habits impact the environment.  A few years ago, I ran into an old friend at the YMCA. That friend, Stephen Moseley, and his colleague Sam Davidson had just started an organization called Cool People Care which focused on the little things that busy people can do to lead socially and environmentally reponsible lives (a.k.a. "Save the World"). Their philosophy is that "there's no such thing as not enough time."  The idea appealed to me, so I checked out their website and signed up for their daily "5 Minutes Of Caring" emails: 99-word articles that offer practical tips and motivation on how to make a positive impact each and every day. These e-mails are a great daily reminder that help keep me focused.

The band has since worked with Cool People Care by contributing the exclusive song "New Day Revolution" to their book of the same name, and by performing at their birthday celebration and at recent book signings. Cool People Care had a small beginning in Nashville, but they now have partners in 44 U.S. cities and they have started a spin-off site for moms: CoolMomsCare.org. I think Cool People Care is a good analogy for how, by starting with small habits, we can grow them into a larger more impactful way of life.

As for "walking the walk," again, for me it's about trying to stay conscious and take steps in the right direction. When my wife sold her car last year, we made the decision to only use one car instead of buying another. At first it was inconvenient, but it feels normal now. She and I have recently moved closer to town, partially to reduce the amount of fuel we consume and to take advantage of public transportation. We use only non-toxic cleaners and detergents, we used only zero-VOC (volatile organic compounds) paint to paint the bedroom and the back room in our house, and we compost. I am a vegetarian, in large part for environmental reasons:

(1) To produce meat for a meat-centered diet (versus a vegetable-based diet) it requires using 50 times the amount of fossil fuels.

(2) In the U.S., more than half of all water is used for livestock production. It takes 25 gallons of water to produce a pound of wheat. On the other hand it takes 2,500 pounds of water to produce a pound of meat

(3) Eating a meat-centered diet contributes to deforestation. In the United States we have cleared over 260 million acres of forest to produce meat. In every quarter pounder we eat, an average of 55 square feet of tropical rainforest is consumed as well, which has obvious effects on animal life.  

I also belong to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)--I pay a farm at the beginning of the growing season and I meet them at the farmers market every other week to pick up what they are growing on their farm just outside of Nashville.

The band all recycle; we have sworn off little plastic water bottles, bring our own bags to the grocery store, and our own coffee mugs to the coffee shop. I get that it can seem like a lot. Most of us are not scientists or politicians, but I believe that individual actions add up. We all cannot afford a "green" house or a hybrid car, but every day brings opportunities for sustainable living and a chance to develop new habits that will soon become a normal way of life. I'm not perfect, but I do try and take steps in the right direction. It's an ongoing process.

Gabe Dixon Band's self-titled LP is available now on Fantasy/Concord.