Each new year is a new chance for us to recommit to the planet. Last year I shared twelve resolutions, one for each month. Some of those resolutions, like eating vegetarian, avoiding disposables, growing my own food, reducing my waste, and staying local have been part of my life for a long time. Weatherizing my home is not an option for me because I rent, but I’ve been trying to turn my yard into a better habitat for my fellow creatures. Getting political and sharing my lifestyle with others are works in progress for me because they are out of my comfort zone. This year, I have four personal green goals, which I hope you will consider along with the 12 earlier goals.
GOAL ONE: Become a Conscientious Consumer
I have really tried to reduce my impact on the planet through my life choices, including what I buy (and choose not to buy), but I will be the first to admit that I don’t always do my research. Sometimes I make assumptions and those assumptions, when compounded, can make a big difference. For example, we’re told local is better and organic is better, but what happens when the local isn’t organic or the organic isn’t local? What if a green product is only available online? How can we balance our health and our environmental goals? This year I want to try to figure out the answers to these and other questions and share them here on GreenLifeNH.
My most recent refills from We Fill Good in Kittery. I like to visit this awesome store when I visit my parents’ home in seacoast New Hampshire. I hope to purchase more of my home products and food in a sustainable way this year.
GOAL TWO: Affect Change Locally
I was focused for a long time on my own personal green journey. Then I started worrying about our global environmental crises, saw how small my own impact really was, and became pretty depressed. But sharing my knowledge with others has helped me to stay positive. But now I’m ready to start making an impact in my own state. After completing the first stage of the New Hampshire Master Gardener Program, I am excited to get out and volunteer around New Hampshire, helping to promote green farming and gardening practices. There are so many good people doing good work in this state and I want to be one of them! I will share what I learn as I go.
GOAL THREE: Stay Informed
Many of the good people doing good work in New Hampshire are part of organizations like the New Hampshire Sierra Club, our many land trusts and conservation organizations, and in our local government. One of our goals this year at GreenLifeNH is to make more connections with our local government and organization and to funnel news of their good work to you. We will also let you know of more opportunities to help.
GOAL FOUR: Get to Know New Hampshire
My fourth goal is a green goal and a personal goal wrapped up in one (I love it when that happens). In December, the kids and I gifted my husband a family New Hampshire State Parks Pass for his birthday. Despite living in New Hampshire for a good portion of my life, I have tended to visit the same places over and over instead of branching out. Our goal now is to go to at least one new state park each month, hopefully more. I also want to visit green stores, markets, and farms around the state to share them with you here at GreenLifeNH. We’ll be pairing our visits with my son’s travel sports schedules to reduce our driving.
We visited our first New Hampshire state park this weekend, Silver Lake State Park in Hollis, while we were in Nashua for a hockey game. The kids enjoyed getting wet, finding Chinese Mystery Snails, and eating teaberry leaves.
I hope 2022 will bring good news for our planet and our wonderful state. But I’m not going to just sit around waiting for change. I want to be the change. Join me!
– Hannah