2009 will be a year of less for me.
Less consumption. Less waste. Less use. Less.
This will be driven by two factors: Consciousness and Reality.
First, reality. We will all likely make less next year than this year, and costs will mostly stay the same (except for gas). There will be less money to spend, and conservation will be a survival tactic.
Second, consciousness. We are all part of the bigger picture, either for good or for bad. When it comes to the environment, we are on a crash course with it. At some point in the future, limits to growth will make this a terrible planet to live on (for humans). What can we do about it? Conserve. It's a survival tactic for future generations.
Either driver pushes us to conserve resources of all types — because they all hit our bottom lines (personal and professional).
My new year's resolution for 2009 will be "to cut 25% of my resource use" in the areas of power (electricity and gas), first use paper and first use plastic. How will I do it? Monthly innovations. For January, I'm attacking my paper use. I've got four solid ideas on how to do that (read my book, Saving The World at Work for all of them). To get to a total reduction figure like 25%, though, I'll need a fresh innovation in Feb, March and so on.
What are your eco-innovations? If you have some, please comment on this post and share it. I'll reward a great innovation with a free T Shirt or book. Better yet, go to the Saver Soldier Network, sign up and blog about it.
