Why Go Green? Monday, April 7, 2008 “Green” has always been “good.” There is an innate altruism that the idea “Green” personifies. Green is strong and polarizes other good ideas like sustainability, renewability, recycling, and reusing. However, over the last few years and indeed no more than right now, Green is much better than good, Green is great. While Green is a catchall name for environmentally friendly endeavours, it has a longer history as a sobriquet for money. Though sharing the same moniker, the two Greens seemed to distance themselves from each other, with cronies of building wealth at absolute odds with the cohorts of the environment. Necessity and opportunity have now combined to end this historical partisanism between the two Greens. Necessity, as the high price of oil and other fossil fuels is second only to the human cost that the neglecting of the environment has caused; opportunity, as the alternative energy market is rapidly expanding and all things environmental are in vogue. Green has evolved from the ideal of many tree huggers to the imperative of money tree harvesters. Green has always given us a warm feeling deep inside, on both sides of the fence. Now that saving the planet might be the impetus that saves the economy: Green is hot. Alexander Michael Gittens Home Page © 2008-2007 Copyright Alexander Michael Gittens. Contents may be used without permission when credited |