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Local Resources

The suggestions we offer here are all doable by any ordinary citizen.  There is a perception that living your life with respect and responsibility toward your environment and your neighbors is only something that rich people can afford.  Organic, sustainable, green and such are buzz words that have  become almost meaningless as they get bandied about and abused for political and commercial purposes.  The key word is local.  Local means a unique place with connections that can’t be replaced, relationships that are not interchangeable, and communication that thrives on face to face contact.  Local is the opposite of virtual.  Local is not anti-technology, it’s just not dominated by technology

 

FOOD RESOURCES

Shop your local farmer’s market every week if you can.  And maybe visit more than one in your area.  A web site called Real Time Farms describes itself as “a crowd-sourced online food guide.” That means much of the content is submitted by locals in several categories that include: farms with sustainable and/or organic crops, artisans who produce things like cheese, spirits and breads, where to buy healthy foods such as farmers markets and where to eat, including restaurants featuring local/organic foods on the their menus.

 

MONEY RESOURCES

Start your shift to a local credit union by opening a savings and checking account.  Do a google search for “credit union” and the name of your town.  See what comes up. Or go to a website that helps rate local banking and credit unions called moveyourmoneyproject.org.

 

ENERGY RESOURCES

MakeMeSustainable was created to fill the void between how we feel about our environment and what we do about it. We bring you the tools to take action. Our Carbon and Energy Portfolio Manager enables you to visualize and contextualize your individual impact. MMS’ sustainable solutions empower you to act upon your knowledge. We can help you to become a more environmentally conscious and efficient individual or business. MMS empowers you to spread the word and encourage friends, family, and co-workers to join the collective effort.

The short list to living local
  • Join a local credit union
  • Participate in your school board, village board or PTA
  • Invest in local businesses for the long term
  • Buy local every day, every week
  • Try to work locally by living as close to work as possible
  • Retire locally by volunteering your time and expertise