The History Channel's mini-series "Sons of Liberty" is quite a tale!  What a collection of courageous, selfless men and women who stood up for their rights against the seemingly invincible British Empire.  The series highlights Sam Adams as an independent-minded leader who wouldn’t settle for less than human dignity - a true American patriot.  Without the characteristics of folks like Sam Adams, who knows if our great democracy would have ever taken root.  In that time and place his particular qualities were just what true patriots needed to fashion a viable future.
 
        But the world in 1776 was very different from the one we live in today.  Global population was less than 1 billion, and the American wilderness beckoned.  Today almost 8 billion people draw resources from a finite, shrinking planet.  In today’s world perhaps a different set of qualities characterizes true American patriots.  

        Prof. Sallie McFague thinks so; she’s Professor of Theology Emerita at Vanderbilt University. McFague identifies Sam Adams and others as exemplifying qualities she calls the Individualistic Model.  In this model the rights and desires of each individual are foremost.   But in today’s world Prof. McFague suggests that something different, an Ecological Model, best characterizes true patriots striving to fashion a livable future.

        The Ecological Model contrasts markedly to that which served Sam Adams so well.  It acknowledges that humans do not control nature, but rely on it completely.  In it, we partner with nature for every breath and bit of food instead of trying to dominate it.   This model has 3 basic “house rules” including: 
1. Take only your share.
2. Clean up after yourself.
3. Keep the house in good repair for future occupants.
            
        The Ecological Model doesn’t belittle the importance of the rights and desires of individuals.  It just asks us to stick to the house rules.  And that’s hard to do with our consumption-driven economy constantly urging us to buy, buy, buy.  But it’s certainly less threatening to life and limb than taking on the mighty British Empire!
            
​        So this Independence Day let’s honor the sacrifices of Sam, George, Paul, Ben and the others by maintaining a healthy nation and viable future where the pursuit of happiness is within everyone’s grasp.  The Ecological Model may be just the road map that can get us there because the only home we’ll ever know is right here.   After all, we’re forever…Earthbound. 

        The old adage tells us we can’t have our cake and eat it too.  Eating the cake implies a loss of that resource - so sad!  But what if you could have something even better than cake, and it didn’t cost you anything?  In this case, the “cake” we’re talking about is home energy upgrades like insulation, weatherization and even solar panels.  Green Homeowners United (GHU) is showing many Wisconsin homeowners how they can prove that old adage wrong. 

        Making homes more energy-efficient is a huge opportunity to both save money AND reduce polluting emissions.  By one estimation, increasing the energy-efficiency of every home would reduce the release of planet-warming gases even more than by making every car an electric vehicle.  Energy saving upgrades not only save money they also make the home more comfortable.  What’s not to like?  The trick is to come up with the cash to make it happen.  GHU is here to help you make those upgrades with virtually no out-of-pocket cost.

        “Seems fishy,” you’re likely thinking.  But it’s not a gimmick or financial sleight-of-hand.  Rather, it’s through the use of low-cost “green” mortgages.  Typically, these kinds of improvements would require digging into savings or applying for a home equity loan.  But a green mortgage can be gotten at a much lower rate, so low that the refinanced mortgage can make the energy cost savings greater than the cost of refinancing.  The result is the homeowner’s monthly combined energy and mortgage payments are lower than they had been before the energy improvements were installed.

        Research shows nearly 200,000 Wisconsin homeowners with current mortgages over 3% could both save money and shrink their carbon footprints by refinancing.  Green Homeowners United makes it easy by providing energy assessments, calculating potential savings and connecting folks with lenders.  After a preliminary assessment, GHU only moves forward with a project if the modeling shows that the homeowner will actually save money.  (An initial $500 fee will be reimbursed through the green mortgage.) 

        Learn more from a recent Wisconsin State Journal article at: tinyurl.com/GreenMortgage .  Or contact Chuck at IowaCountyClean@gmail.com   or   608-341-0641.

        This is likely the single most important step mortgage-holding homeowners can do to lower their family’s greenhouse gas emissions while creating a more valuable and comfortable home.  So have your cake AND eat it too while building a better world right here where we’re all forever… Earthbound.

        Dateline – 1955 – 2021  It was the best of times, and it was the… well, we’ll have to see how this pans out.

        Nineteen hundred and fifty-five is not really such a long time ago.  I’d wager many readers (or their parents) were either donning buzz haircuts or saddle shoes at that time.  It was the time Grandma Gert collected Green Stamps that she eventually traded in for a wheat-leaf motif set of dishware including the glass that held my morning fruit smoothie.

        It was also the year that Life magazine published an article entitled “Throwaway Living” with the photo of a family joyously throwing armfuls of paper, plastic and “tin” disposables into the air.  The article touted the convenience of single-use items, a homemaker’s godsend!  After thousands of years of human civilization using, reusing, repairing and passing on cherished tools, utensils and household goods for generations, the “Throwaway Society” was born.
 
        Grandma acquired the wheat-leaf glasses with the intention of passing them on.  Thank you Grandma!  In contrast, the plastic fountain-drink cup I used to fill the birdfeeders this morning had been manufactured to be a single-use item.  Surprisingly, the barely visible date, 2008, on the label clearly indicates it has been serviceable well beyond that single serving use.  Untold billions of plastic cups have been discarded since then.

        Alas, we are awash in plastic trash.  From the Great Garbage Patch in the Pacific Ocean to the micro-plastics in our food, water and the air we breathe, plastic debris is everywhere.  For a variety of reasons, some well-intentioned some not, we’ve been led to trust that buying and disposing of any and all plastic stuff is fine if the item displays the triangular recycle symbol.  But of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic created since 1955 only 9% has been recycled.

        What to do?  Start by remembering that “Recycle” is the LAST option in that familiar mantra.  First REJECT plastic-packaged goods.  Next REDUCE the amount of stuff we purchase.  Then REUSE, REPAIR and REPURPOSE the stuff we have.  Finally, by all means RECYCLE.

        Technologists are finding ways to reduce the glut of existing plastics.  For example, specialized microbes munch on some; pavement and structural materials are made from others, so this story CAN end as the best of times.  Let’s make it so because our only home is right here where we’re forever… Earthbound.

        Les Phumes hadn’t been on a bike in years, but here he was peddling down the street instead of taking his car.  Recently, he’d been hearing the term “climate emergency” more and more frequently on the news.  “An emergency is something serious that needs immediate attention,” he said to himself.  “Sounds like an all-hands-on-deck situation, so I need to do my part.  Excessive CO2 is polluting our atmosphere, so we gotta reduce our use of carbon-based fuels significantly.  And here I am using leg-power to run to the store instead of burning fossil fuel,” he smiled.

        Les’s neighbor, Anita Savemorre, was just leaving the Quik-Mart as he glided up.  “Sweet ride!” Anita said admiring Les’s bike.  “Yeah, I’m trying to do my part about this climate thing,” Les grinned.  On his ride home he remembered how Anita had lost her job during the pandemic.  Her family was barely able to make ends meet.  They surly wouldn’t be buying new bikes any time soon.  Nevertheless, Anita probably also wanted to help with the climate situation even though her family certainly wouldn’t have the cash to pay for energy-saving home upgrades or solar panels.  “Yet, there must be some ways for Anita’s family to contribute to this effort,” he thought.

        Les had heard a lot of good things about Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy program.  So that evening he searched its website and learned that for every $1 Focus spends it creates almost $5 in energy cost savings.  Very impressive!  But how could someone who has no money to spend, like Anita’s family, benefit?  He read on and then – Bingo! 

        The next day Les posted the following on his neighborhood Facebook page.  “Want to Save Money AND Reduce Polluting Emissions? Get a FREE Focus Lightbulb Pack.  It includes 6 LED lightbulbs and a roll of pipe insulation wrap.  Order yours at - https://tinyurl.com/GetBulbs   LEDs use 90% less energy and can last up to 15 times longer than incandescent bulbs.  Save money AND lower your carbon footprint; it’s a Two-fer!”

            Later, Les learned that Anita was so excited about the free bulbs that she was talking it up with all the neighbors.  “In an emergency, everyone has to step up,” she told them. “That’s what neighbors do; we look out for one another.  Because after all, this is the only home we’ll ever know.  It’s where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”

       Just an ordinary guy, Les Dooright is probably not very different than you and me.  He tries to be kind, treat others fairly and if possible eventually leave this world a little bit better when he passes on to the next.  But after dealing with the pandemic for over a year, Les was worn thin.  So when he read a statement by Scientific American journal and over 400 of its global journalism partners, it was just about too much. 

       The declaration concerned emergencies - serious situations that require immediate action.  A burning house is an emergency.  COVID has been a global emergency; it’s serious and needs immediate action.  The statement went on to say we now face another global emergency.  Scientific evidence concerning the climate is undeniable, so these organizations from now on will refer to it as a climate emergency.  It’s serious and we must act NOW.

        “Oh my!  If this is an emergency then we need to act like it is,” Les said to himself.  “That means keeping as much carbon-based fossil fuel as possible in the ground.  Then we gotta pull the excess CO2 out of the atmosphere and lock it into the soil where it will actually do some good.  Wise farming practices will help with that.  But golly,  I don’t know if I can handle ANOTHER global emergency.  Besides, what can I do?  It’s just too much!” 

        That night Les fell into an uneasy sleep feeling both overwhelmed and a bit guilty for not doing his part about the climate emergency.  As he tossed on his pillow his grandmother, Wanda Day, came to him in a dream.  Taking his face in her soft hands Grandma Day asked, “Lester, why do you fret so?  Remember what I taught you about seemingly overwhelming problems?  Take one step a day, and you’re on your way.”  Les sat bolt upright. “That’s it – One-a-Day.  I can do that!”

        The next day Les made a list of all the one-a-day ways he could reduce his use of fossil fuels and plastics (also petroleum-based.)  “No one person can address this emergency alone.  But each of us can be part of the rescue team and do at least one thing each day to build a better world.  Because after all, this is the only home we’ll ever know.  It’s where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”

        Jane’s shoulders sagged as she shuffled home.  Her planet needed help to reduce fossil fuel emissions that were fouling its atmosphere.  All around her she saw sexy new forms of clean energy grabbing the headlines.  The race was on to slow, and hopefully stop, the rise in global temperatures.  Solar, geothermal, biogas, wind, hydrogen and even tidal power sources of electrical generation were spreading rapidly as their costs dropped.  Articles comparing the latest new 21st century technologies were filling newspapers across the country.

        That night Jane E. Ficiency fell into a fitful sleep.  A flurry of wild dreams raced through her head causing her to toss and turn all night.  In one dream a bold newspaper headline announced, “Energy Efficiency has become the Nation’s Third-largest Electricity Resource.”  In another dream she saw herself soaring through the sky in a sparkling spandex jumpsuit with E-M emblazoned across the front.  And in yet another dream the headline screamed, “Our New Superhero, Electron-i-Miser, Crisscrosses the Country Saving $Billions in Energy Costs.”

        “What silly dreams,” Jane mumbled as she climbed out of bed the next morning.  But when she opened her closet, there it was – the sparkly spandex jumpsuit with E-M shining in bold letters.  “So it’s true, I’m not just Plain Jane any more.  I’m Electron-i-Miser on a mission to help save the planet!”

         From that day on, E-M traversed the countryside replacing inefficient light bulbs with LEDs, unplugging old, little-used refrigerators and freezers in folks’ basements, installing smart-thermostats, insulating water heaters and on and on.  Soon newspapers were running stories from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, “With increased support, energy efficiency could become the largest electrical resource of the country – and one of the world’s core strategies to tackle climate change.”

         “And the best part,” E-M thought to herself, “is that EVERY household can be part of that resource.  Every step a family takes to lower energy use will save them money AND contribute to creating a cleaner world.  Need a place to start?  Visit Focus on Energy -  focusonenergy.com.”

        Truth be told, E-M also finds the new clean energy generation technologies quite fascinating.  But she’s proud to know that she too is an indispensable player in building a livable world on the only home we’ll ever know where we’re all forever… Earthbound.

        Perched on a tiny speck of soil on the tip of Farmer Brown’s left boot, Millie and Milford Microbe watched the film “Kiss the Ground” with a thousand or so of their friends. Afterwards, they felt somewhat smug.  And why shouldn’t they?  The movie portrayed them as heroes who could save the Earth.

        “Kiss the Ground” explains how farming practices such as no-till planting, cover cropping and wise grazing techniques can lower farm costs, enrich the soil, grow healthier food and draw excessive carbon out of the air then lock it into the soil.  All that by simply capitalizing on processes Mother Nature initiated millions of years ago.

        Milford excitedly explained all this to his nephew, Mikey, who had missed the show. “Carbon is the central building block of all life on Earth.  Remember how plants draw in carbon dioxide from the air and expel oxygen?  Using sunlight and chlorophyll, plants manufacture carbon sugars so they can grow.   You know – photosynthesis!

        “But get this!  (And here’s the part where we come in.)  Plants leak some of their juicy carbon sugars!  And when they do we’re there to gobble them up.  Then we microbes, as part of the food chain, get gobbled by fungi, protozoa and tiny worms called nematodes who all gobble up each other too,” Milford paused.

        “I want to tell the part about being heroes!” Millie interrupted. “Burning carbon-based fuels, like coal and oil, has resulted in way too much carbon in the air – almost twice the millennials-old average.  The whole carbon cycle is out of whack and causing a climate crisis.  Luckily - Ta-Da! - when we and the other critters in the soil eat the carbon sugars (and each other) the carbon gets imbedded in the soil making it healthier and more productive.  The trick for farmers is to keep it there by using the wise farming practices described in the film.”

        “Wow! I want to see ‘Kiss the Ground!’” Mikey cried.  “You’re in luck,” Milford said.  “’Kiss the Ground’ is on Netflix anytime.  Or you can watch it on-line for FREE through Monday, April 26 by going to: https://tinyurl.com/f6tz374 .”

         “Hey guys, today is Earth Day!” cried Millie. “What da ya say we partner with farmers across the planet to rebalance the carbon cycle and build a better world right here on our only home where we’re all forever… Earthbound.”

        Hugh Mandude and Bette Erhalf strolled hand-in-hand down the path soaking in the first hints of spring.  Snow banks were melting, and COVID vaccination rates were climbing.  “It’s feeling like things are beginning to get back to normal,”  Hugh commented.

        They walked on a bit more.  “Normal would be good, but…,” Bette’s voice trailed off.  “Before COVID there were a lot of things about ‘normal’ that weren’t so great,” she continued.  “What are you getting at?” Hugh asked.

        “Well, there was too much traffic, and too many wasteful practices.  People bought too much ‘stuff’ filling too many attics, garages and storage units.  Too much trash crowded landfills and littered our landscapes.  Too many harsh chemicals from manufacturing, fertilizing and cleaning products polluted the soil, water and air,” she concluded.

        “I get it,” Hugh agreed.  “And how about too much unhealthy food consumption, too little exercise for many folks, too much injustice, too little opportunity for life-sustaining employment and even too much loneliness.  But COVID has given society a kind of pause.  As we sort of ‘re-start’, this seems like a terrific time to make ‘normal’ even better.  But how?”  Hugh asked.

        Just then, Bette and Hugh found themselves standing in front of a small, neat cottage.  A wizened woman beckoned them to come in, so they did.  A small nameplate - M. Nature – swung from the gate.  They felt so at-home with the friendly figure that they were compelled to share with her all the “too-s” they’d been lamenting.

        “I’ve heard this sad tale many times before.  It’s what happens when people forget.  They forget that the quality of life isn’t measured only by the growth of monetary wealth.  They forget that social and environmental well-being are equally and perhaps even more valuable.

        “But you two must be hungry; stay for dinner, won’t you?  I’m having my special stew.  It’s kept me in good health for longer than I can remember,” the woman smiled.  Bette looked at the strange collection of canisters the woman was drawing ingredients from:  Diversity, Balance, Fractal Organization, Life Cycles, Subsidiarity and Symbiosis.  Bette suddenly felt famished, hungry for a fresh beginning.  She wondered what she and Hugh could garner from these intriguing ingredients.

        So join us for some special stew next time and learn about M. Nature’s lessons for creating a better world, right here where we’re all forever… Earthbound.

     Camping with her family, six-year-old Jenny and her brothers had collected a variety of berries  - red raspberries, black-caps, blackberries and others.  She helped her mom craft a “campfire” pie.  “What kind of pie should we say we’re making?” her mom asked.  Jenny considered her surroundings and the variety of ingredients. “Nature Pie!” Jenny cried.


        No doubt like most of us, Jenny felt she was in “nature” while camping in their tent.  They’d filled the pie with goodies found there, so Nature Pie was an entirely appropriate name for the goodness they were about to enjoy.


        We each have our own concept of when we’re in “nature.”  But where does “nature” begin?  Is it when we step out the door of our home or when we walk into a park?  Is it when we leave the city limits or enter a designated “natural area”?

 
        Or could we be in nature as we sit at the breakfast table eating our cereal and drinking our juice?  That food came from somewhere – from “nature”??  And our bodies at the breakfast table each include 100 trillion microbiota that we each carry on and in us.  Microorganisms actually comprise 57% of that creature sitting at the table.  Seems like that variety of ingredients chomping on corn flakes may be a sort of “nature pie” too.


        Our egos tell us we are completely separate, independent beings.  As such, we feel entitled to as much “stuff” as we can accumulate and have “earned.”  Unfortunately, that frame of mind has created problems.  The Anthropocene epoch is upon us.  We’re in the period during which human activity has become the dominant influence on climate and the environment.  The results include the advent of the sixth extinction in which species loss is 1,000 to 10,000 times the background rate.  Also, humans now consume 1.7 Earth’s-worth of resources.  Clearly, not a pathway to long-term success.


        What to do?  Perhaps we need to remind ourselves that “nature” isn’t somewhere out there in the park or beyond.  Each of us is part of nature; we ARE nature as much as the wild berries in Jenny’s pie.  Understanding that we are OF nature may dampen our inclination to mistreat that from which we are inseparable.


        So enjoy being an ingredient of this bountiful Nature Pie.  At the same time, respect all life that shares our collective home where we’re all forever… Earthbound.

        Stu slipped into his usual seat at the coffee shop hoping she’d be there.  Wanda stepped in stomping the snow off her boots.  In a fleeting glance they locked eyes as they so often had done.  Stu’s pulse quickened.  Wanda caught her breath. “This time I’m going to do it,” Wanda said to herself.  Picking up her latte Wanda pretended to be looking for a seat.  She took a few steps toward Stu.  “Mind if I sit here?” she asked.  Trying to contain his excitement, Stu smiled and slid over.

        The hours slipped by as they talked and talked.  Stu Ertship had been searching for someone to share his passion for protecting the Earth.  And Wanda Savemorre wanted to share her penny-wise skills in a worthwhile project.

        Over the weeks, Wanda and Stu become inseparable as they forged a partnership and created the concept they call Community Solar.  “With Community Solar, individuals and organizations can become part of the clean energy wave that’s taking over the country even if their home or building isn’t well suited for rooftop solar,” Stu beamed.  “And in doing so they’re pinching every energy dollar they spend,” Wanda added.

        Stu and Wanda worked with Alliant Energy to craft answers to a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)* about Community Solar, but basically:

• A  relatively small 1-3 MW (megawatt), 10 – 30 acre solar farm is built using an existing substation and transmission lines.
• Alliant Energy customers (individuals and businesses) can buy solar blocks in 250 watt increments to cover up to 100% of their electrical bill.
• Subscribers do not “own” a part of the facility so there is no upkeep or maintenance obligation.  Subscribers agree to buy the reduced-cost electricity from the solar blocks they have purchased.  (Solar blocks can be transferred or sold back if one’s circumstances change.)
• Community Solar projects are ideal for agrivoltaics i.e. using the same property for farming AND energy generation.

 
        Alliant Energy has identified some prime locations for a Community Solar facility in Iowa County.  Their planning committee wants to know that folks here support the benefits a Community Solar project would offer.  “Stay tuned for details on how you can help move this opportunity forward!” Wanda advises. “Together, we can build a brighter future right here where we’re all forever… Earthbound.” 
 
*Learn more at: tinyurl.com/13c8yyet  OR  Contact: iowacountyclean@gmail.com