Paul Colligan has done it again. He got me thinking about his recent blog post. In it, he says that going pro in New Media helps the environment.

He’s right. Absolutely right.

Today, April 22nd, is Earth Day and I’ll be honest. I don’t care about the environment. Actually, I do care about the environment, I just don’t care about all the hype surrounding it.

It seems that people care about the environment only when it’s cool to do so. Al Gore says we should care, so we do. Leonardo DiCaprio says we should care about the environment, so we do.

Remember acid rain in the 1980s? It was cool then. Now, no one talks about acid rain. Did we cure acid rain or did it just go away because it was no longer cool to talk about anymore? Now, it’s all about being green because that’s cool.

Frankly, I don’t care about labels. I don’t care which celebrities is pushing whatever green project just because they need to do something nice to divert people’s attention from their DUI arrest.

Instead, like Paul, I do my own part in being green.

• It’s been 6 years since I’ve commuted. While working at Sun Microsystems, I participated in their work at home program. In the last 12 months I was at the company, I didn’t have a desk at the office. Instead, I transformed an area in my home into my work space. When I finally became self employed, it was a natural transition. Because I don’t commute, I’m not burning gas in a car in traffic. I’m being green.
• I barely leave my house. When I do, it’s to run errands or go to the gym. Because I leave my house so infrequently, I’m not burning carbon emissions as much as the next person. I’m being green.
• When I do travel, I take transit. It’s cheaper to take the public transit than to burn through gas to get downtown. I don’t like the TTC to be honest. If you don’t travel during rush hour, you get some weirdos, people talking to themselves. But with my iPod, I simply ignore them and enjoy the fact that someone else is doing the driving. I’m being green.
• Like Paul, my office is in the basement. When the family is out all day, I don’t turn on any lights, nor do I crank up the AC in the summer time. Why? Because it’s cool and well lit in the basement. I’m not wasting any energy working in the basement at home. I’m being green.
• Where I live, we not only recycle, but we also compost. It’s a city wide initiative. All food stuff go in a green bin for composting that’s picked up by the city. All recyclables go into the blue bin. I barely throw out any trash anymore because of the blue and green bins. I think I throw out a black garbage bag once a month. I’m being green.
• My entire office is digital. Meaning that I don’t waste paper. I don’t attend networking events, so I don’t print business cards. If people want to read more about me, I direct them to my website instead of giving them a brochure. I type and edit everything on my computer, so no paper lying around. I get my bills online, so less envelopes and letters to throw out. I do all my bill payments online, so again, less trips to the bank and less paper to deal with. I’m being green.
• (This one is a little personal) I no longer use disposal feminine stuff for that time of the month. Haven’t in 5 years. Instead, I use a menstrual cup. I spent $50 on this product in 2003 and I have to say it’s the best thing made for women since the bra. Because of my choice to use this product, I have saved hundreds of dollars a year and have kept 1500 lbs. of waste out of landfills. Read the statistics yourself. I’m being green.

If the money isn’t attractive enough to go pro with your new media hobby, then do it to save the environment. Here here to being New Media Green!

Photo courtesy NOAA