My name is Sara MacSorley. I graduated from URI with an undergraduate degree in Marine Biology and minor in Interdisciplinary Gender Studies in 2008. I currently work for the Rhode Island NSF Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research – an initiative to advance marine life science research and education in the state. I’m also pursuing a Masters in Business Administration.
When I picked up No Impact Man this summer, three days later I was done. I couldn’t put it down, even amongst my workload and homework assignments.
It struck me that Colin Beavan was not a scientist, not incredibly educated about global climate change, and not preachy about saving the planet. He was your average guy wanting to do an experiment toward something he believed was important. I’m happy to see that his blog led to a book and his story has been able to reach so many people. A story that, to me, was truly inspirational.
I’m not planning on cutting off my electric or eating root vegetables all winter, but I do plan on continuing to find ways that I can decrease my impact on the environment. The idea of doing positive things to impact the environment to counteract the negative was fantastic.
I thought that I was already doing pretty good at being “environmentally friendly.” We recycle glass, plastic, aluminum, and paper at my house. We cook at home more often that not instead of going out to eat. I pack a lunch for work most of the time using reusable containers and lunch bag. I’m also transitioning to doing more of my classwork electronically, for example instead of printing out all the articles and presentations for class, I’m downloading and taking notes on them with my iPad.
No Impact Man made me want to do more. I went out a few days after I finished the book to buy handkerchiefs and cloth napkins. I’m trying to make it to the local farmer’s market more often to buy my produce, and if I get it from a local grocery store I’m trying to buy domestic products. Its another reason for me to by the local Brickley’s ice cream instead of Ben & Jerry’s! We also had a television break at our house a few months ago. Instead of going out to buy a fancy new one, we opted to get an old one from my partner’s uncle that he wasn’t using anymore.
Without watching as many movies, it gives my partner and I more time to spend together and to do the things we enjoy on our own, like reading. That leads to the reason I liked “No Impact Man” most – the idea of simplicity. It’s so easy to get caught up in everything going on around us that we forget the things that are really important to us. It amazes me how we can be so “connected” with our mobile devices, social networking, etc. while sometimes being disconnected from the people we care about the most.
I think most people know at least something they could do to help the environment whether it be recycling or walking to work. I think it is even more important to realize the benefits of personal balance and simplicity. Reducing our environmental impact and making positive changes will not only benefit our world but our lives.
I agree completely. After reading "No Impact Man," I was inspired to really take a look at my life, and decided that there were certain wasteful habits I could cut out, even if they are only small. One of the main points of "No Impact Man" was that even if whatever small thing you choose to change seems insignificant, it isn't because it provokes change in other people. I once read a quote that said something along the lines of, "Humans are pack animals. They cannot survive or live alone." We need other people to survive. Humans, like pack animals, are also influenced by the majority. We must as the mantra says, "Do at least one small act of kindness a day," except apply that to our environmental life as well. With simple steps like these, we are starting to become the change we want to see in the world.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I was apprehensive about reading this book, I have to agree that, once I opened No Impact Man, I could not put it down. The message that Colin Beavan shared was both inspirational and empowering to me, and his honesty with his readers was refreshing. It allowed me to identify a lot of myself in him. In this way, he changed the way I looked at the lifestyle choices that I had created for myself. Because of his book, I have slowly started to reevaluate my priorities. I try not to do what is convenient if, with just a little more effort, I can do an equivalent that will not hurt the planet. Specifically, I have started using re-usuable water bottles, plates, and napkins rather than paper products. His book made it quite clear than anyone can change the world for the better if he or she is willing to look beyond himself or herself and spend a little more time and energy. Furthermore, Beavan's belief in human goodness helped me not look at the planet's and society's situation with despair, but with faith that humanity is growing a planetary awareness that will be treated with action rather than apathy.
ReplyDeleteThanks Gina and Allison for commenting. Gina, I couldn't agree more with your idea of applying one small act of kindness each day to our environment. What a great idea! Allison, I think society has a way to go before we start seeing real improvements, but like you, I regained some faith in humanity after reading the book.
ReplyDeleteI hope you both enjoy the rest of your summers! Thanks again.
Even before reading No Impact Man everyone can admit our society pollutes the water, soil, and air of our planet, while reading the book I felt guilty that my family and I needed to do more for the environment. I agree that by the end of book humanity can turn its self around, but we need to all do our small part and one person or even one country can’t clean up the world alone. The number one problem that our consumer based society needs to reduce is our trash output, this is something that every person, home, and industry can be a part of. Beavan’s statistics of the waste produced by can average American is just too high. We don’t really need that plastic bag from the store to carry the one carton of milk home. If everyone used reusable bags the amount of plastic bags floating around the environment would reduce drastically. Industries are no exception to reduction of waste. Beavan states that 98% of waste produced is not even used by the consumer. Cutting industry waste by 2% would decrease the amount of resources needed even further than if one individual cut his/her waste by 2%. I agree that there is hope to reduce waste and clean up the environment, but only if everyone joins to do it.
ReplyDeleteAndrew Onofrio:
ReplyDeleteColin is not your average joe, for two reasons: he published a book (something nobody I know has done) and has gone on to become something of a minor media darling-something the average guy isn't a part of, save for firefighters, cops, nat'l guard troops, and the like.
As I was reading No Impact Man all I could think of was the quote, “You can’t change the world unless you change yourself.” These words are simple, yet insightful. It gives us a true meaning of living. I feel as though it’s easy to tell someone what’s right or wrong; what to do or not to do, but what makes a true impact in someone’s life is not telling them what to do but leading by example. The fact that Colin took the initiative to not just talk about the problems the world is having with global warming and pollution but actually acting upon them led me to listen to what he has to say and also change my ways. I may not go overboard like he did by spending a year without electricity, takeout, toilet paper, or motorized transportation, ect. but I will at least take into consideration a few acts towards making the world a better and cleaner place. I’ll continue to recycle, not liter or use electricity excessively. This reading came me a new light on my life and I hope I too can stop blabbing on about this and actually take action.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started the book, I wasn't very interested in it. Once I gave it a chance, I found many of Colin Beavan's ideas and principles to be very interesting. The statistics he provided surprised me. They started to make me think hard about what we as a whole should start doing to help save our planet and even become happier people. Our lifestyle isn't getting us anywhere. Our lifestyle is making us depressed and upset about the way we live so wouldn't it only be logical to change the way we live?
ReplyDeleteOnce I read this book, I did the same thing. My family and I decided to go out and buy locally. We have been unplugging many items we aren't using. No Impact Man was definitely an eye opener for me and my family.
ReplyDeleteLauren Blais said..
ReplyDeleteSara, I completely agree with you. Before I read this book I thought I was doing a good job at recycling, turning off the lights when I leave the room, and doing other simple little things. Which I think is why when I first started reading this book it wasn't that interesting to me, but after I got deeper into it I became attached to it. I didn't want to put it down because I just wanted to find out what happened next. I liked seeing how problems would come up and how he would calmly find a solution to fix the problems. Even though he was trying to complete a "no impact project" he took his time in finding out the best way to resolve a situation that would come up.
After completing this book I find myself trying to do more for the environment. Before I thought I was doing enough and doing well at the simple stuff but now I feel like I can't do enough. I'm leaving for URI in just a few days so I've limited my time for television and the computer before I leave my family because I want to spend as much quality time with them as I can. Doing this just makes me realize that when you do try to cause less impact on the world you create better relationships with people you never knew you could. This demonstrates the idea of simplicity, which is just one of the simple lessons "No Impact Man" teaches us more about.
I agree with you about him being an ordinary man. I thought it was interesting how we weren't reading about the efforts of a famous scientist trying to stop global warming. We were reading about the experiment of an ordinary person. The whole experience stemmed off of an idea he was passionate about. It was even a little bit inspiring, because it showed how his career blossomed after he went after his goal. I guess it just goes to show that success ultimetely comes to those who are passionate about what they do and have such an optomistic approach to it.
ReplyDeleteI also thought it was ironic how I was just finishing up the book when hurricane Irene struck Connecticut, leaving my family without power for 4 days. I felt myself living through his experiences and I even saw myself taking small steps to save energy. I would discourage my parents from using as many paper plates and I since have cut down on eating processed food. Definetely a great read and I enjoyed it very much :)
When I first started reading No Impact Man, one of the elements that I liked the best was that Colin was just an average guy- with his way of speaking, he wasn’t presenting fact after fact or trying to persuade or guilt the reader. Rather, he was just sharing his story of how he tried to make as little impact on the environment as he could. In the “big picture”, I think this works for the better. Sometimes, when someone uses methods of fear (ex: “The world will soon end if we don’t ______), it has an immediate impact, but it can eventually fizzle out. With Beavan’s story, we can remember things that he said and what he did, and apply that to our own lives. I’m sure that most people that read his book either changed one of their habits, or seriously considered it. Even though I have not tried all of his ideas, I do try to use less plastic and drive less. I think that these little things could definitely lead to better changes!
ReplyDeleteJillian Popek
No Impact Man really made me think about the lifestyle I am living, and how the things that I feel I "need" to survive are really just trivial objects that have the potential to hold me back in life. Beavan refers to the memories of his grandparents at different points in the novel; he remembers the times they used to make him simply sit at the table and observe the world in silence. I think this is what society is lacking. We are to caught up in our internet and our television, and our gaming systems, to actually take a second to observe the world around us and to see how we are impacting it.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Beavan Was an extremest. He went to such great lengths to prove a point to society, that it is possible to make no impact and to survive for a year and longer. He started out small and worked his way up, until he ultimately made no impact. I think that everyone should at least try to follow in his footsteps. Start small and work your way up, and if you find that it gets to hard stop and stay at the level you are at, at least you will still be doing something beneficial to the environment.
Beavan has inspired me to at least try to cut back, and thats all he really wanted was for people to try. I am going to follow suit and stop creating trash, stop buying things I don't need, and to turn my television off and take a walk.
After reading No Impact Man I realized how small changes in one’s lifestyle can make a huge difference. Due to the fact that Beavan was not some well-known scientist or over exposed celebrity he was a perfect example to prove that anyone has the ability to make a difference. I believe that anyone who reads this book will take it upon themselves to make some change that will better the environment. Personally this book has had a great impact on me, I now try to reuse anything I can and purchase natural products. As Beavan explained making changes would be hard but ultimately it would be worth it.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Colin’s point that balancing our negative impact with a positive impact is crucial to saving our planet. I think people need to get more involved and volunteer to pick up trash, to plant trees, to protect our water systems, etc. I’m also going to the farmer’s market more often in order to purchase locally grown food. Not only is the food fresher, but also, I know exactly which farms the food is coming from. Eating locally grown and organic foods also materially reduces the amount of chemicals and hormones consumed. However, I think it is a travesty that our government does not do more to ensure that our food supply is safe by enforcing stricter food regulations that reduce chemical and hormone use significantly.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your point that a lot of us are distracted by technology and other quick fixes. I believe Colin referred to it as the “hedonic treadmill”, in that, we think that buying more things and having more distractions will make us happier. I find this to be so true. The moment we buy something new, we are excited, but this moment of happiness is fleeting because there is no real depth to it. Having close friends and family and living for a higher purpose are what will give us lasting happiness. So maybe if our society did not depend so much on consuming goods, we could be even more content and lead more fulfilled lives. - Alex Geremia
I agree with what Sara said about having more time to spend with friends and family by living greener lives. When we are sitting behind a television set or a computer all day it is making us more socially awkward. It becomes harder for us to communicate with peers. Watching tv and surfing the web also takes up a lot of our time that we could be spending with friends. Technology is not only ruining our relationship with people but it is also destroying our plant. When we are leaving computers and tvs on and phones and chargers plugged in we are using unnecessary electricity. It is wasting energy.
ReplyDeleteIsabella Natale