As an Eco-Consultant my goal is to help people make choices that promote healthy living spaces and sustainable operations, protect the environment and save them money.  I am passionate and excited about helping people become aware of specific environmental issues  requiring their attention and showing them how they – as individuals and organizations – can implement the kind of changes that will make a difference in the quality of their own lives and the lives of their families or co-workers. The bonus is that there are financial and planetary benefits to creating healthier, eco-friendly lifestyles, homes and businesses.

Please join me here for updates on this journey of greening up our world. I will be blogging about steps for greening up your home and business, everyday environmental hazards, green products and technologies…and much more!  You will find lots of useful tips you can apply to your everyday life.  I look forward to hearing your comments.

…In the meantime, here is some background information about my journey to becoming an Eco-Consultant.

I have been passionate about the natural environment since I was born, but was really inspired to work on behalf of the planet when I participated in Ontario’s Junior Ranger Program at the age of seventeen.  That led me to the Environmental Studies program at the University of Waterloo in 1979 – back then, many of my friends assumed anyone in that kind of program wore Birkenstocks, smoked a lot of pot and was an activist for any cause that wasn’t main stream. They were partially right. To my surprise, there were many ‘clean-cut’ students whose parents were architects and developers – they were there because they wanted to make a difference, to understand better the implications of human actions on the health of people, their communities and the environment.

As I moved onto a Master’s Program in Environmental Studies and working for the BC provincial government, I was frustrated that individuals, governments and corporations just didn’t seem to care about what was going on – from the environmental and health impacts of excessive energy consumption, depletion of clean water resources, toxic waste, excessive paper and plastic usage and acid rain to greenhouse gas emissions.  I was in despair about the fate of the planet and humankind.  That sense of despair is shared by many people who care about their health, the health of their children and the incredible beauty and bounty of the natural world.  However, back then, no one I knew spoke about this type of despair, understood it, or gave it any kind of credence. That is now changing as the growing field of environmental psychology is becoming more mainstream – the realization that depression and despair and a host of other feelings are not just personal pathologies, but can actually be attributed to our connection and concern for the natural world and the fate of future generations.

I was curious about human behaviour and spirituality and gravitated to the vast and highly insightful study and practice of Yoga. Many years of yoga therapy training and teaching not only informed my own perspective on life but help me better understand human nature and what is required to cultivate balanced and healthy states of mind and living. This awareness along with my renewed interest in green building, sustainability and environmental education has brought me to where I am today – with a new business venture and hope for a greener more sustainable future.

I am encouraged that the growing awareness of the link between environmental problems and human health is causing individuals and groups at all levels of society to consciously consider the environmental and human health risks of their actions.  The green or sustainability movement now has some momentum, but it will be fuelled by individuals like you and me.  Mahatma Gandhi stated that “you must be the change you want to see in the world”. Placed in the context of “green” living, this principle means that, if all of us wish to improve the environment in which we live, each individual must make the choice to implement change through his or her own behaviours, activities and decisions. That change, often begins with the smallest choices – choices when added together can have an enormous and positive effect.  For example, “if every family in just the United States were to purchase one package of recycled toilet paper versus one made out of virgin paper (regular toilet paper), more than 1.4 million trees could be preserved each year” (Eco Institution).  For example, “It is estimated that if 5% of retailers and their suppliers in Canada reduced their energy consumption by 10%, the energy savings in the first year would provide enough energy to power 454,000 homes, the city the size of Ottawa, or would be equal to taking 233,000 cars off the road” (Greening Retail, Canada).

With gratitude,

Sharon