Green Gossip: Does Parenthood Make You More Eco-aware?

Green Gossip is an exclusive Earth 911 series that lets our writers talk about their experiences with everyday green issues. In this episode, Brandi Powell reflects on motherhood and its connection to Mother Earth.

Approaching the counter with my movie candy in hand, I knew my four-year-old daughter was up to something. She had a particular look on her face. The cashier began ringing up the candy and placing it in the standard plastic bag when my little one stepped up to say, “No bag please, it hurts the Earf.” This mini activist outcry got me thinking.

Is the new role of parent affecting my outlook on environmental issues? Is it just me, or has the green trend always been a part of the parenting position? Am I learning more from my child, or is she learning from me?

Safety First

Being greener while being a parent starts with the simple interest in keeping my child safer, right here, right now. According to the National Safety Council, more children under the age of four die of accidental poisonings at home than are accidentally killed with guns at home. I thought I had safety covered, but not just the standard items can be poisonous.

After the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health analyzed 2,983 chemicals used in personal care products, 884 were found to be toxic. Usually your personal care products aren’t kept under the kitchen sink! Not to mention the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s study of chemicals commonly found in the home, 150 of which were linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological abnormalities. What?!?

History Repeats Itself

Parenting greenly is not a new trend. The Great Depression impacted people of its day so severely that they practiced the act of reuse to not waste anything. That mindset was passed down a few generations.

Pass it On

How do I educate my child on the significance of a greener lifestyle? One solution is communication. I can continue dialoguing with her about things that concern me about our planet. Leaving wasteful individual sizes behind and trudging forward into bulk has been a discussion topic between us several times over the past year. Even from the bags we don’t use, to what ends up in our recycle bins, she is a sponge ready to absorb.

I, as a result of parenthood, am becoming more eco-friendly by default. Another person to care for means money is tighter and that means conservation. Wasteful living decreases in order to accommodate that extra mouth to feed. The previously untitled conservative living by our grandparents now has a name and a larger purpose.

As I am continually learning and growing in knowledge, my daughter is too. She has seen this new leaf turn over and it’s transforming the way we live. She reminds me to grab my reusable bag and I move towards more natural cleaners to wash the dishes. Now I know, Grandma wasn’t crazy to save everything. She was living a life of conservation, a key component to being a green parent and one I am practicing.