I was over at one of the garden webs; (soil forum, I'm pretty sure, but off side trips to other sites as well) reading some postings regarding how our lifestyles fit in with the sustainable ideal; and whether sustainability and self-sufficiency are the same thing.

I took a little quiz that someone had posted a link to, called the Ecological Footprint Calculator. Still (sigh) don't know how to link, so here's the addy if anyone wants to check it out:

www.lead.org/leadnet/footprint/default.htm

Apparently, I am a planet despoiler of the lowest form, as I use far more resources than I should!! Personally, I thought some of the questions were a bit ummm...limiting, so I'm not taking it too seriously!! Okay, I lie - I was offended!

For example, question #3 "In the US, an average of 25% of food purchased by households is thrown out rather than eaten (due to spoilage, discarded leftovers, table waste, etc...) How much of your purchased food is thrown out rather than eaten?" Answer choices were "None, 5, 10, 25, 33 1/3 or 50%" Well now, that depends! Eaten by whom? Or perhaps, by what, would be a better question! If 25% of my purchased food is not consumed by humans; but goes out the door to the chickens, rabbit, cats, dogs or compost pile; does that mean that I am more of a planet despoiler than someone who only tosses 5%, but does so into a plastic trash bag, bound for a landfill?? And why only purchased food? What about the stuff I grow?

And speaking of growing stuff, we have question #4 "A significant portion of the energy cost of food production is spent on transporting food from harvest to market, and for processing, packaging and storage. Purchasing locally grown, in-season, unprocessed food can greatly reduce the need to expend energy in food production. How much of the food that you buy is locally grown, unprocessed and in season?" Answers "None, quarter, half, three quarters, Most" Like I said, What about the stuff that I grow, rather than purchase? The stuff that I purchase, I do so mostly because I CAN'T produce it myself. Hello.

How about question #8 - "On average, how many miles do you travel on public transportation each week?" What's public transportation? Do we got that out here in the boonies? You know, out here, where folks who live on farms raise all that food to send to the cities to feed folks who sit in a high rise building somewhere and come up with quizzes like this one!

Grrrrr...

So, anyway; I was wondering if y'all consider sustainability and self-sufficiency to be the same thing; and if not, how would you define each one. I don't think they are; but I don't quite have my definitions worked out yet!

-- Anonymous, March 03, 2002

Answers

Well, Polly, lets not roll around on the floor biting and punching each other, but, bluntly, I think you're tilting at windmills (of course, windmills are GOOD to have . . .). I don't think you did the quiz correctly. In fact, the quiz probably isn't all that applicable to you. It's based on average people, which of course, you are not! ;-)

I guess you didn't click on the "Caveat in Small Print", down at the bottom, which says:

The calculation presented here is obviously a gross simplification and does not take into account many details that will add or subtract from your footprint. This calculation will perform poorly for people outside America, since it is calibrated to the average American lifestyle. Also, those Americans who live an atypical lifestyle, for example by avoiding owning cars and new products, by growing their own food, by living on a boat, or by buying less material goods, may not be represented accurately by this calculation. For those who want more details and accuracy in their footprint calculation, we invite them to use our spreadsheet "ef- household.xls" that analyzes people's consumption in over 50 categories.

But regarding your questions: #3 food wastage -- sorry, I find it obvious that food that feeds your animals, your soil, your worms, or your compost pile is NOT WASTED.

#4 How more locally grown, transported, and minimally processed can you get than having your own garden and raising your own meat? Of course you can count what you grow yourself!

Yes, this is designed to apply to people who live removed from the food chain. See caveat above.

I did the quiz. I definitely need to improve. My footprint is about 77% of average. Could be better. And since I think 80% of the biosphere should be kept for other species (and I include trees in "other species"), we'd need 19 planets to support the population if they lived my lifestyle. Shame on me! But all I can do is continue to work on it!

I think there is overlap of sustainability and self-sufficiency, but they aren't interchangeable.

-- Anonymous, March 03, 2002

Actually, I did read the caveat! Just call me Don. (I prefer scratching and hair-pulling myself - VBG!) I think I was mostly just irritated that someone would put something like this out that was so obviously biased. I was at something like 87%. I guess it's just annoying when I look around and see most folks that I know don't even do the bare minimum (I'm STILL trying to get Hubs trained!) like recycle, garden, drive a fuel efficient automobile, USE A DAMN GO MUG FOR THEIR COFFEE RATHER THAN GETTING A CLEAN STYROFOAM CUP 5 X A DAY AND THEN THROWING IT AWAY FOR PITY'S SAKE!!!

But I'm fine now. Really.

Okay, self-sufficiency. Webster's: Able to get along without help; independant. Never gonna happen to me if I can help it. I like outside inputs! I like coffee, I like books, I can't build a computer or perform a myriad of other tasks. I don't wanna! I don't want to live a life of deprivation; and damn, I'm sorry that there are people who don't have the things that I have; but I really don't think giving them up will make those people's life any better. Oh wait, that's the same thing my co-workers say when I gasp and clutch my chest when they throw the coffee grounds in the trash instead of in my nice little cottage cheese tub recycled into a compost hauling container. Hmmmm....

Sustain(able). Webster's again: To maintain; to keep in existance. Well, that I can do, mostly. Sorta. Maybe?

See why I'm confused?!

-- Anonymous, March 03, 2002

I know the words aren't interchangeable but they seem to be closely related.

Its hard to imagine being "self sufficient" without being mindful of sustainability issues. But self sufficiency, in its absolute sense, is virtually impossible without going back in time several thousand years. For example, when was the last time you made up a batch of iron?

I like modern stuff! and don't particularly wanna do without it. But, being able to supply ones basic survival needs seems to be within reach.

-- Anonymous, March 04, 2002

Polly, your chocolate level in the house is running low, you MUST get out to the store ASAP and relenish with some of those Reese's peanut butter Easter eggs, heaven in a package!!!

Folks could get hurt at your house, get in the gas guzzling car/truck and make a "chocolate run" now, better to save lives than worry about the ecosystem right now ;-)!!!

-- Anonymous, March 04, 2002