Hands on Greater Portland: Teamworks

As part of project "Meet People And Get Out Of The House" I signed up for a Teamworks event with Hands on Greater Portland. The project is a series of volunteer events surrounding sustainability and consumption. I chose it for a few reasons, the first is the acquisition of stuff. I'm a total shopaholic. I have a closet dedicated to my extensive shoe collection and I have a myriad of outfits left over from my Camarilla days that I can't give away.

I do my best to make my shopaholic-ness as focused around used products as possible. I spend a lot of time at various Goodwills and other charity shops seeking out bargains. And I try to note the days where I'm not wearing anything used, which are pretty rare. Most of our furniture is second hand or even rescued from dumpsters and refinished. So I've got the "re-use" part down. But there's still a lot I don't know about the processes behind where these things originate before they hit the donation pile.

My big question mark? Where do the metals come from? My employers do their best (and I mean this sincerely) to do business in ethical ways. We recycle or FreeGeek everything that can be. Our packing materials look excessive, but reduce the need for styrofoam "peanuts." Our production staff have a 4 day work week to combat energy costs and commutes. But the metal for our products has to come from somewhere. And from talking to various coworkers, finding US factories that would supply us with materials just isn't practical. We wouldn't be able to sell anything and that's what keeps us in business.

And those metals are used in everything. So while Apple is saying their new MacBook is the most sustainable one yet because it keeps batteries out of landfills, they don't answer more relevant questions. When does the hardware go End Of Life? Or where the hell did all that copper come from? I'm hoping portions of this experience will explain, or at least try to explain.

The first thing we did as a team was watch the Story of Stuff as presented by Annie Leonard. Let me say, I hated it. I found it patronizing and ill researched from the get go. I'm wary of statistics that are round. 75%, 80%, 90%, 60%, for one thing. How often do our numbers fall into round categories? And there may be a huge difference between 73% and 77% in numbers and in impact. So that failed to win me over.

I thought her explanations were overly simplistic. And while it's just a 20 minute video, her assertions desperately need some evidence that comes from impartial bodies. Even green groups and NGOs have an agenda. I'm far more likely to believe something that comes from the Christian Science Monitor than Greenpeace.

She was also completely wrong about how to upgrade computers. She thinks that just because the chip is different, you can't then retain the video card, or the hard disk, or the DVD-Rom. Sure, there are marker points in IT. The change, for example, from IDE to SATA, single to dual core, and AGP to PCI-E makes complete overhaul necessary. But those benchmarks are few and far between. The 'ecological' differences between LCD and CRT monitors are huge. She should be championing LCD over CRT technology. LCDs use less electricity, are easier on the eyes, are less toxic and take up less space in landfills.

She also missed the unusual demand elements behind computers, sort of entertaining, considering her whole platform is based off the Internet. Computers aren't just products, they're information and communication portals. For many, they're the gateway to all kinds of information they wouldn't have otherwise. And without computers and Internet connections, Leonard wouldn't be able to preach her sermon to a privileged few. What really drives the demand behind computers isn't necessarily about conspicuous consumption, in fact the advertising behind PCs is completely different from the advertising for things like cars and clothes. The current Vista/PC campaign by Microsoft features little tykes creating slide shows of their favorite things. They're being creative, inventive and informed. The Mac commercials are showing how "green" they are and previously featured their alleged security over Windows platforms. Contrast that to Mazda's Zoom, or Abercrombie and Fitch's dangerously young appearing models and you can see how different the targets are. Well, if you're anyone except Leonard.

So no, I wasn't at all impressed by the Story of Stuff. What did impress me was how the organizers behind our Teamworks handled it. I'm getting used to brainwashed zombies lumbering through Portland muttering about "Sustainability" while holding a iPhone and drinking from Peet's coffee cups. And I'mvwatching the slow death of that same industry from my front door. People don't have money for things like eco-friendly cotton, or ethically sourced Arabica beans. One by one the shops on 23rd that surround "eco" are closing, but there's a Dollar Tree opening.

We were encouraged to discuss our class privilege when thinking about environmental issues and consumption. And also to tear apart Leonard's ego stroking video. It was a nice change from what I've experienced in the past, which is blind belief and mindless following. Consuming in the name of eco-friendly consumption. And while I still don't know where the copper in my laptop comes from, I'm at least thinking about it a little more.