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By residents Dale Steffens and Mary Hankins
As a younger generation earns a reputation for activism on issues like climate change, many older adults are also passionate about the environment and want to make a difference. They’ve seen wastefulness and a throw-away culture increase in their lifetimes, and are concerned about the kind of world they leave to their grandchildren and those who come after.
The good news is even in retirement you may be able to make more of an impact than you think.
Here are a few ways we’ve been able to get involved as residents here at White Horse Village.
Using our voice
We have more than a dozen people on our Sustainability Committee, including management, so we can share ideas and work together.
Some of the ideas we’ve developed include replacing older work transportation with electric vehicles, building wildlife habitat on campus, adding a community composting area, switching to plant-based cleaners, and reducing the use of disposable dishware in dining.
Education is key, so we also share our knowledge of best environmental practices with our neighbors, one-on-one, and in planned forums.
Thinking green
We’re lucky enough to live in a retirement community with lots of green space, and that’s really the place to start with earth-friendly policies. Lawns and gardens, carelessly run, can get heavy doses of chemicals and pesticides, and damage nearby waterways with nutrient runoff from fertilizer.
We try to educate our neighbors on the benefits of changing their lawn practices, and have worked with management to implement these practices in our shared space.
If you’re willing to live with a few dandelions, then cutting lawn herbicides is a great step. Also, look for ways to encourage native plants. Diverse plant life can help local animal and pollinator populations thrive!
A rain garden can collect and filter stormwater to keep pollutants out of streams and help replenish groundwater supplies.
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