How

How to Make the U.S. a Better Place:

1. Apply the principles of permaculture in agricultural practices (Open Source Ecology)
2. Have affordable DIY industrial machines available that allow communities to be self-sufficient (Open Source Ecology)
3. Make our decisions with the benefit of 7 future generations in mind (Oren Lyons)
4. Resist fracking in our communities (Lori Babbey)
5. Stop subsidizing the overproduction of corn (Curt Ellis)
6. Halt the use of environmentally destructive, cancer-causing pesticides/herbicides like atrazine in our industrial agriculture (Curt Ellis)
7. Stop putting high fructose corn syrup in food (Curt Ellis)
8. Learn about the environmental challenges we face. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
9. Recycle. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
10. Make sure our tires have enough air in them. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
11. Replace our standard light bulbs with energy-saving bulbs. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
12. Avoid buying products in lots of packaging. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
13. Take a slightly shorter shower – heating water uses a lot of energy! (Yolanda Kondonassis)
14. Adjust our thermostat – down 2 degrees in the winter and up 2 degrees in the summer. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
15. Turn off all our lights and equipment when not in use. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
16. Take our own reusable bags to the grocery store. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
17. Switch to reusable water and drink bottles. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
18. Plant a tree (or several!). (Yolanda Kondonassis)
19. Talk to our family and friends and encourage them to be part of the solution. (Yolanda Kondonassis)
20. Institute a systematic screening and diagnosis procedure for people affected by oil spills (Cherri Foytlin)
21. Create stricter oil drilling standards and greater oversight (Cherri Foytlin)
22. Stop disproportionately putting waste transfer sites in low-income and minority communities (Rogers-Eubanks Coalition)
23. Help families have their own food gardens in food desert areas, such as Native American reservations (Aubrey Skye)
24. Set up reservation farmers markets with traditional, wild & edible foods (Aubrey Skye)
25. Establish community gardens for kids to give them a sense of purpose (Aubrey Skye)
26. Sponsor weekly, free CSA shares to low-income families in food desert areas (Rev. Robert Jeffrey)
27. Circulate community-owned agriculture into local community establishments (Rev. Robert Jeffrey)
28. Use healthy, local food in schools (Rev. Robert Jeffrey)
29. Stop mountaintop removal (Mark Utley)
30. Establish a national strategy that focuses on youth development, international development and diplomacy, sustainable energy and sustainable agriculture (Capt. Porter and Col. Mykleby)
31. Totally overhaul our economic scheme; focus on clean energy and green jobs (Marshall Herskovitz)
32. Institute full disclosure with communities in industrial practices (Wilma Subra)
33. Clean up polluted air (Cherise Udell)
34. Ban coal-fired power plants and freeways near schools (Cherise Udell)
35. Retrofit diesel city buses (Cherise Udell)
36. Have idle-free zones (Cherise Udell)
37. “Green” open-pit mines (Cherise Udell)
38. Continue/support the Clean Air Act (Cherise Udell)
39. Clean up our polluted rivers (Earth Conservation Corps)
40. Mentor teens/provide training & certification for green jobs (Earth Conservation Corps)
41. Use environmental art to build communities and foster collaboration (Daniel Dancer)
42. Enact zero discharge water pollution policies for companies located near communities (Diane Wilson)
43. Hold company CEOs liable for pollution (Diane Wilson)
44. Lift oil companies’ damage liability caps (Diane Wilson)
45. Adopt shelter animals instead of going to breeders (Ashley Owen Hill)
46. Stop automatically regarding pit bulls as vicious creatures (Ashley Owen Hill)
47. Use discarded plastic bottles to create PET (Earthtec)
48. Use organic cotton & organic wool in clothing (Earthtec)
49. Shorten chains of production (Earthtec)
50. Don’t allow gas drilling in parks (Jen and Jim Slotterback)
51. Enact stronger regulations in the natural gas industry (Jen and Jim Slotterback)
52. Have a system to help citizens harmed by the fracking process (Jen and Jim Slotterback)
53. Support small, local economies instead of big-box corporations (Rev. Billy and the Church of Earthalujah)
54. End our reliance on credit cards (Rev. Billy and the Church of Earthalujah)
55. Resist forming our identities by our consumption practices (Rev. Billy and the Church of Earthalujah)
56. End dolphin captivity and performances (Ric O’Barry)
57. Allow communities to ban fracking locally (Jodi and Jeff Andrysick)
58. Stop using dangerous chemicals in fracking fluid (Jodi and Jeff Andrysick)
59. Use sustainably sourced materials in the fashion industry (Summer Rayne Oakes)
60. Make human health the bottom line in all manufacturing decisions (Theo Colburn)
61. Divest corporate interest of government decision-making (Theo Colburn)
62. Use alternatives to fossil fuels (Theo Colburn)
63. Form green energy sectors in former manufacturing towns (Mayor John Fetterman)
64. Start urban agriculture in former manufacturing towns (Mayor John Fetterman)
65. Do grassroots community building through art (Mayor John Fetterman)
66. Stop using helicopters and snowmobiles in the winter sports industry (Jeremy Jones)
67. Use our people power (voting power) to convince our Congresspersons to take climate change seriously (Jeremy Jones)
68. Establish another wolf safe zone in the U.S. (Doug Smith)
69. Buy less stuff (Annie Leonard)
70. What we do buy, get better quality (Annie Leonard)
71. Demand more from our tax dollars (Annie Leonard)
72. Be engaged citizens first (not consumers) (Annie Leonard)
73. Increase our social connections in our communities (Annie Leonard)
74. Use alternative energy sources, green building practices, and reduced waste at schools (Portsmouth Abbey School)
75. Bring bear pepper spray any time we’re hiking in bear country (Casey Anderson)
76. Live small (Jay Shafer)
77. Change housing codes to allow smaller dwellings (Jay Shafer)
78. Buy sustainable seafood (One World One Ocean)
79. Reduce plastic pollution (One World One Ocean)
80. Expand the ocean’s protected areas to 10% (One World One Ocean)
81. Keep chemicals out of baby’s feeding routine and household cleaning (Beth Shea)
82. Use cloth diapers and reusable baby wipes (Beth Shea)
83. Buy wooden, non-toxic, handmade toys instead of plastic ones (Beth Shea)
84. Use chemical-free bath products, bath tubs and bath toys (Beth Shea)
85. Remove your shoes at the door to avoid bringing in pesticides, lead dust and pollutants (Beth Shea)
86. Become informed about unconventional hydraulic fracturing- the new “fracking”. Know all the risks. (Dr. Anthony Ingraffea)
87. Eat sustainably caught fish and follow the recommendations of the Marine Stewardship Council and the Monterey Bay Aquarium (Bamboo Sushi)
88. Have dialogue with people who don’t agree with you (Leilani Münter)
89. Consider your meal’s carbon footprint (Leilani Münter)
90. Use reusable shopping bags and energy efficient light bulbs (Leilani Münter)
91. Oppose trapping on all public lands (Trap Free New Mexico)