Like most people I am on the grid, complicit with the “system” and sometimes to my chagrin, very connected to the global economy. However, As a Schumacher fan (disciple?), I have been questioning the health of our super-global, feedback loop of an economy for a while and gradually opting out of certain transactions I deem unecessary.

It is becoming evident that economical and ecological choices can naturally intersect. I know we’re in an economic mess, but in some ways I feel like I have been preparing myself for this for a while.

I am mid-way through a yearlong fellowship program and I have started thinking about ways to save money in preparation for a potential gap in employment when it ends. Over the past few years, I have been making small changes to my lifestyle for mostly environmental reasons, but as I reflect, I see those changes are also distancing me from the culture of consumerism. 

Here are my favorite ways to save money:

Taking a walk/ riding my bike: I do this for transportation, fitness and meditation. I cancelled my gym membership in 2006.

Shopping at thrift and consignment stores: Apple Core in Rocky River is my favorite for work attire.

Open Air on Market Square: Saturdays in Ohio City, sunshine, music and people watching

Gardening: a good reason to be outdoors and growing food from seed saves money and reduces the carbon footprint of my diet.

Levin College Forums: Urban education for free!

Cleveland Public Library: Truly the peoples’ university and I've already paid for it with my tax dollars. About 2 years ago I essentially stopped buying books, dvds and cds. CPL has nearly everything I want and requesting a book online is as easy as ordering from Amazon.com. You may have to wait a little longer, but the library will send it to the nearest branch.

Tremont Artwalk: see art, eat hors doeuvres, drink wine, run into people you know with minimal planning and no expense--unless you buy the art.

Rockefeller Park Greenhouse: a free greenhouse. You can take a stroll outside in the gardens and inside of the greenhouse. 

City Fresh: Reasonably priced, fresh local produce. They offer a reduced rate for folks with lower incomes. 

At home facials: Steam face over a pot of hot water, exfoliate with sea salt and olive/coconut oil, wash with face soap, moisturize and you’ll radiate beauty.

Cobbler: I have started cobbling my shoes instead of treating them as disposable. The Italian Cobbler does a good job at a reasonable price.

Reducing my water bill with a simple greywater system and not paying to flush my toilet. 

And here are the ways I plan to start saving money in the future:

Cohabitation: splitting my utility bills in half 

Eat out less, cook more

Buy less coffee out, brew more at home. 

Attend more free cultural events instead of buying tickets to shows

Work on my home yoga practice and take less classes

Learn to make my own adult beverages: mead/wine/beer

Potlucks: host some potlucks instead of dinner parties where I do all the cooking

Urban Planning Hack

I submitted a Neighborhood Improvement Project Proposal to Ohio City Near West Development Corporation. The CDC is hosting a neighborhood competition and I decided to advocate for a beautification project South of Lorain.

As an amateur urban planner with limited Photoshop skills, I'm not sure how well received my proposal will be. The OCNW board of directors will pick the top 3, and then the OCNW membership will vote on the winner during the annual meeting in April.

The funds for the project will come from fundraising revenue OCNW earns throughtout the year. 

One of the reasons I chose to submit an idea is because many people don't consider my neighborhood to be part of Ohio City. In fact, my neighbors refer to Ohio City as the area to the North of them--they don't identify with that moniker.

My proposal is to commission a mural, painted rubbish cans and rain gardens created by the Building Bridges Mural Program's Summer Mural Institute.