moving toward sustainability
David W. Taylor loves to feel the sun on his back, earth in his hands and the cool breeze on his face as he tends to his chickens and herb garden on his small farm in Southern Indiana. But Taylor is no ordinary farmer; he is also a biology professor at IU Southeast and an expert in sustainability.
“I originally started [the farm] because of ethical and health issues with the raising of chickens [by corporations]. Then people started asking to buy them, so I began trying to make it an economic venture,” said Taylor. “We are not getting rich in any way, but we can support our community and people that are interested.”
Taylor is part of a growing community in Southern Indiana that is trying to promote sustainability not only in their personal lives but also in the region as a whole. It's a trend becoming so popular that Taylor along with others at IU Southeast are working on building a minor and certificate in sustainability, with the goal of creating an entire degree dedicated to the practice.
“Its a growing field for three reasons. The very real environmental reasons, the ethical reasons and the economic reasons,” said Taylor. “And our BA is going to address all of those by blending all of these fields.”
Taylor said they are not the first to offer this BA. The trend of sustainability is a national one that is growing larger every day. But even though Southern Indiana is not unique in this, we are unique in our dedication to sustainability.
Taylor said there are some spots in Southern Indiana that have taken on the charge of building more sustainable businesses. He said Nu-Yale, a local dry cleaning service, led the way for sustainable cleaning, meaning they don't use toxic chemical.
"They thought in the long term it would be healthy for environment, worker health, save them money and the customers would like it,” said Taylor. “And if you take the are as a whole, we are rapidly growing.”
He also said there are some areas we could easily improve on. For instance, power production. Northern Indiana has already invested in sustainable energy by building large wind farms to harness the plentiful wind resource in that area. On the other hand, Southern Indiana, which has a substantial river and sunlight to draw upon, has invested little in sustainable energy.
Taylor said he doesn't believe that there are any evil corporations or politicians that hate sustainability and are actively blocking it in the area. But he does believe that many people are under or miseducated on the issue. And that the best thing we can do to promote this issue is to simply education others.
“Government isn't as fast to do it as I would like. They are stuck in their ways, used to doing it a certain way, and are unsure of it,” said Taylor. “But people are realizing this is very important issue on both sides, and they are beginning to supporting it.”
Taylor said he understands the government's hesitation to fully fund sustainable projects in the area, because they are not easy. Taylor said his small farm is the perfect example of trying to live sustainably while also growing economically. The larger his chicken production grows, the harder it becomes to live sustainably, especially while not using pesticides, herbicides or other artificial compounds.
He said that it has been hard to keep up with demand. But they recently invested in solar panels for their farm, and they are hoping to reap the many benefits from that.
“We use solar now. And it will take 12 years for it to pay off. But then we will have another 20 years where the sun powers our farm for free,” said Taylor. “So there is an upfront cost, but it's no more than any other investment.”
He said that many people are joining him in making a long-term investment in sustainable living, to the point where soon it will be not only economically viable but profitable.
“Millennials are much more interested in organic foods and sustainable living, and many businesses realize it's a great way to save money too,” said Taylor. “Suburu have a zero-landfill plant, not only because it saves them money, but because they can market that to those interested in sustainability.”
Uric Dufrene, vice chancellor of Academic Affairs at IU Southeast, said he agrees with Taylor. During his time at the IU Southeast School of Business, Dufrene did regional analysis of growing business trends, one of which was sustainability.
“Companies that position themselves as whatever attracts customers with an interest in that. Restaurants who use local farms to source their food attract customers interested in that,” said Dufrene. “And with sustainable practices, they lower their costs as well. And there are usually tax incentives as well.”
In a report recently published by World Wildlife Fund and CDP, the economic prize for curbing carbon emissions in the US is $780B between now and 2020. And the report puts the return on investment for green practices at 233 percent.
But living sustainably isn't all about the numbers and profit margins. There is a huge health factor, and not just physical health but mental health as well.
Kelley Morgan, an associate in the Department of Natural Resources for Ohio River Greenway Project, said that their work is about beautifying and reclaiming the banks of the Ohio River for the residents.
“I originally started [the farm] because of ethical and health issues with the raising of chickens [by corporations]. Then people started asking to buy them, so I began trying to make it an economic venture,” said Taylor. “We are not getting rich in any way, but we can support our community and people that are interested.”
Taylor is part of a growing community in Southern Indiana that is trying to promote sustainability not only in their personal lives but also in the region as a whole. It's a trend becoming so popular that Taylor along with others at IU Southeast are working on building a minor and certificate in sustainability, with the goal of creating an entire degree dedicated to the practice.
“Its a growing field for three reasons. The very real environmental reasons, the ethical reasons and the economic reasons,” said Taylor. “And our BA is going to address all of those by blending all of these fields.”
Taylor said they are not the first to offer this BA. The trend of sustainability is a national one that is growing larger every day. But even though Southern Indiana is not unique in this, we are unique in our dedication to sustainability.
Taylor said there are some spots in Southern Indiana that have taken on the charge of building more sustainable businesses. He said Nu-Yale, a local dry cleaning service, led the way for sustainable cleaning, meaning they don't use toxic chemical.
"They thought in the long term it would be healthy for environment, worker health, save them money and the customers would like it,” said Taylor. “And if you take the are as a whole, we are rapidly growing.”
He also said there are some areas we could easily improve on. For instance, power production. Northern Indiana has already invested in sustainable energy by building large wind farms to harness the plentiful wind resource in that area. On the other hand, Southern Indiana, which has a substantial river and sunlight to draw upon, has invested little in sustainable energy.
Taylor said he doesn't believe that there are any evil corporations or politicians that hate sustainability and are actively blocking it in the area. But he does believe that many people are under or miseducated on the issue. And that the best thing we can do to promote this issue is to simply education others.
“Government isn't as fast to do it as I would like. They are stuck in their ways, used to doing it a certain way, and are unsure of it,” said Taylor. “But people are realizing this is very important issue on both sides, and they are beginning to supporting it.”
Taylor said he understands the government's hesitation to fully fund sustainable projects in the area, because they are not easy. Taylor said his small farm is the perfect example of trying to live sustainably while also growing economically. The larger his chicken production grows, the harder it becomes to live sustainably, especially while not using pesticides, herbicides or other artificial compounds.
He said that it has been hard to keep up with demand. But they recently invested in solar panels for their farm, and they are hoping to reap the many benefits from that.
“We use solar now. And it will take 12 years for it to pay off. But then we will have another 20 years where the sun powers our farm for free,” said Taylor. “So there is an upfront cost, but it's no more than any other investment.”
He said that many people are joining him in making a long-term investment in sustainable living, to the point where soon it will be not only economically viable but profitable.
“Millennials are much more interested in organic foods and sustainable living, and many businesses realize it's a great way to save money too,” said Taylor. “Suburu have a zero-landfill plant, not only because it saves them money, but because they can market that to those interested in sustainability.”
Uric Dufrene, vice chancellor of Academic Affairs at IU Southeast, said he agrees with Taylor. During his time at the IU Southeast School of Business, Dufrene did regional analysis of growing business trends, one of which was sustainability.
“Companies that position themselves as whatever attracts customers with an interest in that. Restaurants who use local farms to source their food attract customers interested in that,” said Dufrene. “And with sustainable practices, they lower their costs as well. And there are usually tax incentives as well.”
In a report recently published by World Wildlife Fund and CDP, the economic prize for curbing carbon emissions in the US is $780B between now and 2020. And the report puts the return on investment for green practices at 233 percent.
But living sustainably isn't all about the numbers and profit margins. There is a huge health factor, and not just physical health but mental health as well.
Kelley Morgan, an associate in the Department of Natural Resources for Ohio River Greenway Project, said that their work is about beautifying and reclaiming the banks of the Ohio River for the residents.
“For years we have been building right up to the edge of the river, and then when the river rose it would completely flood the area and carry all that debris back into the river,” said Morgan. “We want to reclaim all of these natural floodplains and create parks for the local residents.”
Morgan said that reclaiming the river would reduce flood damage and pollution of the river by providing the river with its natural flood plains. But returning this highly developed area back to its natural state would also be an invaluable lesson in sustainable living and how we as a community value our natural resources.
Morgan said that it would also give the residents something to be proud of, because the program works closely with residents to decide on what each area wants to dedicate their greenspace to.
“New Albany has a amphitheater because they valued their music and plays, Clarksville has the Falls of the Ohio, Jeffersonville has the Big Four bridge,” said Morgan. “But others may decide they just value the natural beauty of the woods in their area. Every park has a unique aspect to it, which is what makes this project so special.”
Morgan, along with the others, said that this trend of sustainable living is no flash in the pan. As environmental concerns continue to grow, and people continue to promote sustainability not only with their words but with their dollars, Southern Indiana would do well to continue investing in the future.
Morgan said that reclaiming the river would reduce flood damage and pollution of the river by providing the river with its natural flood plains. But returning this highly developed area back to its natural state would also be an invaluable lesson in sustainable living and how we as a community value our natural resources.
Morgan said that it would also give the residents something to be proud of, because the program works closely with residents to decide on what each area wants to dedicate their greenspace to.
“New Albany has a amphitheater because they valued their music and plays, Clarksville has the Falls of the Ohio, Jeffersonville has the Big Four bridge,” said Morgan. “But others may decide they just value the natural beauty of the woods in their area. Every park has a unique aspect to it, which is what makes this project so special.”
Morgan, along with the others, said that this trend of sustainable living is no flash in the pan. As environmental concerns continue to grow, and people continue to promote sustainability not only with their words but with their dollars, Southern Indiana would do well to continue investing in the future.