I really appreciate your taking the time to talk to us about this, Sandi. I've adopted a lot of not-so-great habits since I moved from New York (where recycling is a mandate).

I'm thrilled that at work, I was able to request a recycling box to put papers in, and that my department voluntarily recycles plastic bottles and cans. It's not extremely green, but it's a start.

I also resonate with the "luxurious" aspect of green living. The problem of poverty can prohibit some people from participating in greener living. In some parts of Africa I have visited, conservationists are more concerned with the lives of animals in the savannah than they are with the livelihood of the folks who hunt those animals for survival. And in the Bronx, where I grew up, my mom would have a choice: make a larger carbon footprint to find fresh vegetables and fruits in Manhattan, or settle for neighboorhood markets. Supermarkets in my part of town sold a lot  more processed foods and almost no fresh fruit and vegetables at all (but ironically, almost everything in our neighborhood stores was more expensive).

I can't wait to watch the Planet Earth series, since we (incidentally) just got it from Netflix!