That was the question posed last night at the Open Center, in a lecture of the same name. The panelists approached sustainability from both an individual and governmental perspective.
Rohit Aggarwala
Director of the Office of Long-term Planning and Sustainability in NYC
According to Rohit, PlaNYC started out as an economic plan. But with 
population projected to reach 9.1 million residents by 2030 (it's currently over 8 million), it became clear that the focus needed to be on sustainability.
One consideration led to another: if you think about land use patterns, especially with regard to housing, you can't ignore transportation infrastructure; when you consider transportation, air quality becomes a factor; a contributor to poor air quality is the city's current energy resources -- yet another layer; and those energy resources also pollute our waterways, so there's water quality to think about.
Its population growth makes New York City unique among old American cities. There was no model to follow. So the mayor's office turned to other cities around the world. For example, London was the model for congestion pricing, which is up for reconsideration. Or as one NYTimes reporter put it, Governor Paterson is "rescuing the controversial program from the brink of death."
Read the full PlaNYC report.
Starre Vartan
One of the original green bloggers (eco chick), author of The Eco Chick Guide to Life: How to Be Fabulously Green, and managing editor for the Greenopia guide
Starre offered up 7 of her top 10 ways to live sustainably in NYC (her time was cut short).
In general, she says to consider what you do most in your daily life, and then figure out how you can make changes to reduce your impact.
[NB. I've paraphrased a bit]
1. Food. Support farmer's markets and local food, as our food miles add a considerable heft to our carbon footprint.
2. Goods. Buy local. There are many great designers of furniture, clothing, and other goods right here in NYC. When you consider a simple article of clothing like a t-shirt, think about all that went into it. The cotton, grown with chemical fertilizers and treated with pesticides is grown in one country. Then it's shipped to another place to be dyed. Then the fabric is sent somewhere else to be sewn together. The tags may be sewn on in an entirely different place. The carbon footprint of a t-shirt is astronomical! (Read about the perfect t-shirt ever made [!])
3. Transport. Keep using public transportation. Bike if you've got one. There are bike advocate groups you can join or support (like Recycle a Bicycle). Limit cab rides or share with a friend (or try a service like Ride Amigos).
4. Toxins. Get them out of your life. One of the simplest, easiest, and least expensive ways to do this is to swap your cleaning supplies. Toxic chemicals from cleaning products pollute our waterways and our bodies. Waste treatment facilities only filter out bio-organisms, so those cleaning biproducts are mixing together in our water. Another way to eliminate toxins is changing your beauty products.
5. Energy. Switch to clean energy through services like ConEdison Solutions, which offer wind and hydroelectric power that feeds into the grid (which unless you're off the grid, and you'd know if you were, you're hooked up to). It may cost a little more per month, but what you're paying for is clean air and health. It's really the one place you should spend a little more to help save our health and the planet.
6. Junk mail. Sign up for services that stop junk mail, like GreenDimes or DMAChoice (I know it works, 'cause I've used it!).
7. Office. Green your workplace. Some motivated employees may already be volunteering to help reduce the carbon footprint of their office. But many businesses still have along way to go to achieve eco-friendly status. Implement recycling, start a campaign to eliminate paper cup use (bring your own!), encourage printing on both sides. These steps will make the office more sustainable and help the bottom line!
Visit Eco chick for more green living tips.
Janna Olson
Sustainability consultant and NYC market manager & researcher at Greenopia
I was excited to see Janna there, as I'm currently taking a class with her (which I'll write about soon). She had some technical difficulties (her Mac couldn't communicate with the overhead projector), but Janna raised some really compelling points -- many of them directed at Rohit Aggarwala.
One of the concepts Janna discussed was distributed energy generation, specifically solar empowerment zones -- a term coined by City Councilmember and Infrastructure Task Force co-chair Daniel Garodnick [OnEarth]. Essentially, buildings in areas of the city that have been identified as suitable for photovoltaic solar panel installation (“low-density areas that have buildings with large rooftops to create a synergy for an entire neighborhood to become solar-powered,” according to Garodnick) would be given incentive to invest in solar. This method makes solar more cost-effective through sharing of maintenance responsibility, tax incentives, and the potential for a consolidated connection to the grid within the zone.
Janna also talked about the usefulness and importance of the Greenopia guide. While helping consumers living in cities like New York find green businesses, the guide helps green businesses -- some of which might have a limited marketing budget -- get the attention they deserve. She also stressed that living green should not be a chore, it can and should be a fun endeavor.
Read an interview with Janna [alldaybuffet].
Sign up for an upcoming eco event at the Open Center:
How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint, and Still Have a Great Life
with Colin Beavan (No Impact Man) and Janna Olson
Friday, January 16 2009, 7:00pm - 10:00pm
