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<\/a>\nHer traditional cape house is easy to spot as you go up her street \u2013 it stands out like a happy spring flower in yellow with evergreen pachysandra all around the front and sides.\u00a0 Inside, Susan welcomed me to her cozy kitchen with a cup of tea, and had laid out a\u00a0couple of printed pages<\/em>\u00a0listing all changes she has made in her living to be a greener citizen.\u00a0 \u00a0Wow, that\u2019s impressive!\u00a0 How did she do it?\u00a0 Well, for one, she is committed \u2013 \u201cI think of myself as a person who cares, so that means I should make changes if they can be beneficial\u201d \u2013 and for another, she does it with others, with community.<\/p>\n
Although her commitment to the environment goes back to the 1980s \u2013 after reading\u00a0Diet for a Small Planet<\/a>\u00a0by Frances Moore Lapp\u00e9 Susan started eating lower on the food chain \u2013 a big change came in 2008, when she joined an EcoTeam.\u00a0 An EcoTeam is a small group of friends and\/or neighbors who get together six times once a month, and go through an eco-cleanse of the household following the practical guidance of an\u00a0EcoTeam handbook<\/a>.\u00a0 Each month, a different topic is tackled: water use, energy use, waste, travel, and so forth.\u00a0 At each meeting, you share how things are going with the others on your team.\u00a0 \u00a0Plus, doing one thing at a time made it all easier: \u201cWhen you do one thing, you realize it\u2019s not a big deal.\u00a0 Then you have energy for the next thing.\u201d\u00a0 But I think it\u2019s also doing it\u00a0together<\/em>\u00a0that helps.<\/p>\n Outside of her own household, Susan also creates change together with others. She had a career as the director of membership at the Trustees of Reservations.\u00a0 When she retired, she took a walk with a friend to discuss what to do, and her friend said, join the League of Women Voters.\u00a0 So she did.\u00a0 There, she eventually became the president (she is currently membership chair).\u00a0 The League and Green Needham often work together because of the two groups\u2019 shared focus on climate change.\u00a0 She also (successfully) ran to become a member of town meeting, after seeing a green initiative go down while sitting in the balcony as a spectator \u2013 because she figured she\u2019d rather be a part of the group of people making decisions.\u00a0 \u00a0In fact, Susan says, \u201cIt\u2019s basically what I do.\u00a0 I socialize with friends, and I am an active member of organizations and groups that I care about.\u201d\u00a0 Community.<\/p>\n