Green Optimism in Iowa

Everyone talks about the green economy and green jobs.  I have attended many events in Los Angeles where the “greenerati” congratulate themselves on how progressive they are and if only more of the country would follow our direction.  Here's the issue:  many already are.  I recently had a conversation with Melanie Fritz of Burlington, Iowa:  she's one of millions in the USA who endeavor making our economy a more sustainable one.  As Melanie explained, “It’s easy to recognize other green thinkers in a city where green ideas are common—it is another to feel you are an alien in a city starting from scratch to move the wheels of kindness and respect for our earth from people who are trying to scratch out a living feeling they cannot sacrifice more of life to survive.”

  Melanie is an Iowa native.  She grew up on a farm outside of Burlington, the largest city in Southeastern Iowa with a population of about 30,000.  From the age of seven, she has been a vegetarian, which is probably not the most popular stance in a hog-raising state.  She eventually moved west to California, spending time in Sacramento, Oakland, San Francisco, and Vallejo.   She graduated from from San Francisco State with a Geography and Environmental Science degree.  Her jobs included working at the largest retail horticultural nursery in Northern California where she began her studies in holistic medicine; as an intern at the Environmental Protection Agency in the Drinking Water Section; at a San Francisco wholesale/retail distributor that turned recycled metal French “junk” into beautiful objects for the home, and as a volunteer for a creek and trail restoration project in Oakland; among various other environmental volunteer positions.  Like many Bay Area residents, she worked in the hot industries:  in her case, the mortgage industry, where she had her own business as a loan signer (maybe that was her when I refinanced the condo I used to have in Benicia!).

  Fast forward a few years later.  The mortgage industry dried up, and like many of us who had bills to pay, she worked commission-only sales jobs and other temp jobs to make ends meet.  She finally decided to move back to Iowa; her mother requires more care; the farm, although leased, still requires someone to look after the property. Athough the cost of real estate is lower in SE Iowa, the cost of living is comparable to that of California (she explained this used to not be the case a decade ago) which to her doesn’t make sense when wages for the most part are not much above minimum wage ($7.25 in Iowa).  She knows that streamlining affordable green living would attract the masses and is on a quest to assist them in their day to day issues, including how to put fresh green vegetables on their table and to teach an appreciation for the land from which the food comes. 

  Melanie is looking to enter the green technology sector.  The challenges are many.  Like many small rural communities, Burlington suffers a brain drain.  Young people move away in search of work; others stay because their community is all they know, they are too old to move, or started families at too young of an age.  Such problems are not unlike issues we see in the inner cities.

  One challenge that Melanie does NOT face is support in her community.  When she mentions that she's interested in the green tech sector, and will volunteer at an upcoming renewable energy fair, the universal response is that every one's eyes light up.  There is definite interest in green technology:  perhaps the enthusiasm emanates from the desire for decent wages over becoming more "sustainable," but so what?  The point is that from the most liberal bastions on the coasts to America's heartland, we have a definite thirst for cleaner technologies, which offer the opportunities for more jobs.

  Melanie is doing everything right in her quest to find her "green" job:  she talks to whoever she can, she's reading and researching the issues, and she's volunteering at any event she can:  in her case, the Aldo Leopold Renewable Energy Fair the first weekend of October in Burlington.  She is also working on other ideas to get her name out there:  contacting her local and state officeholders; creating groups and pages on web sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook; and looking into starting a regular event in Burlington like GreenDrinks or a speaker series.

  I have a feeling there are thousands like Melanie who want to do good while doing green.  I'd like to hear what others in small towns and rural areas are working on in order to attract green and sustainable job opportunities into their communities?