Green Hispanics?

Filed in archive Latin Culture , Latin Issues on October 22, 2007

HispanicAd asks: Man vs. Naturaleza: How 'green' are Hispanics?

They say "being green to Hispanics is less of a lifestyle statement and more about a pragmatic application to real life". That's true; and I think that's mostly because life in Latin America is very different from life in the U.S.

As the article points out, Latin America hasn't yet reached the same level of prosperity of the United States (which comes with "abundance of materials and the luxury of waste").

But there's another thing: we (Latinos) live closer to the Earth, to the nature; we live a simpler life, whether it's because of poverty or because we are used to. We see things differently, and we are not as "industrialized and manufactured" as more prosperous regions of the world.

The article lists several examples of how our relationship with the environment is positive:

- Electric bills, for example, are extremely expensive in Latin America so there is a tendency to leave lights off longer, not leave the radio or TV on too long, and go lights-off earlier at night

- Many immigrants did not have home appliances in their home country so there is a built-in behavior to wash clothes and dishes by hand

- Water heaters are non-present in homes or they are many times electric, so water usage is more tightly monitored in the household than in the U.S.

- And just overall, the importance of economic austerity for day to day survival have made Hispanic Dominants in the U.S. more frugal and less wasteful

Of course, there are also negative examples:

- Given the low education levels and minimal government awareness programs, waste management practices are not as good i.e., there is less recycling

- Also given lower levels of education, there is less social responsibility which many times leads to misuse and abuse of natural resources

Via: Bilingual Life