Page 66 - Green Builder May-June 2017 Issue

FROM THE TAILGATE

New Offerings for the Sustainable Minded By Ron Jones

The Beauty of Choice

HE QUESTION IS NOT what you look at, but what you see.”
When he wrote those words in the mid-19th century,
Henry David Thoreau was possibly suggesting that
beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. But perhaps
The also meant that each of us is seeking what satisfies
us the most, not necessarily what appeals to the greatest number
of our neighbors.
It may be fair to say that for the most part humans are social
creatures. Additionally, probably few other species are so specialized
and as interdependent as people, which has a good deal to do with
how we are able to avail ourselves of a seemingly endless set of
options to choose from in our daily lives.
Imagine how narrow the choices for most of us would be if we
were evenly distributed across the surface of the world. Instead, the
majority of the human population of the planet resides in cities and
towns, with all indications being that the trend to congregate will
continue as urban populations increase and the percentage of those
who reside in rural settings shrinks accordingly.
Those who promote sustainability generally agree that this is a
good thing. A concentrated human population provides opportunities
for greater efficiency in infrastructure and the distribution of goods
and services. And urban dwellers can reduce their personal carbon
footprints numerous ways, most notably in the area of transportation.
Fortunately, the shelter industry as we know it today has responded
to urban dwellers in their collective search for basic protection from
the elements and for things that help determine a person’s quality of
life. Comfort, security, convenience, efficiency, flexibility, affordability,
privacy (which is increasingly hard to come by) and many other
attributes combine to make multi-family living more desirable than
ever for many people.
Architects, designers and engineers have made it possible for
developers and builders to deliver safe, comfortable, attractive, recognize the fact that our chosen lifestyle is possible thanks to
high-performance housing options to millions of individuals and the desires of so many millions to gather in the population centers
families in modern times. This allows urban planners and municipal around the globe.
governments to provide residents with access to basic services, I am pleased that those who find enjoyment and security in the
culture, the arts, endless consumer options and the company of nearness of others are able to satisfy their wants and needs. And, I am
like-minded people. admittedly grateful (perhaps somewhat selfishly) that by doing so they
Of course, not everyone seeks the close proximity of others in his unintentionally contribute to my opportunity to reside where I do, in
or her living arrangements. Thoreau also wrote, “Nothing makes the what is quietly known as the least-populated county in the lower 48.
earth seem so spacious as to have friends at a distance; they make If there is any worthwhile takeaway from this muse, I think it’s
the latitudes and longitudes.” that the most important thing those of us associated with the shelter
For those of us who prefer solitude and the beauty of nature to industry can provide is the ability for people to be able to choose
the hustle and bustle of the urban environment, or the star-studded where they want to live. It is our duty to preserve that choice. I would
night skies to the bright lights of Broadway, it is important that we like to think that Thoreau would agree it’s a beautiful thing. GB

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