OK…so by now we’ve all seen and heard them more times than we care to remember.  Those words.  You know the ones.  “Organic”.  “Sustainable”.  “Green”.  “Earth-Friendly”.  I’m just as guilty as the next guy.  My company, Urban Organics Landscaping, has been touting the benefits of organic and sustainable landscapes for over a decade.  There exists now in our world the superabundance of terms used to describe efforts that are more responsible than conventional methods.  Maybe we should just shamelessly give in to the urge, that newfound verdant compulsion, and call them eco-expressions.  There.  I said it.

And I’m not just talking about words used to describe produce and farming.  I’m referring to all types of products and services – post-consumer recycled clothing, green-themed magazines and fair trade coffee.  Organic vodka, recycled backpacks and eco-friendly bedding.  Are these once-sustainable monikers becoming over-used, ubiquitous and annoying?  Maybe.  Are they getting watered down or undermined in the process?  Most-definitely.  But is their use absolutely essential?  You bet.  Not until all industries recognize that their footprint is more than just some spent paper packaging in the landfill or the consumer begins to understand the affect that their actions or in-actions have on the big picture, can we even consider beginning to leave these terms in the dust.  There’s got to be some way to differentiate, to turn the spotlight on people and businesses that are considering the shift from the right here and now to around the corner a ways and years down the road.   And my guess is that the deeper we delve into the alternatives, the more we’ll see a push for governance - some way to know, for certain, what these words mean (rather than “buy this product because we say it’s healthy”, of course).   Maybe excess administration isn’t the perfect-world scenario but, frankly, I’d rather have a long list of guidelines that serve to clarify than be saddled with insincere opportunists taking advantage of the situation.  Ultimately, though, it’s our actions that will speak louder than whatever unoriginal or overly-governed words we choose to use – even if they are eco-expressions.

Jason Isenberg is owner of Urban Organics Landscaping, a locally-owned landscape firm specializing in sustainable design, construction and maintenance practices.  He can be reached at (520)791-9131 or online at www.uolandscaping.com.