Class creates site to promote simple, sustainable living

When Lonny Webb was working to finish his senior capstone last winter, his class journal was littered with entries casting doubt on the success of the project. Now he looks back on his efforts with a sense of enthusiastic pride.

He and about 20 classmates, with the help of instructor Rob Bremmer, who told his class to reach out to the community and change some minds, created a Web site called “sustainanomics” (sustainanomics.unst.pdx.edu) through the Multimedia Production Senior Capstone. The site examines ways to live more sustainably without breaking the bank.

Examples range from collecting rain runoff from roofs for future use, to saving money on stamps by switching to paperless billing, as well as drinking beer produced by local brewers. The Web site uses several different forms of media to deliver the messages, including comic strip tutorials, videos, tip lists and a blog.

One of the key components of the site is to inform the community of ways to pull away from the idea that living sustainably costs more. Webb, a manager of the project, said there are often hidden costs associated with many purchases. A bottle of water, for instance, requires plastic that has to be transported, incurring excessive carbon input as well as wear on roads that are paid for with taxes.

John Petrina worked on the creative aspects of the Web site and said sustainability has become a buzzword that often gets dismissed as pertaining only to certain ideologies. He thinks that associating sustainable living with inexpensive living will make it more accessible.

“It’s not a thing to do because it makes you feel good; it’s because it makes sense,” Petrina said.

Bremmer said it does not always take an extreme shift in perspective to be influential. Often times, he said, it only requires having your message be one of the many layers it takes to alter people’s habits.

Besides the creation of the Web site, some of the capstone’s students say the project helped them learn new skills.

Webb, who has experience in management roles, faced new challenges with his management role on the sustainanomics project.

“You have to lead by being a leader, not a manager,” Webb said. Not having any real authority or ability to discipline, Webb said he was able to learn new tools for successfully managing projects.

Throughout the project, Petrina learned lessons in group communication, self-motivation and the ability to adapt to situations.

“This is a springboard to get involved more in community,” he said.

Petrina has since begun taking on projects making videos that seemed daunting before.

“I wasn’t doing this stuff before this class,” he said.

By bringing together people with different interests to achieve a common goal, like in the sustainanomics project, Bremmer said he can better meet the objective of the senior capstone, which is to link together the students’ previous experiences to create a solid, well-rounded education.

“One of my goals as an instructor is to create a useful product that outlives the class,” Bremmer said.

Tips from the site:

-Use a community garden, like the one located on campus.

-Buy lamp timers to help reduce energy consumption, or use your television’s sleep timer constantly.

-Walking is free and the most reliable form of transportation. If driving, keep your car clean and trunk empty to decrease car weight and save gas mileage.

-Recycle in different ways. Use a fabric softener sheet as a duster, or an empty coffee container for storage.

-Grow as much of your own food as possible, including herbs, to save on the gas needed to transport store-bought food as well as to help cut down on packaging.