Green life in the city: Clothes from the street, recycled water
Haaretz
July 10, 2007
By Tamara Traubmann
In the early afternoon, Tami Zuri picks lavender, melissa and mint from the flower pots on her balcony in north Tel Aviv. She is preparing a drink for the participants in a workshop she will be giving shortly on producing vegetable dairy products.
This urban ecologist has decided to live a "green" life in the city, with minimum consumption and maximum benefit for the environment.
Her latest project, "a tree in the city," is forming a community with the help of the Internet site citytree.net, which promotes ideas like community gardens and ecological apartments in Tel Aviv.
An adviser on urban ecology, Zuri gives workshops for preparing compost and conscientious consumption, which takes into consideration both people's health and avoids animals' suffering in farms. Among other things, Zuri teaches how to prepare cream and cheeses from almonds and nuts.
Zuri, 40, was born in Tel Aviv and graduated from the graphic design department of the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design.
"When I began my quest I had no environmental awareness, I simply felt bad and wanted to feel better," she says. "At the age of 29 I went to New York, where I was exposed to 'unlimited possibilities' - everything was big, fast and convenient. Gradually I began to see the quantities of garbage and wastefulness that this way of life involves, but also that there are many local communities there and a possibility to lead an ecological life."
Today she leads her life in ultimate defiance of the consumption culture. Since her return from New York about three years ago, she has bought no clothing or furniture, and has collected everything she has from the street.
Sitting in her living room, which is lit only by sun rays entering from the wide windows, she is dressed in a sleeveless T-shirt and printed skirt - both of which she found in the street.
"Since I started collecting clothes from the street, I've become a different woman," she says, pulling a pinkish coat with a faux fur collar out of the cupboard. She found it still on the hanger from the dry cleaners.
Zuri tries to follow the natural principle that nothing in the life cycle is redundant. Leaves falling from trees become animal fodder, their waste fertilize the soil that feeds the plants, and so the cycle is repeated.
She uses the food leftovers of the building's residents to make compost. The pile of rotting leftovers sits behind the apartment building, creating fertile soil teeming with life and smelling like a forest after the rain.
An organic farmer delivers fruit and vegetables weekly, which complements her shopping in small nearby health food stores. Not only do these sell organic products, but her shopping supports small businesses that are not part of the relentless vulture culture of the big chains.
Another principle she adheres to is avoiding fanaticism. So when some organic product is unavailable she buys the regular one. She uses as little water as possible, to avoid waste and prevent overloading the city's sewage system, and collects the shower and dish washing water for using to flush the toilet. While she showers she washes delicate clothes, treading on them in a tub, the way they used to do laundry long ago.
"An average Israeli family uses all the water you save in one shower. Doesn't that make your effort meaningless?" I ask her.
"I do these things because they makes me happy," she says. "Yes, I want to spread the word, because the choice of each one of us makes a difference; but I expect people to behave responsibly, to adopt only the things that suit them - it's not all or nothing.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/880080.html