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To hear Mark Mahoney tell it, you haven’t
seen green until you’ve been to Los Angeles. He says residents there
have gone gaga over green, exchanging their Lexus cars for
fuel-efficient Priuses and dining at vegan and organic restaurants
that seem to populate every corner. "People in L.A. would gladly
trade in all their worldly goods and live in huts," he jokes of
the permeation of green living.
Educated on sustainability at his job
in communications at Kohler Co. and inspired by attending the TED
Conference in California, an eclectic mix of the world’s thinkers
and doers — from Al Gore to Jane Goodall to Bono — the Milwaukee
native has put a Midwestern spin on eco-living and created his own
blog, ECOmahoney. He views himself as a green filter for those wanting
to live a more healthful lifestyle, helping them find eco-friendly
home, food and fitness products, and offering them practical tips and
philosophical insight.
"Sustainability and eco-living to
me are important, but you just can’t do it from a very high
corporate standpoint, or in L.A. or New York," he says. "My
goal is to connect your Average Joe and the small business guy."
The key to going green is to start
small, he says. You don’t have to overhaul your lifestyle, just
adapt a little here and there. "By simply changing out a product,
you are not making a big impact on your lifestyle, but you are making
a big impact on your bottom line and on the environment," he
says.
Mahoney is speaking to men in
particular. "It’s something that a lot of guys disregard,"
he says. "We don’t take care of ourselves as much as we should.
There is a great opportunity for men to live healthier, better lives
and to be a little bit more eco," he says.
He calls himself an
"eco-geek," combing through literature and all things green
to discern between fact and fiction. "I’m doing what I can to
make sure I’m on the leading edge of everything that’s going
on," he says. "I want to sort things out."
Samples from his blog include:
"Earth Hour is a Sham … pass it on," "Great Guy
Plants: can’t kill ’em and they’re not pink" and info on
how he reused an old bed frame to make a plant box.
Mahoney says his eventual goal is to
springboard from his blog into a money-making enterprise. "Right
now, I’m just having fun with it."
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