3Qs with Josh Dorfman, The Lazy Environmentalist

Josh Dorfman is an environmental renaissance man: he’s taking action on climate change through paths that range from business to book-writing to biking.

“It can be a pain in the butt to go green,” Dorfman said.  His philosophy is that people want to make changes for the good of the planet but they won’t want to deal with inconveniences and expenses.  And they don’t have to, as he explains in The Lazy Environmentalist, and its sequel, The Lazy Environmentalist on a Budget, to be published next year.  His philosophy extends to his company, Vivavi, which sells stylish, sustainable furniture and accessories for the home.

Last week, Dorfman participated in the Climate Ride, a bike trip from New York City to Washington DC, to raise awareness and funds for climate change.  Dorfman rode as spokesperson for the FilterForGood campaign.  He says he agreed to support the campaign because its environmental goal — to reduce plastic bottle waste — is a non-negotiable step to reducing our carbon footprint.  Moreover, as a self-proclaimed Lazy Environmentalist, he appreciates that the campaign asks for a change from ordinary people that is easy and cheap: filling reusable bottles with filtered water.

“Most Americans are not in this environmental dialogue,” Dorfman said, “but campaigns like FilterForGood bring them in.  It’s a simple step to make a difference.  It can be integrated into daily life.  That’s the Lazy Environmentalist point of view.”

1. What was your environmental epiphany?

It was 1995, the year after I graduated from college.  I was living in China, teaching English, and thinking about a career in diplomacy.  I worked part-time at a Kryptonite bike lock manufacturing facility in Nanjing.  In a call back to Kryptonite headquarters in Boston, I said, “Guys, there’s 10 million bikes in the US and 1 billion in China.  We should be selling the locks here.”  They ended up opening a factory in southern China.  In the parking lot of the Chinese headquarters, there were all these Mercedes and expensive cars.  I realized that, although they were Communists, they had a lot of pride in their cars, and it wasn’t about bikes — it was about cars.  With the economic boom, there would be millions more of them on the road.

I thought, What in the world are we going to do?  I’m not an environmentalist — but you don’t need to be one to see what’s going to happen. Whether I believe in global warming or not, this is going to be bad.

I returned to the US, got an MBA, and my focus shifted to this post-globalized world, where business anywhere is going to effect the world.  I thought about it for 5 to 6 years.  Frankly, I was scared, freaked out, and angry.  There was a lot of resistance to taking steps to deal with the environmental crisis.  Six years after coming back from China, I was tired of being angry.  I decided I was going to try to make the green lifestyle attractive so that it’s not about guilt and not about values.  My message was simple: “Why don’t you check it out?”

2. Who or what are you inspired by right now in the green movement?

I experience ups and downs.  Sometimes I’m inspired and then I’m tired and nervous because I’m not seeing change happen fast enough.  But in my research for The Lazy Environmentalist books I found thousands of innovators and entrepreneurs working to develop solutions.  In the newspapers, environmental news is doom and gloom.  But I’ve discovered so many people who are involved in making green awesome.

I’m also very inspired by Van Jones.  I saw him speak in March.  Van is the man.

3. What are three ways you actively reduce your carbon footprint and one way you don’t?

My apartment runs on wind energy, which I buy through Con Ed.  So we’ve got that going for us, which is nice.

I use low-flow shower heads.  Everyone should have one.  Best bang for your buck, man.  Reduces heat, energy, and water bills.  I also use a low-flow faucet aerator.

I don’t own a car.  And I don’t really consume much — hey, I’m a lazy guy.

And the way I don’t?  I love cheeseburgers.  Yeah, I eat meat.