I know being green means many things to many people. I, for one, view living green is the only logical way to live – without waste and without creating a harmful environment for my kids.
But what do moms think about living green? Why do they think it’s important and how do they manage their green living?
Well, I participated in a survey conducted by Social Studies Group – a social media marketing group – and while you can read all about what we green moms said here, I just wanted to give you a brief glimpse of what the survey found. According to The Social Studies Group, eco-moms surveyed were a group of “a vigilant, ardent, curious and well educated community with a particularly sharp focus on the micro aspects of environmentalism that relate directly and immediately to families.” In other words, we knew what we were saying or at least, feel passionately personal about what we said.
Two facts that the study mentioned were sort of a “no-brainer” to me but for marketing purposes, I guess the points have to be driven across.
1. We do more than we talk about it – more moms are living green than ‘talking’ about it on blogs and social media. This was no surprise to me. Although, I blog about my personal green journey, most people don’t blog about theirs. In fact, I know many people who live very frugally (unintentionally being very green all the while) but don’t blog about it. My extended family lives an unintentionally green living because it’s the way they always lived but they don’t blog about it. And frankly, unless your purpose for being on facebook and twitter is to get your green message out to the masses, you wouldn’t necessarily shout out that you bought CFL bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs on your wall every time you have a green moment. Maybe you do and maybe you don’t but most people might not always mention about their green journey on social media.
2. “The role of mothers has become more sophisticated as more and more women are choosing regardless of educational level to spend time with their families and to seek out flexible ways to manage their career and their homes.” – OK. This quote bothers me a little. Maybe I misconstrued their meaning but are they saying that if women didn’t or couldn’t spend more time with their families, that they are NOT sophisticated? How about just stating that “…more and more women are seeking and trying to find a solution to spend more time with their families while managing their careers”? There’s no sophistication or educational status attached to our constant battle in trying to juggle both. This statement left a small twang in the back of my mind. They are probably making this “duh” statement for marketing purposes but really? If you look around, this fact seems like an “old” news to me.
But all in all, the report was interesting as I learned these facts about eco-moms and where I fit in.
1. More than 50% of moms surveyed said that becoming a mom was a tipping point of starting their green journey. – This didn’t apply to me exactly but for most moms, I guess becoming a mom make them aware of the environment and making a safe world for their children. For me, I’ve always been green – maybe a shade lighter before I started staying home, but was always conscientious about how our environmental health affected our physical health.
2. Green moms use social media heavily to engage in green talks. – This is true for those who “talk” about their journey. That would be me. I have a many friends and fans on facebook and twitter who share their green passion with me and vice versa. It’s a great community to share our ideas, vent, rant, and listen to each other on whatever comes to our minds about the environment and family. We support each other and learn a lot from each other.
So, where do you fit in this spectrum of Eco-Moms? Do you want to be my ‘friend’ and ‘fan’ or ‘follow’ so that we can dish about the environment and other mom related issues? Here are my links.
Facebook Profile: http://www.facebook.com/ecokaren
Ecokaren Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/ecokarenspage
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ecokarenlee
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Thank you for taking the time to really dig into the report! As we sifted through all of the data, we too were most struck by what we learned about the “green moment.” We’re beginning to see its significance beyond understanding one’s initial motivations for starting down a green path.
A quick note about use of the word “sophisticated”, and what we actually were trying to say (though not as clearly as we would have hoped, it seems!). We were referring to the roles of mothers becoming more sophisticated (complicated) and in addition, but not necessarily because of the increasing complexity of our roles as mothers, pointing out that regardless of education, more and more women are seeking and finding nontraditional means to marry career and family. I hope this clarifies things!
Hi Angela,
I guess I wasn’t “sophisticated” enough to know that you meant we are “complicated”. LOL….!
Now that you explained it, it’s a little more clearer to me and I couldn’t agree with you more. The role of a mother has changed so dramatically since June Cleaver that it’s sometimes hard to tell what needs to be more emphasized – bringing home the bacon or cooking it. But one thing for sure, decision to be green at home definitely depends on Moms and I am happy to know that more moms are embracing the concept and who cares that it started only after they became a mom. Better late than never, right?
Thanks for such an empowering report. I hope your clients will use the report wisely and help us towards the right ‘green’ direction. I’m glad I was able to help participate in the study.
Thanks again!
How interesting, Karen! I’ve never thought of myself as fitting much of a generalization, but this one almost fits.
And also funny timing – I posted about my green parenting dilemma yesterday too!
http://picnicbasketcrafts.blogspot.com/2010/09/green-parents-dilemma-what-happens-when.html if you are interested in reading my documentation of the morning’s un-brainwashing of my precocious but highly suggestable little one.