Consuming Places: a Bioregional Comparison of Voluntary Simplicity Lifestyles
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Consuming Places: A Bioregional Comparison of Voluntary Simplicity Lifestyles By Lauren Drakopulos A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Geography College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Saint Petersburg Major Professor: Rebecca Johns, Ph.D. Chris Meindl, Ph.D. Alison Ormsby, Ph.D. Date of Approval: April 26, 2013 Keywords: Sustainability, Consumption, Political Ecology, Everglades, Sonoran Desert Copyright © 2013, Lauren A. Drakopulos Dedication I dedicate this thesis to my loving parents, who instilled in me the importance of hard work and perseverance in the face of adversity. Without them I would not be where I am today. I also dedicate this to my siblings Heidi and Teddy, whose inspiration and consultation have helped me find my path. I would like to offer special thanks to my partner Kevin for always being there as a sounding board, editor, cheerleader and friend. Thanks also to my dear friends for all your words of encouragement and support and to Aimee for always accommodating my special scheduling needs. Acknowledgments I would like to express my deepest appreciation to my committee chair and mentor Dr. Rebecca Johns for her guidance, enthusiasm, encouragement and friendship. For the sake of brevity I will simply say, her role in my professional and personal development has been profound. I would like to offer special thanks to Dr. Chris Meindl for his patience, good humor and expertise, and for always keeping his office door open. I wish to acknowledge Dr. Alison Ormsby for her invaluable feedback and constructive recommendations as well as for her knowledge and assistance with the research on intentional communities. Words can’t express my appreciation and respect for all my research participants and host communities. Without their kindness, openness and trust this research would not have been possible. Special thanks also to all of the organizations and individuals who assisted in recruitment and supplemental interviews. Table of Contents List of Tables ........................................................................................................ v List of Figures ....................................................................................................... vi Abstract ................................................................................................................ ix Chapter One: Introduction and Review of the Literature ....................................... 1 Voluntary Simplicity ................................................................................... 2 Intentional Community ............................................................................. 11 Bioregionalism ......................................................................................... 12 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................ 13 Chapter Outline ........................................................................................ 15 Chapter Two: Methods ....................................................................................... 17 Case Study .............................................................................................. 17 Study Sites ............................................................................................... 18 Identifying Simplifiers ............................................................................... 19 Intentional Communities .......................................................................... 21 Wind Spirit Community .................................................................. 22 Earth-N-Us Community ................................................................. 23 Conducting Research at the Communities .................................... 24 Urban Center Residents .......................................................................... 26 Recruitment ................................................................................... 26 Data collection............................................................................... 29 Data Analysis ................................................................................ 33 Part I—Sonoran Desert Bioregion ...................................................................... 35 Chapter Three: Bioregional Ethnography ........................................................... 35 Physical Geography ................................................................................. 36 Climate and Biome ........................................................................ 36 Geologic Origins ............................................................................ 41 Flora and Fauna ............................................................................ 43 Watersheds ................................................................................... 47 Human Geography .................................................................................. 50 Indigenous Populations ................................................................. 50 European and American Settlement: The Era of Extraction .......... 52 Urbanization and the City of Phoenix ............................................ 56 Demographics .................................................................... 58 i Transportation .................................................................... 59 The Urban Core .................................................................. 60 Political Climate .................................................................. 60 Environmental Issues ......................................................... 62 Watershed Management ............................................................... 62 Water Conservation Efforts ................................................ 67 Foodsheds .................................................................................... 69 Summary ................................................................................................. 70 Chapter Four: Results: Sonoran Desert Bioregion ............................................. 73 Urban Center Residents .......................................................................... 73 Participant Introductions ................................................................ 75 Defining Simplicity ......................................................................... 78 Origins and Motivation .................................................................. 80 Simplicity and Education ............................................................... 81 Waste Production .......................................................................... 82 Resource Consumption ................................................................. 83 Water ................................................................................. 86 Energy ................................................................................ 89 Fuel ................................................................................. 90 Food Production and Procurement ............................................... 92 Building the Foodshed ........................................................ 93 Time and Money, the Limiting Factors .......................................... 97 Community and Culture ................................................................ 98 Summary ..................................................................................... 100 Intentional Community ........................................................................... 104 Community History and Description ............................................ 104 Site Description: Getting the Lay of the Land .............................. 106 Membership Structure ................................................................. 115 Decision-making and Bylaws ...................................................... 118 Community Activities ................................................................... 119 Resident Responsibilities ............................................................ 120 Current Residents: Participant Profiles ....................................... 121 Practicing Voluntary Simplicity .................................................... 126 Living on Less .................................................................. 128 The Decline of Society ..................................................... 130 The Occupy Movement .......................................... 131 Work for Wage ................................................................. 132 Misconceptions ................................................................. 133 Convenience, Time and Money ........................................ 133 Living in Community .................................................................... 135 Community-Community Relations .................................... 137 Living Close to the Land .............................................................. 138 Climate ............................................................................. 140 Arts, Healing, and Spirituality ...................................................... 140 Summary ..................................................................................... 143 ii Part II: The Greater Everglades Bioregion ........................................................ 147 Chapter Five: Bioregional Ethnography ...........................................................